A Tainted Soul

I've never really read horror books before but this one was so good I might give the genre another try. I read it in one sitting.

Firstly I love how descriptive the book is. It was so easy to picture everything. The setting, the characters, even the Dead. Secondly it was so fast paced. There really was never a dull moment and it took so many twists that I really was not expecting. It didn't feel rushed, though. It was a great balance.

It was a really good book that I thoroughly enjoyed.

Backwoods horror at its best! This was such a new setting of horror for me. I was sucked into the Blue Ridge Mountains immediately with the colorful descriptions. Annaya's gift of seeing the Dead leads to some unexpected and gruesome situations. This book still has me wondering who started it all and what else is creating chaos in the mountains!

Annaya is a teenager with the ability to see and touch the dead. These tangible, violent Dead can not only reciprocate, but are suspiciously drawn to her. They attack anywhere, anytime in Annaya's vicinity, immediately inviting readers into her high stakes world. Chapters from her POV are interspersed with ones from a detective, plus a mysterious, frightening antagonist who is hungry for...more than the roadside diner offers. The latter and Annaya are on a collision course throughout the book, a skillful escalation of tension. The first leg of the plot reminded me of King's Firestarter, with a supernaturally gifted child on the run with a parent, but utilizing folk magic rather than scientific experimentation to attribute powers. I prefer this, personally.

This book had an interesting take on "the Sight" compared to other ghost stories, extending to all senses. Another tidbit I enjoyed was the use of music: specific songs are playing on the radio throughout the book, giving the plot a fever dream quality - this could almost be our world.

The settings, and descriptions in general throughout the book are impeccable. I could see grimy wallpaper peeling off walls; smell the stale, oily fragrance of aged roadside dinners in rural Appalachia. The high school is decaying almost as badly as the Dead corpses who torment Annaya, and the crumbling, poorly maintained building is a fitting stage for inciting incidents of the plot.

The minor issues I had didn't detract much enjoyment from the book! Sometimes the narrative was a little unclear (I mistook the Collector for the Eater), and some staples of the plot, like the Dead being tangible for those with Sight, were puzzling: did the fluids and remains of vanquished Dead slowly rot unless those with the Sight cleaned them up, or did they kind of vanish video-game style? Buuuut questions like this also successfully leave it open for a sequel or expansion of the story's universe, and exposition would have stopped the book's rapid pace, which had me gripped as a reader.

All in all, a fine addition to the horror genre, and a must-read if you're into backwoods horror or podcasts like Old Gods of Appalachia.

TWs: violence, murder, gore, death, dismemberment, mutilation of child characters on-page, violence towards child protagonist, walking corpses, consumption of human bodies, brief depictions of bullying.

This book follows the teenager Annaya Roth while she’s quite literally fighting for her life. Wherever she turns she gets attacked by what she calls “The Dead”, but unbeknownst to her something much worse is about to enter her life…
I found some parts of this story a bit confusing, both in some of the characters backstories, as well as some of the choices they made in the book. Similarly, I did not particularly enjoy the ending, but I was intrigued enough to want to pick up a sequel if that were to be written. However, all in all this was a fairly entertaining, quick and fun read. I enjoyed the plot and there was never a dull moment. I also liked that despite this book having its fair share of gore and violence, it did not feel disgusting and nasty, like a lot of books that rely on gore do.
You should definitely give this book a try if you like a good horror story, especially zombie- like stories.
Big thanks to Netgalley, BDA Publishing, and the author A. W. Rene for allowing me to read an E-ARC of this book.

This book was positively fantastic! I don’t know what was going on with me to think that anything happy was going to happen within these pages, my bad.

As much as I despised him, I truly did adore Kenneth’s character, just causing literal horror and destruction wherever he went without a single care in the world. Out of everyone, he was the real MVP.

It’s giving Bones and All vibes, but not as light hearted, which is saying a lot because Bones And All wasn’t entirely light hearted either.

Despised Brandon from start to finish. He got what was coming to him, for sure.

I’m loving the eerie energy that surrounds the specific way the author strings her particular word choices together. You know when you see the word “Maw” that you are in a horror novel. There’s almost no other reason to use that word unless it’s to describe something horrific! Some of the phrases and descriptions came off as tragically poetic which fit the overall energy of the story.

When it comes to horror, this one is positively top notch and I will be recommending it to all my horror loving friends!

Annaya Roth has always been able to see the Dead. But with every birthday, the Dead become more violent. When she turns thirteen, they are joined by the Whispers, which tear everyone around her to shreds. After the Whispers tear apart two bullies at her new high school and Annaya is the main suspect for the murder, her mother takes both of them to see Annaya's estranged uncle. He has been dealing with the same curse his whole life, but will he actually be able to help? Or will going to him uncover truths that make things worse?

I would rate A Tainted Soul by AW Rene 5 out of 5 stars. It was one of the best indie horror books I have ever read. The perspective shifts added to the suspense of the novel, and Rene did an amazing job of weaving in believable and absolutely terrifying twists. Rene included multiple types of demons within the story as well that kept it very interesting.

If you are a lover of horror books that cross into the supernatural realm, this is the book for you. It will keep you on the edge of your seat, heart racing as you try to figure out what happens next. I would absolutely read this book again, and I will definitely be looking for more horror books from AW Rene.

Hi, I just couldn’t get through the book, I am really sorry. I actually read romance books and wanted to try a book from different genres but it just proved to me that anything without romance will not be digested by me. I am really sorry that I asked for book and did not give the feedback. I know that you are waiting for it or maybe other people have given you the accurate feedback. I just could not and I am sorry for it.

Rated up. My Rating 4.5.

AW RENE GOES FULL ON BALLS TO THE WALL IN “A TAINTED SOUL” A VISCERAL AND GRAPHIC BACKWOODS HORROR NOVEL

Sixteen-year-old Annaya and her mother, Samantha, are on to yet another town. After all, what else is there to do when unexplainable things happen and are always centered around Annaya? Now, the two are settled in Asherville, a small Appalachian Mountain town. The place is nice enough, but curiously it doesn’t seem to matter as the Dead find Annaya wherever she goes. Tired of running, Samantha takes Annaya to the one place she never imagined she would go again.

You are all in for a treat with this one. AW Rene is one twisted individual for writing this book, and I love her for it—such a gory, macabre, and menacing horror novel.

Where do I even start? Annaya is a teenager with the “Sight” who can see the Dead. The problem is she is no Haley Joel Osment, and these Dead are not looking to solve any unfinished business. All they seem to want to do is tear her limb from limb. The highlight of this book for me is the descriptive nature of it. AW Rene spares no detail in describing the landscape, the emotion, and every single gory death.

Thanks to NetGalley, BDA Publishing, and AW Rene for the advanced copy. My review is honest and voluntary.