Cover Image: Marked

Marked

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Member Reviews

Lucky had seen spirits since she was born and this made her not fit in. She had one specific spirit Kayla who has been with her since she was born. Lucky has no family and few friends.Lucky makes a living writing and sometimes consulting with those that have ghost problems. Lucky is then called to investigate a haunting of her old school and agrees to perform an exorcism. Lucky then realizes this is not a ghost problem but a demon. She is now being hunted by a demon assassin Henri le Dent and ends up right in the middle of who will get to rule the Underlands. Lucky is stuck there but determined to somehow get home. Then Lucky is caught up in a love triangle between herself, the Guardian Jamie, and Daeman Of Death Jinx.
I enjoyed this story a lot. It made me laugh at times. I felt bad when Lucky felt Kayla had betrayed her even though it seemed Kayla had good intentions at heart. The plot was good also. I loved the characters especially Lucky and all the ins and outs she goes through in this story. I recommend.
I received an ARC of this story for an honest review.

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This book is an interesting paranormal read. At parts it seemed less polished/developed than it could have been, but overall it was enjoyable. I will read this author again.

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Sue Tingey's "Marked" begins a series I think I'd like to keep my eye on in the future. The story centres around Lucky, a psychic who is hired to address an ghostly issue at her old school, and instead of finding a simple case ends up finding a complicated one that involves demons and an entire redefinition of what she knows about herself and the world around her. It's one of those stories that, just when you think you get a handle on where the plot is going, shifts direction and a new piece of information is thrown at you that makes you re-evaluate what you previously expected. Which is good, really, because it keeps readers on their toes, engaged, wanting to find out what the next curveball is.

There's a strong romantic thread to this book that I'm still not sure how I feel about. On one hand, it's a classic love triangle between the lead woman, her earnest new friend, and a "bad boy" archetype. Done a zillion times in a zillion other places. On the other hand, there are strong hints that rather than having to choose between them and make the readers suffer through that manufactured angst, Lucky will end up with both of them, in what I hope will be a stable functioning triad. I can't say for sure, but that's what the book seems to hint at, especially toward the end, and quite honestly, I think I'd prefer it that way. Partly because I like the dynamic of all three characters, and partly because I think flipping the love triangle trope on its head would be a welcome change.

The whole book really took off, I thought, after Lucky discovered her heritage. The first part of the book was interesting enough, setting up Lucky's past and her abilities and what sort of person she is, but once the Underlands aspect came into play, the whole story became much more engaging. Having to navigate a new world, new society, in which familiarity is expected but isn't possible, in which weakness can't be shown, created an interesting minefield for Lucky to navigate. That being said, it was also frustrating how many times Lucky's entourage flat-out refused to explain things to her or took over representing her "for her own good." I can understand some of the necessity in that, but it rubs me the wrong way when you have a group of dudes constantly telling a woman to stay silent for her own good.

On the whole, I think Marked had more positives than negatives, and even if some things annoyed me, other things generated enough interest in me that I'd like to continue reading the series is possible. I want to see where it all goes. Tingey's writing style is good; maybe in need of a little bit of polish in places, but still good, and I found myself pretty caught up in the story and wondering what would happen next. Worth checking out if you're a fan of urban fantasy and you're looking for something that bucks a few trends.

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