What Happens When Your Soul Dies?
Kat Bloodmayne is one of the first women chosen to attend the Tower Academy of Sciences. But she carries a secret: she can twist the natural laws of life. She has no idea where this ability came from, only that every time she loses control and unleashes this power, it kills a part of her soul. If she doesn’t find a cure soon, her soul will die and she will … she will become something else entirely.
After a devastating personal loss, Stephen Grey leaves the World City Police Force to become a bounty hunter. He believes in justice and will stop at nothing to ensure criminals are caught and locked up. However, when Kat Bloodmayne shows up in his office seeking his help, his world is turned upside down.
Together they search World City and beyond for a doctor who can cure Kat. But what they discover on the way goes beyond science and into the dark sphere of magic.
Book one of The Soul Chronicles series.
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Tainted is the first book in a steampunk fantasy duology. Kat has a secret ability to twist the laws of nature, but it is a danger to herself and to everyone else, and so she does her best never to use it. But sometimes, that just isn’t possible and the consequences are very dangerous.
I enjoyed Tainted. It was a dark-toned steampunk novel with Christian themes that explores the ideas of what happens to a person’s souls when they die and how the laws of the universe work. It was very interesting to read about those ideas. The book is filled with danger, deep questions, romance, steampunk science, and more. The daddy-daughter relationship was very important and very broken in this story, which was sad but good to see how the daughter grows through it. There were also lots of feminist themes, as this was based on the culture of the Victorian Era and the main character is one of the first women to go to the college of sciences in this book.
On the whole, I really enjoyed this novel. It was dark but interesting and fairly fast-paced. I recommend it to older YA and NA readers who enjoy steampunk.
“Tainted” by Morgan L Busse hooked and maintained my interest, and I liked both of the main characters. The steampunk story-world was unique, well-developed, and intriguing.
Morgan Busse has a way with fantasy stories that just suck me in. Tainted was no exception. Kat has a condition that she is desperate to be rid of, problem is, she can’t find the person who can help. The people she should be able to trust and turn to are not safe, so instead, she turns to Stephen. I love the friendship and bond that develops. The book does not have full closure at the end, so I am really looking forward to the next in the series.
I loved this story! Ms. Busse has expertly crafted this epic masterpiece.
Kathryn Bloodmayne is highly intelligent. She’s been chosen as one of the first women students of the Tower Academy of Sciences. Her dream is to work alongside her father, Dr. Alexander Bloodmayne. She hopes to earn her father’s love by being one of the top students of her class and being chosen as his apprentice.
Due to suffering a devastating personal loss, Stephen Grey leaves the World City Police Force to become a bounty hunter. His life becomes quite complicated when Kat comes to him for help. His past clouds his judgement and he unknowingly places Kat in grave danger.
This story is a heart-pounding adventure! I was immediately caught up in the drama of Kat’s life. The twists and turns kept me turning the pages. This story is intense and hard to put down.
I highly recommend this book to those who enjoy steampunk.
I won a copy. All views expressed are my honest opinion.
I really enjoyed this story, and was glad I was able to read the next book immediately afterward. I loved Kat, the complicated setting, and the storyline. Stephen is definitely working through stuff, but trust me read the next book. He does improve. It definitely added to the reality of the story by having characters that weren’t perfect. Morgan Busse has the impressive talent of creating a realistic steam punk novel. This book sets up so many things for the second novel, it’s almost as if they should have been published together. This definitely ends on a cliff hanger.
This is the first steampunk book I’ve ever read and if they are all like this it will not be the last. Morgan Busse created a world that danced through my mind in vivid pictures. A world filled with the most likeable and the most despicable characters I have encountered in a long time. It was a fun read and I can’t wait for the next one to come out. Oh wait, it has and I have it so …
Fabulous story! Cliffhanger ending. Really isn’t complete without book 2, Awakened. Read them together!