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Series: Tainted by Ruin Trilogy #1
Publication date: July 15th, 2021
Pages: 410
Spice Rating: 🔥🔥🔥
Synopsis:
He was supposed to protect me. Instead, he made me fear the dark. He was supposed to love me. In the end, his love was sickening, cruel and filled with malice.
Five years ago, the only bright lights in my world were extinguished. One decision. One text. One sentence and my fragile life shattered.
I never expected the depravity and lies that greets me when I return to Montecito, leaving me with one goal... To flee and never look back.
Everything changes when three gorgeous guys crash into my life. They're determined to mark me as theirs, and make me question everything I hold true.
But when the ghosts of my past and future collide, who will be left standing? Me... or the monster who coveted me for all of the wrong reasons, turning me into what I am today...
Tarnished.
**Tarnished is the first book in the Tainted by Ruin Trilogy and cannot be read as a standalone. It is a Dark High School Reverse Harem Romance that contains scenes that may be triggering to some. Including: sexual assault (minor), physical abuse & self harm. Recommended for readers 18+**
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Popular Highlights
"Oh look at the pretty birdie," Otis points out, running past me."Seriously, Otis Stryker. How hard is it to follow basic instructions? Get on the bus!" Mr. Marks yells after him, storming towards the linebacker, who is still chasing after the butterfly.
"Complete moron. He is the reason why they have to put directions on shampoo," Jen mutters under her breath, as she steps on to the bus.
Review:
Indiana has been through the wringer her entire life. Between suffering in silence while being sexually assaulted by someone who was meant to be her protector to facing her parents' death the moment she breaks her silence. She is faced with living with the guilt of thinking she was the cause of her parents dying and the loss of her entire family. She was ripped from the home of her childhood best friend and put into foster care where she tries desperately to find peace and happiness once more but she only faces further pain and betrayal of those meant to care for her. That is until she came to stay with the Astors. They are a well-off couple with twins Indiana's age. However, their son seems to have the same darkness she has come to recognize lurking behind his eyes. Indiana is bullied and made to feel less than worthless. That is until her childhood best friend steps back into her life and turns her world upside down once more by giving her the chance to hope for a better life once more. Between the best friend of a lifetime, the tutor with a unwavering faith in her, and a bad boy who treats her like a princess, Indiana may be able to tolerate the scars of her past... until those scars are ripped wide open again when someone she thought was long buried shows up in her home once more.
This book was incredibly dark and can be extremely triggering. The constant references to sexual assault, child abuse, death, and self harm was hard for me to dredge through as someone who has been through a few of those issues personally. However, that did not take away from the story as a whole. There are elements of mystery that kept me flipping the pages and reading through every troubling occurrence the poor Indiana had to deal with. At some points she was utterly alone in her turmoil and I have no idea how to got up in the morning. I would have had a hard time not giving up completely in her shoes. I could feel a connection to the character that I have no felt with other characters from books I have read of a similar nature.
But... there are a few downsides to the story that I noticed. The overwhelming bad in Indiana's life was almost overcasting the good that she experienced with her boys. It made the story more about throwing more and more obstacles in her way than showing the development of the relationships she was forming. Her girl friend who should have been at the forefront of everything as her best friend, was barely a blip. She was there for comic relief and to possibly set the stage for a spin-off series but nothing more.
The book was middle of the road for me. I didn't find myself ravenously driven to keep reading, responsibilities be damned, but I also didn't want to set it aside and forget about it. It was okay.
But... there are a few downsides to the story that I noticed. The overwhelming bad in Indiana's life was almost overcasting the good that she experienced with her boys. It made the story more about throwing more and more obstacles in her way than showing the development of the relationships she was forming. Her girl friend who should have been at the forefront of everything as her best friend, was barely a blip. She was there for comic relief and to possibly set the stage for a spin-off series but nothing more.
The book was middle of the road for me. I didn't find myself ravenously driven to keep reading, responsibilities be damned, but I also didn't want to set it aside and forget about it. It was okay.
