Review of Better off Dead: The Lily Harper Series #1 by H.P. Mallory

[Barbara Ann RS]

All of this cold, wet February weather was really starting to get to me, so I browsed through my library looking for a good plot with a romantic angle and plenty of humor.  H.P. Mallory’s first book in her new Lily Harper series was exactly what I needed to pull me out of my funk. This was my first time reading H.P.Mallory’s work, and Better off Dead is a hilarious start to what looks like a delightful paranormal series with a future romance in the making.  After Lily Harper dies in a car accident because her Guardian Angel failed to protect her, she chooses to continue living by working for AfterLife Enterprises as a soul retriever rather than waiting 100 years before she can get into the “Kingdom” or Heaven. 

 Although Lily can never return to her old life, she initially thinks her new life after death won’t be so terrible. In exchange for finding misplaced souls, AfterLife gives Lily a gorgeous new body, a luxury SUV, an apartment in Scotland, and nice bank account. However, before Lily even has time to get settled into her new life, she is given her first assignment- to retrieve a soul from the clutches of demons in the “Underground City.”  Armed with only a copy of Dante’s Inferno and the help of her notoriously unreliable guardian angel, Bill, Lily treks into the dark, dangerous underworld on what is essentially a suicide mission unless she can enlist the help of bladesmith, Tallis Black, a formidable swordsman with the capabilities and experience to help her survive.

 Mallory has created a quirky, disparate cast of characters who invigorate the storyline. Lily is a practical, intelligent, and resourceful young woman who recites motivational quotes whenever she is anxious or afraid. She’s far from the autonomous, “kick ass” heroine that I think she will become as the series progresses. Lily knows when she’s outmanned and outgunned and isn’t afraid to ask for help or negotiate in her quest to survive. She’s a kind and caring young woman who has just started her character arc, and I look forward to accompanying her on her journey toward self-awareness. When Lily chooses a physical body that she finds far more attractive than her previous one, I was a bit disappointed because her choice just reinforces our current society’s stereotype of beauty.  However, Lily’s interactions with the zany but crass Bill and handsome but brooding Tallis show that she now has a different set of challenges and insecurities to deal with, such as proving to both males that she is more than just a “pretty face.” 

 Bill defies any and all ideas Lily has ever had about what an angel is like.  His behavior is selfish, crude, and juvenile through much of the book, yet despite all my eyeball rolling, I cannot deny that Bill’s outlandishness spices up the story and provides some much needed comic relief to contrast with Lily’s anxiety and Tallis’s sullenness.  

 Tallis is an enigmatic man with a tortured past whose stoicism and mood swings often unnerve Lily and Bill later defines as “BMS: bitchy man syndrome.” The chemistry between Tallis and Lily is definitely there, but both of them still have quite a bit of growing to do before they are ready for a romantic relationship.  

 The title of the book Better Off Dead sounds depressing and morbid but really foreshadows the new life Lily is starting and her ironic discovery that only after she dies does she truly begin to live and really experience life.

 In addition to great character development, Mallory does a good job in world building and setting up the framework for the series, but I did find the most climatic part of the plot, the most action-oriented and dangerous scenes, occurred much too quickly for my satisfaction. Nevertheless, this is a promising start to an engaging new paranormal series and I look forward to reading the next installment.

 

[Barbara Ann RS]

I have several other of Mallory's books on my Kindle but this is the first of her work I've read. I'm so glad my review motivated you to consider reading it. I'm looking forward to the next installment as well. 

[Mandie]

I like HP Mallory but haven't read this one yet. I've put it on my TBR Thanks for your review