Sophie Turner runs Talismans, a Boston tarot parlor, where she reads tarot and keeps her family’s psychic legacy alive. However, in spite of her tragic family history and Tarot Alley’s reputation for being a mystical hotspot, Sophie has no psychic powers of her own – or so she thinks. Engaged to straight-as-an-arrow Boston PD Detective Roger Paris, and finishing her college degree in Computer Science, she’s ready to start a brand new life that has nothing to do with her paranormal past.
When the murder of her friend and client Patrice Bledsoe leaves Sophie traumatized, she can’t trust her own memory about what happened. She remembers a ghostly encounter moments before Patrice was killed, but she can’t remember anything about the murder, making her a prime suspect. Sophie doesn’t understand why the ghost appeared or why she was compelled to read his cards, revealing a story of violence and betrayal, but she is determined to find the truth about her friend’s murder.
It’s not the last time Sophie sees the tragic ghost figure, and she begins to believe her ghost is real when she’s plagued with visions she can’t ignore. When her skeptical fiancé won’t listen, she asks ghost hunter Dr. Gabe Mason for his help, leading her down a path of no return in more ways than one.
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(4.25)
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3
An enjoyable paranormal mystery with a strong romance arc. I don't usually read paranormals, but having interviewed Sam Hunter about the interesting question of pursuing both traditional and self-publishing (in different genres), I was intrigued enough to give one of her self-published books a go.
The story: Sophie Hunter blacks out while giving a Tarot reading for a close friend, and when she comes to herself a murder has been committed. Naturally she's a suspect, so she has to prove her innocence while coping with the ghosts that she is suddenly able to see, conflict with her boyfriend Roger who just wants her to forget all the psychic nonsense and lead a normal life, and her growing interest in ghost hunter Gabe.
I'll say straight out that I'm a Christian and, while I do believe that there is a dimension to this world that we can't see, I don't believe we should be messin' with it. BUT like most paranormal-themed books, this novel is a lighthearted "what if?" rather than any kind of sell on a particular lifestyle, and in fact I really liked the way Hunter uses Catholic boyfriend Roger as a platform for making Sophie question what role, if any, she wants to play in a ghost-ridden world. Is her psychic ability, she wonders, a God-given gift to be used for good? I'm not getting into that question; just want to note that it's there, and I liked the novel all the more for not just assuming the reader's going to be on board with the supernatural situation.
Given that Sam Hunter's day job is as the writer of steamy romances I was expecting a higher temperature than I got, too. I'd say low PG-13 rating on this one, the romance taking precedence over the sex. All good from my point of view, as I prefer to watch the progress of a relationship to peeking in on the getting it on.
My overall impression was of an interesting, fast-paced story with a bit more behind it than I'd expected. The core of the mystery (no, no spoilers here) is fact-based and informative, and I would hope Hunter would continue this use of Boston's history in further Sophie Turner novels (did I mention it's a series?) On the whole this is a light read, but not fluffy; it stands up well against other soft-boiled mysteries I've read.
My only gripe, as often with self-published novels, is insufficient editing - it needs fixing for a number of common errors and some incomplete/hurried sentence structures. The mistakes didn't detract too much, as the overall writing is what I'd expect from a seasoned author--fluent and confident, with a consistent, readable style.
I would recommend this for lovers of cozies who are looking to branch out a bit and discover a new series. (