Lynn Osterkamp

I was on edge (hehe nice pun) the whole book wondering who the hell was the killer, or was there even a killer? Ahh, good plot twist.

An accident is what starts this story off, or was it murder? Either way a sad man died by falling into the Grand Canyon (don't get me started on the dissection of this). A prologue that already starts you thinking.

Fast forward a few months to our introduction to Cleopatra Sims, Cleo to her friends, a grief counsellor who has an unusual element to her show more practice. It's called the Contact Project and it allows grieving family members the opportunity to possibly contact their deceased loved ones. Not in the hokey John Edwards, Sylvia Brown way, but in a more scientific way - a single occupant in a darkened room reclining in a chair staring in a dark mirror. I'll be honest I didn't find this hokey in the least! It seemed a more New Age scrying method than a seance style. Now Ms. Cleo (yes I know what I just did there) has a small independent practice and screens her applicants to her project with the utmost care. There are a few (bazillion) out there that would scoff at the idea of giving closure to a person in grief in such a un-institutionalized way. Yet she strives to offer the best care and support she can.

Sharon is a newly widowed woman who believes that her husband was murdered and did not accidentally fall into the Grand Canyon. She starts seeing Cleo in the hopes that her dearly departed will tell her what happened and give her some closure. Alas no murder mystery is that simple to solve. Lynn gives us three suspects, all with excellent reasons for wanting Sharon's husband dead (yet the end shocked me, never truly saw that coming).

There is of course the normal sub plots to any good mystery and I found Lynn's ability to tie it all together and keep the stories separate remarkable. I also found the psychic, new age aspects of the story plausible and helping to make the story move smoothly. I don't believe there was a moment where I scoffed (and I do at some psychic stuff). I loved the introduction of Tyler, a complex spirit who stalks Cleo and talks in surfer riddles. Their repertoire was witty and exasperating at the same time.

The twists, runs and blind sides were awesome and I found myself unable to put it down (alas I did when I needed to). I look forward to the next book and can't wait to see what new mystery Cleo and Tyler find themselves in. show less

I read this back to back with a novel by the author's daughter (Following my toes), and this was most definitely the better of the two; better thought out, more organized, more coherant plot. (I think this is probably a reflection of maturity). The whole concept of "The Contact Project", made this a unique & interesting read, that was what kept me most intrigued. A murder mystery with a contact-the-dead twist. The heroine was plucky, or pushy, whichever way you would take it--but it served show more her well. It reminded me of Agatha Christie in some ways, there were so many red herrings and sub-plots going on...clever, certainly kept me guessing. I found it to be intelligent & thoughtful. The food & scenery descriptions bring a lot to the table (ha ha), I did appreciate them and it gave the book a great context. Made me want to visit Boulder.
Thank you! I would read another book by this author. show less

(remember to pm author who wants to know how well TT tag fits)

*Finally* reading it Sept/Oct 2020 with Time Travel group: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/21661239-september-october-2020-bittersweet.... So far I'm liking it, as an easy comfort read with an interesting premise. I can see why the author wasn't sure it counts as TT but imo it's definitely so closely related as makes no difference (as far as I can tell at about 20%).
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I'm just past 1/3 through and liking it. I have long show more thought about how our memories are fallible, and have tried to talk to my brothers a bit about whether we remember things from our childhood the same way. So it's really interesting to explore this perspective.

I so find some aspects a bit implausible. For example, I have no idea why Anne uses it so much at first. It seems as if it's immediately addictive; she's not processing her experiences, as I would. Heck, I'd not have used it before developing the cover story and finding a better way to keep Jerry safe while I was on a trip.... It seems out of character for Anne to be so impulsive.

Would you be as ready to dive in as she is?

(fwiw, I'm 57 years old and my family is, like Anne's, not perfect, but not what I'd consider dysfunctional either)
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Done. Still believe TT tag does fit. Very glad I read it. Very glad that it didn't get too intense, too dark or scary. Perfect ending, imo.

I especially appreciate that the author let Anne have her childhood memories... she learned enough to be compassionate of the darker memories her siblings had, but none of them was forced to confront what they weren't ready to deal with.

Definitely Sense of Wonder and What If. Yay!

(The ebook edition that I read could have used a proofreader who specializes in punctuation, but that didn't bother me much as the story was worth reading & engaging.) show less

My first comment: OMG, I'm so hungry! The food...I want some of that food! My second: wow, some strong, open-minded women. I like that. The Contact Project: very, very interesting. Reading about it actually made me shiver. "Too Near The Edge", is a great read but it could have been longer.