Ghost Mine

GHOST MINE was not exactly what I expected and a lot MORE than what I expected, all at once! What a fun ride!

Teddy Roosevelt is now president and recruits two of his old partners from the Rough Riders and the Indian Wars to investigate a town out west. Teddy previously sent American troops to investigate the claim that there was gold in the mines there, but now the troops have also disappeared. Teddy tasks Nat Blackburn and his companion, Teta, to find out what happened. Once they arrive in the town of Hecla, Wyoming, they discover a lot more than some old abandoned mines. Will they find out what happened to the men Roosevelt sent? Will they verify that gold is "in them there hills?" Will they even survive their trek? You'll have to show more read this to find out!

I had a lot of fun reading this horror/western. Nat is an instantly likable guy, though rough around the edges and his companion Teta, is interesting as well. Where I ran into a bit of trouble with this book was with the amount of things going on. We have native American legends, the Djinn, shapeshifters, preachers, and dead-speakers, not to mention Satan himself! Not that I didn't enjoy all that, because I did, it just seemed like a bit too much-almost as if the story didn't know quite what it wanted be.

That said, I chose to suspend my disbelief and once I did, I had a great time! I was totally rooting for team Nat & Teta and just had to know what happened. From about 60% in, I could not put the book down and ended up finishing it the same day. The story steamrolled right on through to the finale and I was barely hanging on for the ride!

I would gladly read any sequel or any other book featuring the team of Nat and Teta, so please, Mr. Shea! Bring it on!

Highly Recommended!

*Available May 30th, but you can pre-order here: https://amzn.to/2QaJ3mp

**I received a paperback ARC from Flame Tree Press for review consideration. I considered it, said Hell Yeah! and read the book.** show less

This book is a seamless blend of horror and western. The historical setting was a little disconcerting at first, mainly due to it being a relatively unusual time-frame used in contemporary dark fiction, but it was a nice change of scene.
This is genuinely one of those books where you don't know what's going to happen next. Suspense is constantly maintained as more and more parts of the story are revealed. I can easily imagine this being made into a movie, but as a book it's a great read.
Many thanks to Flame Tree Press for the ARC. My voluntary review is my honest opinion.

When Teddy Roosevelt dispatches former Rough Riders to investigate disappearances around a mine in Hecla, Wyoming, they find more than gold.

This one hit many of my sweet spots and I especially enjoyed the creepy kids that show up throughout. However, this one never really grabbed me. While I enjoyed the book, I found myself happy to be done with it.