The House on Tradd Street

My mother warned me that this was a bit of a paranormal--definitely NOT my normal read. Fortunately, I came to like it and it wasn't too scary for my taste. (For that, I am thankful. I didn't want a Stephen King level of scary anyway!)
Melanie Middleton (or "Mellie") is a grown woman in her late thirties. But sadly, she's got some issues that really need to be addressed. I feel like I should recommend her to a counselor. An alcoholic father and an absent mother have made her present herself to the world as an "all-business, no-nonsense, rough-tough-and-all-that-stuff realtor who can eat her weight in doughnuts and still look like a model. (Cue the envy.) She's not as tough as she thinks she is. She still needs people...like Jack.
Owning show more a historic home sounds like a dream for so many of us, but so few are prepared to deal with the expenses that go into restoring AND preserving such a house. When an old man leaves Melanie a house on Tradd Street in his will, her life turns upside down. She's now required to live a full year in the house before she can decide what to do with it: keep it or sell it.
The ghosts living in the house on Tradd Street help give a sinister element to the storyline. Melanie can see them and they can see her. She knows she's seeing them for a reason.
Karen White has surprised me with her ability to write a paranormal book. I'm intrigued enough to consider reading the rest of the series! show less

When Melanie Middleton inherits a historic Tradd Street home from a man she met only once, she has to solve the mystery of the man's mother's disappearance which eerily parallels her own abandonment by her mother. Melanie vehemently denies that she sees ghosts but that doesn't stop her from seeing them.

As she begins to restore the home, with the assistance of Jack Trenholm who is a writer in need of a book idea, her best friend Sophie who is a quirky college professor whose specialty is old Charleston homes, and Chad who is one of her clients looking for a house.

Trying to solve the mystery of the disappearance of Louisa Vanderhorst leads to another mystery. A Vanderhorst ancestor might have hidden some Confederate diamonds somewhere in show more the house. Melanie could use the diamonds to help restore the house but a descendant of the man Louisa was supposed to have run off with - Marc Longo - is also on the hunt for the diamonds.

Besides ghosts, this book has tangled family relationships. Melanie's father, who turned to alcohol when Melanie's mother left, has been named the trustee of the money left to Melanie to restore the home. Melanie has long since learned that he could not be depended on. Also Melanie's mother has been trying to contact her but Melanie has written her out of her life.

This was an excellent and spooky mystery with a great setting and intriguing characters. show less

Barely readable. But that might just be me. I know - to my horror and disgust - that there is a market for pseudo-ghost-story-romance-Southern-literature.
Mellie is a Modern Woman with daddy issues (alcoholic ne'er-do-well) AND mommy issues (abandonment).
Also, she happens to see/communicate with ghosts, in a consistent and improbable way (conversations).
Also, she sells old houses, even though old houses make her want to retch from the layers of ghost droppings, and she cannot even touch an old photo album without wearing heavy plastic gloves.
Also, a random old man makes her the beneficiary of his old house and traps her into living there.
Also, the wildly sexy, wildly successful young writer who just happens to be writing a book about show more the mystery! occurred in her house. Also, the wildly sexy writer just happened to be the son of her mother's BFF.

Also: Confederate gold! ginormous diamonds! A love triangle! Murder! Mystery! Mayhem! Cool 1920's outfits! A mysterious fountain in the back yard that doesn't work for some mysterious reason! Mystery!!

And a hefty dose of aww-shucks! Southern charm. Apparently it doesn't work on Yankees. I was totally unmoved.
I will stop reading crap books. I will. show less

The House on Tradd Street
4 Stars

Melanie Middleton is a no-nonsense real estate agent who just happens to see ghosts. Melanie has always managed to push her unusual ability aside until the day she inherits a dilapidated old house from an old man she barely knew. All of sudden, Melanie becomes the center of attention not only from a gorgeous writer obsessed with old mysteries and a wealthy tycoon with connections to the house, but from a pair of spirits who may or may not have malevolent intentions.

Let me begin this review by stating that this book shares many similarities with Amanda Stevens’ Graveyard Queen series. So if you enjoyed The Restorer and The Kingdom then this is the book for you.

Melanie is a prickly heroine and her show more stubborn obstinacy doesn’t always endear her. Nevertheless, as the details regarding her difficult childhood emerge, the reasons for her behavior are easier to understand and it becomes possible to both sympathize with and even admire her.

It also takes time to warm up to Jack, who initially comes across as somewhat arrogant and presumptuous, but he is just as damaged as Melanie in his own way and it would seem that they are actually kindred spirits in many respects.

The historical background on Charleston during the Civil War and the prohibition era is fascinating and contributes to the rich atmosphere of the setting and the story. The mystery is a little predictable once the clues start adding up, but it is enjoyable nonetheless and it is fun following along with Melanie and Jack as they investigate.

The one drawback is the irritating love triangle. Jack and Melanie have strong chemistry, so the appearance of a third wheel only undermines the hints at a romance between them. Moreover, there are times when Melanie needs to be smacked upside the head as she cannot see the truth staring her in the face. Thankfully, this is resolved by the end of the book and will hopefully not resurface in the next.

On a final note, the narration flows smoothly although it does take a minute or two to get used to Aimee Bruneau's Southern accent. She has this tendency of speeding up her speech during the action scenes, which really ratchets up the tension a notch and adds another element of excitement to the scene.

All in all, a satisfying mystery with well-developed characters and excellent attention to detail. Looking forward to reading the next one. show less

Realtor Melanie Middleton meets with an elderly Charleston resident hoping to secure a listing for his home, a once-glorious but now dilapidated mansion on Tradd Street. What she gets, instead, is the house itself -- when Nevin Vanderhorst suddenly passes away, leaving the estate to she and her estranged father.

Under the conditions of Vanderhorst's will, Melanie must live in the home for a year and work on its restoration before she'll be permitted to sell it -- all that she desperately wants to do. A strange mystery has surrounded the home, which is haunted by the ghosts of the Vanderhorsts' past -- literally. Melanie's supernatural abilities allow her to see but not communicate with the specters who currently reside at 55 Tradd Street show more and, persuant to Vanderhorst's will, Melanie sets about trying to solve the mystery of why, in the 1930s, Nevin's mother Louisa disappeared from Charleston, never to return. Even seven decades later, Vanderhorst's pain over his mother's "abandonment" is palpable; he wants Melanie to discover the truth about why she left and hopefully clear her name. Local writer and historian Jack Trenholm appears on the scene, quite eager to assist her -- and sparks, however Melanie denies it, do fly.

Karen White's The House On Tradd Street functions well on several levels: it's a mystery, ghost story, romance, family drama and slice of Southern life all wrapped up in one incredibly well-written package. White's Charleston is alive and breathing, infused with the colorful characters you would expect to find in the South without resorting to caricatures or stereotypes. In addition to Melanie and Jack, Melanie's father plays a crucial role in this tale -- as does her mother, a woman whose absence in her life has accomplished far more than her presence.

At several points in the novel, I started to sweat a little bit -- mostly because every novel has a tipping point. The prevalent themes in a story are all fine and good when woven seamlessly through a story and not overdone, beating readers to death with the same concepts and ideas. But when we get the same whining and griping page after page, all I want to do is slam a book shut! The House On Tradd Street could easily have gotten cheesy, ridiculous or campy, but White successfully kept it from going down that route. I enjoyed the realistic romance and was fascinated by all of the historical details and honestly had no clue what the clues were saying until it was all spelled out for me . . . probably because I was so interested in the story, I didn't want to "spoil" it for myself by trying to guess!

A multi-dimensional, interesting novel about family, forgiveness and moving forward -- with the people we love and those we don't love so much! Fans of paranormal fiction will be interested in the shiver-inducing ghost stories but if, like me, you get scared by someone just saying your name at a low volume in a dark room, none of the spooky qualities of the work kept me up at night. The romance and family dynamics tugged at my heart, too, and left me wondering what will become of all of 55 Tradd Street's inhabitants. And while the novel could function fine as a stand-alone, I'm eager to begin the next in the series! show less

Even though Melanie Middleton is a real estate agent specializing in old houses- she hates them, and much prefers the stripped down and modern look that she sports in her own austere condo. She has good reason to be wary, though she is loath to admit it to herself, Melanie sees ghosts- and we all know that often there is no better hang out spot than an old house for a unearthly presence. Melanie tries to ignore them as best she can but a turn of events makes this near impossible.

Melanie meets with Nevin Vanderhorst, ostensibly to help him put his house on the market, but during their brief meeting Nevin comes to a decision of his own about Melanie. When he dies a few short days later he leaves Melanie his house on Tradd Street with the show more provision that she restore it (with funds provided by the estate), not sell it for a year, and also live in it for that year (oh, is that all?). Let’s just say that someone in the house has other ideas.

I really enjoyed the quality of White’s writing and the heroine that she created in Melanie Middleton. Melanie’s character is well defined and we get a good sense of the woman that she has become as a result of her mother’s abandoning her as a child and her father’s alcoholism. When you combine this with the fact that she has had to hide the fact that she is able to see ghosts (even from her father) just to fit in, you can see how this would lend itself to the slightly cold, hyper controlled and organized persona she adapted as protective barrier. Thankfully she has help from best friend- Sophie, nosy secretary- Nancy and potential love interest and writer, JacK Trenholm, to keep her from getting too staid and set in her ways.

The House on Tradd Street is a fast paced and entertaining mystery. Melanie finds that she is indeed invested in Nevin Vanderhorst’s home and wants to get to the bottom of why his mother mysteriously disappeared from his life when he was just a child, and at least one ghost in the house expects this from her. The opposites attract, prickly banter and pseudo romance with Jack was entertaining even if not original, though both characters suffered by resorting to the juvenile when new love interest Marc Longo enters the scene.

The middle meandered with more than a few moments of implausibility but nicely rebounded for the end section as the mystery wrapped up in a way that I never expected. I like that Melanie and Jack each had issues they were working toward resolving and I was glad to see Melanie start making some progress for her own sake, if not to soothe the feelings of her errant parents. Both Melanie and Jack got under my skin and I am curious to see what progress, if any, Melanie makes with Jack and her mother in the next book. show less

Melanie Middleton is an excellent Realtor in the exclusive district of Charleston known as South of Broad, yet she hates the houses she sells. She sees the old mansions as termite-infested money pits. Still, the money is good and a girl's gotta eat, right?

One day she is summoned to the home of elderly Nevin Vanderhorst at 55 Tradd Street. After a disconcerting meeting in which Mr. Vanderhorst only seems concerned in finding out if Melanie can see the ghost of his mother in the front yard (she can, but only admits it reluctantly), he sends her on her way. Days later, she finds out the old man has passed away and left his historic home to her--if she wants it. He has left behind a letter explaining some family history and asking her to show more find out what happened to his mother when he was 8 years old. Mrs. Vanderhorst disappeared and was never seen again. Well, who can resist a plea like that, from practically beyond the grave? Certainly not Melanie, who has a big heart that she likes to hide behind her career-woman persona. With some loyal, talented friends, Melanie sets out to restore the house and solve the mystery.

3.5 stars, but I'm rounding up for the potential I see.

Charleston and ghosts are a perfect fit. (There's a very long story that I won't get into here about a ghost tour I went on in the city. Needless to say, my husband will be going on any future ghost tours alone. No, I didn't see a ghost.) One of the first things anyone thinks of in connection with Charleston is the beautiful old homes. So this was a very atmospheric book that had me ready to drive on down to Charleston for another visit.

I think my one problem is that the characters were a little...expected? That's not to say that I didn't like them; I liked them a lot. But they were probably exactly what you expect from my description. Career girl with a heart, her troubled family, kooky friends, and sexy yet surprisingly vulnerable love interest.

And speaking of the love interest...

Jack Trenholm. Me-ow. So what if I expected him? He was, um, sexy yet surprisingly vulnerable. :-) I obviously can't resist the type. I found myself mentally ogling his abs and pecs right along with Melanie. The tension between the two is delicious.

I think maybe part of the reason I knocked the rating back is that there's a big mystery about Melanie's own past. There's a reason she hates old houses. There's a lot of hinting around, but it takes a long time to find out what has left her so emotionally scarred. I got a little frustrated with it. I have a feeling the next book will explain all that better so I have high hopes.

The mystery involved puzzles and codes and the Civil War (as all books set in Charleston must), and even more history and unrequited love/lust. All great ingredients. I think everyone can guess who done what pretty early on, but the details did surprise me.

I don't think the ghost-y element should put anyone off. It's there, but it's not too scary, and it's not really the point. The point is love and peace and family ties.

I recommend this read for a fun little piece of Charleston. If you can't get there in person, the next best thing is to go in a book, right? I'll be reading the sequel, The Girl on Legare Street. show less