Rating: 5 stars out of 5
My nails and cuticles will never be the same. Neither will the inside of my lip where I chewed on it. This story was not only a romance, this was a horror story—a house haunting by an evil, wicked spirit—and the author brought me to the point where I was reading between my fingers with my hand held to my face. Scary and wonderful, the story captured my attention in the best possible way. And the characters? Let’s just say that I’m hoping Levi and Billie—surnames Black and Blue—will be back with more hair-raising adventures in the near future.
I loved the fact the author made the romance secondary to the mystery of the haunted house Levi Black inherits, renovates, and then occupies. Others have died in that house, most recently a young man who owned it was found dead at the foot of the stairs. In the past, a murder suicide occurred in the upstairs rooms and no one could ever explain why the sweet widow took her brother’s life and then her own. The resolution of the mystery runs concurrent with the development of a romance between Levi and Blue Billings, a young man who runs a ghost tour in York.
Billie has lived hand to mouth, mostly on the streets as a homeless youth, ever since his mother died. A psychic, Billie keeps to himself, spending any free time in the old bookstore in his neighborhood, reading up on ghost stories and enjoying the warmth and comfort offered by a day in the shop. As the story develops, so does Billie’s psychic ability, helped along by the owner of the bookstore, a crotchety (but sweet) old psychic who takes Billie under his wing.
As the date of the original murder draws closer, the spirit haunting his home gets nastier and Levi is unexpectedly shoved down the stairs, resulting in a broken arm and concussion. Thankfully, Billie gets him to a hospital quickly, his timely arrival at Levi’s house helped by the spirit of a dead woman who alerts him to the danger Levi is in. Complex, interesting, fun, romantic, and scary, scary, scary, I loved this story. Not only is there quality of character development and chemistry between the two MCs, but the mystery and the nail-biting, frightening scenes are so realistic that anyone who loves a good ghostly horror story should be as excited as I was. I highly recommend it and I’m very much looking forward to more.
The gorgeous cover by Natasha Snow Designs features a young blue-haired man in period costume. Absolutely perfect for this story.
Sales Links: Amazon US | Amazon UK
Book Details:
Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words 