I wanted to branch out to other authors of the genre I like to write, supernatural/suspense, who, like Mary Downing Hahn, tell stories (for children, teens, or adults) that involve the concept of overcoming fear. I’ve found that Darcy Coates’ books fall under this umbrella. This is the first book of hers I’ve read, and I look forward to reading the rest of the books in this series!
Summary
Keira cannot remember anything from her life, only that someone dangerous is after her. After finding refuge in a quaint town called Blighty, she finds some kindred spirited people who help her try to regain her memories. However, trouble soon finds her in the form of an unsettled ghost, so she enlists the help of her new friends to help the spirit to move on. Doing so, she discovers more about her unique ability to see the dead and resolves it is her new purpose while she struggles to regain her identity.
Likes
- Plot. It contains suspense and a mystery about the protagonist’s identity, which is an effective plot device to keep readers reading the story to find out. Plus, I’m a sucker for characters who want to help ghosts move on (The Sixth Sense, Ghost Whisperer, etc.), so I was happy to find out that the plot involved that aspect.
- Language. No F-bombs! I like authors who use their own unique language explicative substitutes instead of the common, trashy profanity that we see in so many modern books.
- Set-up for next book in the series. While the sublot was resolved, the main plot of the story didn’t finish at the end of the book, which invites the reader to keep reading about how the protagonist is going to regain her identity.
Dislikes
- Cliché friends. The too-energetic girl friend and the cute but overprotective boy friend I have seen used time after time in fiction, so they seemed kind of redundant in this book.
Author
Darcy Coates is the author of around 30 books and short stories. Her fourth book in this series, The Gravekeeper Series, is coming out this year, so I had better get going on reading the other two!
Application to My Own Writing
The subject matter and the way it’s told in a non-overly-descriptive manner is enough to inspire me to keep reading this series and other books by this author. The main character seems to be a bit of an underdog as well, which I hope to incorporate into my own characters (instead of having them know exactly what they are always doing). Like my own ghost stories, Keira seeks to help spirits move on to the next life, which explains why I’m interested in continuing the series.
Recommendation
I recommend this book to those of teen age and up who are fans of ghost stories, mysteries, or characters who seek to help others.
