Tag Archives: Paranormal

October 2, 2025 · 1:00 am

A Review of October Omen

Book cover for October Omen by Holly Schindler. Image on cover is a black and white drawing of a feather whose uppermost leaves gradually transforms into about a dozen little white birds that are flying away from the feather. Title: October Omen

Author: Holly Schindler

Publisher: Self-Published

Publication Date: December 7, 2022

Genres: Fantasy, Paranormal, Romance

Length: 42 pages

Source: I received a free copy from the author.

Rating: 4 Stars

Blurb:

Forever Finley Episode / Short Story #11: Superstitions float around us constantly. We choose to believe or discount them based on where our hearts happen to be at that particular moment.

Kelly Marx, Finley’s premiere wedding planner and dress designer, is on a mission to get access to a Civil War-era shawl for Natalie, the latest bride to hire her. But Mary, the elderly owner of the shawl, isn’t the only force to come between Kelly and her goal. When the shawl goes missing, Kelly also encounters mysterious characters and a slew of bad omens—but what does it all add up to? What does it foretell? Where will Kelly’s skeptical heart lead her?

October Omen is the eleventh installment in Forever Finley, a series of stand-alone episodes or short stories that released once a month throughout 2016. Previous releases include: Come December, January Thaw, Forget February, Dearest March…, April’s Promise, Mayday Mayday Mayday, Chasing June, A Hundred Julys, Under the August Moon, and Song for September. Stories following October Omen include the Forever Finley Finale (Pale November / December Bells). Stories can be purchased individually, or readers can purchase all installments in Forever Finley: An Episodic Novel.

Content Warning:

Review:

Many things are possible as daylight melts into dusk.

This was a cozy read that made me want to snuggle under the covers and drink a hot cocoa. The conflicts the characters faced, while important, were ultimately pretty low stakes and relaxing to read about. This wasn’t one of those books where the fate of the entire world lays in the hands of one unsuspecting hero. Instead, it was about sewing, wedding planning, and maybe encountering a few friendly ghosts along the way. There is definitely something to be said for fiction about the simple joys of life, and I look forward to continuing on with these characters in the future.

I found myself wishing for more answers as I dove into my third experience in this universe. Take the genre classifications like romance, paranormal, and fantasy lightly because these books have gently broken many of the tropes associated with all of them so far. Sometimes the descriptions felt more like a dream than a story in that conventional dialogue, character development, plot development didn’t always show up the way I expected them to. Sometimes there are holes in this series that, at least so far, have asked readers to accept certain things without explaining why they were written that way. I don’t mind some of that in moderation, but it was a little excessive for my tastes at times and it is something to keep in mind for readers who have firmer expectations about the genres they read.

Such a whimsical writing style does have its advantages as well, though. If you are curious about stepping into any of these genres, perhaps even for the first time, this could be a good place to begin. There was nothing scary or explicit in this tale. The hauntings could have other explanations depending on how a reader interpreted certain key moments, and the romantic elements of the story were sweet and gentle. It often felt like the literary equivalent of trying various samples of ice cream at an ice cream shop before committing to buying a cone or even an entire pint of which ever flavour – or genre – you might prefer.

This is part of a series that can be read in any order.

October Omen was a heartwarming start to Halloween season.

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September 25, 2025 · 1:00 am

A Review of The Trail of Lady Shajarah 

Book cover for The Trail of Lady Shajarah  by Dal Cecil Runo. Image on cover shows a woman wearing a long, flowing white dress and veil walking on a dusty and deserted desert road on a sunny day. There are a few scraggly bushes growing on the side of the road but otherwise not any other signs of life. There is a mountain ridge in the distance. Title: The Trail of Lady Shajarah

Author: Dal Cecil Runo

Publisher: Self-Published

Publication Date: July 23, 2025

Genres: Fantasy, Paranormal, Historical

Length: 50 pages

Source: I received a free copy from the author.

Rating: 3 Stars

Blurb:

When Kideh Shajarah wakes to find her husband Naseem gone, she sets out alone across a vast and unfamiliar world. She searches in port towns and distant cities, meeting strangers who offer help and questions she cannot answer. With each step, the silence around Naseem’s disappearance grows heavier, and Kideh must face the uncertain path ahead, carrying the weight of loss she isn’t ready to name.

Content Warning: Earthquake and infertility.

Review:

Love is eternal.

Naseem and Kideh had a warm, loving relationship that was heartwarming to read about. This is common in the romance genre, of course, but this wasn’t exactly a romance which made those moments even more special. It’s not every day that characters in other genres have happy relationships to rely on during tough times. Honestly, I wish it happened more often as it was a refreshing change from the types of conflict between spouses that are often written about instead. Bravo to the author for pushing back against this trope and writing something a little out of the ordinary.

The vague ending made me feel as though I’d missed something important. This is something I’m saying as a reader who generally enjoys stories that can be interpreted in multiple ways. In this case, though I did find myself wishing for a more straightforward explanation of what was happening and whether or not Kideh’s journey was going to be a success. It was described so poetically that the plot was affected negatively in my opinion. I would have happily given a higher rating if this was not the case as the beginning was something that immediately pulled me into this character’s quest.

Some of my favorite passages were the ones that described the mythology that was building up around Kideh’s identity and what the people she met in cities and out in the desert believed she was doing. How one describes themself isn’t always the same as how someone else would describe them, so it’s fascinating to compare the two and see what they do and do not have in common. While I can’t go into a lot of detail on this topic for spoiler reasons, definitely pay close attention to these passages when you read them as they contain all sorts of important information about her character development later on.

The Trail of Lady Shajarah was interesting.

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September 11, 2025 · 1:00 am

A Review of The Last of What I Am

Book cover for The Last of What I Am: A Novel by Abigail Cutter. Image on cover shows a figure standing in the second story window of an old wooden farmhouse. There is a light on in that room that is illuminating everything and obscuring the figure’s features. It is dusk outside and you can see the last bit of light fading away as a few birds fly through the sky. Title: The Last of What I Am

Author: Abigail Cutter

Publisher: Union Square & Co.

Publication Date: September 19, 2023

Genres: Paranormal, Historical, Contemporary

Length: 363 pages

Source: I borrowed it from the library.

Rating: 3 Stars

Blurb:

A haunting and beautifully written novel about a Confederate soldier whose own personal war follows him into the afterlife—until one fateful day when his encounters with a modern-day couple change everything.
A ghost in his deserted childhood home in Virginia, Tom Smiley can’t forget the bloody war and its meaningless losses, nor can he shed his revulsion for his role in the Confederate defense of slavery. But when a young couple moves in and makes his home their own in the early twenty-first century, trouble erupts—and Tom is forced not only to face his own terrible secret but also to come to grips with his family’s hidden wartime history. He finds an unexpected ally in the house’s new owner, Phoebe Hunter, whose discoveries will have momentous consequences for them both.

Content Warning: War, racism, slavery, death, and a prison camp. I will only mention the latter in my review.

Review:

Forgiveness is a process.

The settings was well developed. I could easily imagine what each scene looked like, including moments that described things that I’ve never personally experienced like being in a prison camp. It was especially helpful to have detailed descriptions of things like food or clothing as they were both quite different from what the average person in North America would expect to have access to today. These moments helped this world come alive in my imagination as I waited to find out whether Tom would ever forgive himself for the role he played in the Civil War.

I struggled with the changes in tone and theme.  It started off as a ghost story but soon veered firmly into the historical fiction genre as Tom described what it was like for a sheltered young man who didn’t really know what he was getting into to fight for the Confederacy in the Civil War. While knowing his background information was important for understanding why his spirit remained on Earth after death, so much space was spent on this topic that the blurb felt misleading to me as a reader. Readers who enjoy realistic historical fiction about war may be a great match for these chapters, but they never quite felt like they matched the tone of the first few chapters for me due to the drastic shift between the life of a moody ghost and the horrors he experienced as a young soldier when he was alive. I wanted to love this book, but this was an impediment for me to dive deeply into Tom’s life because of the many differences between the blurb and the text itself.

What I did find interesting about this book was it exploration of racism, intentions, and regret. Tom genuinely believed he was doing a good deed by signing up to fight for reasons that other readers should discover for themselves, but having good intentions doesn’t mean that a decision is justifiable. He was affected by the time and place he lived in, and I was intrigued by his character development as he realized what a colossal mistake he had made and how even someone who tries to do the right thing can still be veered off course through unconscious bias and a dangerous amount of ignorance on a subject. This is something every single of us can be fooled by, and it’s well worth reading and talking about

The Last of What I Am is a good pick for anyone who likes historical fiction that has some paranormal themes.

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September 4, 2025 · 1:00 am

A Review of Song for September

Book cover for Song for September by Holly Schindler. Image on cover shows a guitar lying on the rocky bed of a stream of water. Title: Song for September

Author: Holly Schindler

Publisher: Self-Published

Publication Date: December 7, 2022. Originally published in 2016.

Genres: Fantasy, Paranormal

Length: 40 pages

Source: I received a free copy from the author.

Rating: 3 Stars

Blurb:

Forever Finley Episode / Short Story #10: Dreams often linger like a haunting melody.

Michael is a failed musician at heart and a coffee shop barista by day. Will the century-old legend of his hometown provide the magic he needs to finally succeed—and in so doing, will Michael have the power to assist in the long-awaited reunion of Finley’s first sweethearts?

Song for September is part of Forever Finley, a series of stand-alone episodes or short stories that released once a month throughout 2016. Previous releases include: Come December, January Thaw, Forget February, Dearest March…, April’s Promise, Mayday Mayday Mayday, Chasing June, A Hundred Julys, and Under the August Moon. Stories following Song for September include October Omen and the Forever Finley Finale (Pale November / December Bells). Stories can be purchased individually, or readers can purchase all installments in Forever Finley: An Episodic Novel.

Content Warning:

Review:

Music is the heartbeat of life itself.

One of the things this series has done well so far is capturing the sorts of personalities of people who love living in small towns. I enjoyed getting to know Michael better and learning about why his attempt to move to Nashville and become a professional musician ended so quickly. While I can’t give away spoilers about that portion of the plot, it made a great deal of sense to me and helped to explain parts of his personality that weren’t so prevalent in Under the August Moon, the first book I read about these characters. Some people are best suited to small town life for all sorts of reasons, and I thought this provided a well-rounded look at several of them.

It would have been helpful to have a more thorough explanation of why Michael’s musical abilities had developed the way they had. Let’s just say that he isn’t exactly an ordinary musician in certain ways, although I can’t go into detail about that without giving away spoilers. It was confusing for me as a reader to never quite be sure what he was and wasn’t capable of. This is something I’m saying as someone who liked this tale and really wanted to give it a higher rating. The concept of it was intriguing, but I simply needed more information about how everything worked.

Relationships in rural places can be complex, so it has taken me a while to begin to understand how all of the characters are connected and what they genuinely think of one another. Some personality types get along better than others do which is a perfectly normal part of being human, but what made this tale so interesting was seeing how everyone made accommodations for each other – or sometimes maybe struggled to do that under certain circumstances – in order to keep their community as harmonious as possible. This sort of invisible emotional work can so easily be overlooked by a storyteller, but it brings layers of meaning to characters when an author is willing to dive deeply into the multitude of tiny ways a community is stitched together over time.

Song for September reminded me of the years I’ve spent living in small towns and what it’s like to live in that environment.

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August 28, 2025 · 1:00 am

A Review of Under the August Moon

Book cover for Under the August Moon by Holly Schindler. Image on cover shows a large, full moon glowing brightly in the sky just after dusk. The land below is so dark you can’t tell if there are trees or rocks down there. There is still a faint yellow and orange streak of light at the horizon, but even it is quickly disappearing. Title: Under the August Moon

Author: Holly Schindler

Publisher: Self-Published

Publication Date: December 7, 2022. Originally published in 2016.

Genres: Fantasy, Paranormal, Romance

Length: 34 pages

Source: I received a free copy from the author.

Rating: 3 Stars

Blurb:

Forever Finley Episode / Short Story #9: It has been said that seeds of love planted beneath an August moon will bind two meant to be together—forever.

Two different couples—one currently hoping to find common ground in their relationship, the other a legendary pair wandering the town in their relentless attempt to reunite—find their paths have suddenly intertwined like wild Midwestern vines under the red August Heart Moon. Will Mark and Jo decide their late-in-life romance can find new direction? And how will the fabled Finley’s search for her beloved Amos be impacted by the planting of her enchanted moon seeds?

Under the August Moon is part of Forever Finley, a series of stand-alone episodes or short stories that released once a month throughout 2016. Previous releases include Come December, January Thaw, Forget February, Dearest March…, April’s Promise, Mayday Mayday Mayday, Chasing June, and A Hundred Julys. Stories following Under the August Moon include Song for September, October Omen, and the Forever Finley Finale (Pale November / December Bells). Stories can be purchased individually, or readers can purchase all installments in Forever Finley: An Episodic Novel.

Review:

The hot, humid days of summer won’t last forever, but maybe romance will.

This was my first introduction to the Forever Finley series, and I was impressed by how I understood everything I needed to in order to get into this story.  It’s not easy to write a series that can be read as standalone works and in any order, so I must tip my cap to Ms. Schindler for pulling this off.  While there were definitely some scenes that I think will be more meaningful to fans who have met these characters before, I never felt out of my depth as I was reading. The mystery of the jar filled with invisible magic seeds was more than enough to keep my interest levels high.

I found myself wishing for more conflict as I was reading this. It was such a cozy little community that I certainly wouldn’t expect anything high stakes, but there were times when the plot felt a little slow due to how long it took the characters to figure out problems like finding a missing pair of overalls or encouraging neighbourhood children who snuck onto one character’s property and ate the blueberries that she had been planning to sell in order to afford Christmas presents and some festive food for that occasion to stop stealing fruit. Even a little more effort in this area would have been enough for me to choose a higher rating as I loved this world in general.

The romance was handled nicely, and I’m saying that as someone who only visits this genre occasionally. I understood why one of the characters involved in this relationship was having second thoughts, but I also thought they made a good match and hoped they’d be able to work this problem out. It was also interesting to take note of the paranormal elements of the storyline that were related to romance as that isn’t something I typically read about. They were handled nicely and have encouraged me to visit this world again soon.

Under the August Moon made me smile.

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July 10, 2025 · 1:00 am

A Review of The Merlin

Book cover for The Merlin by Benjamin Parsons. Image on cover shows a drawing of a shirtless white man sitting on a rock. There is a hawk just about to land on his outstretched hand, and he is looking thoughtfully at the bird. The bird’s wings are still outstretched as it flies the last few inches to the human. Title: The Merlin

Author: Benjamin Parsons

Publisher: Self-Published

Publication Date: January 9, 2023

Genres: Fantasy, Romance, Paranormal, Historical

Length: 58 pages

Source: I received a free copy from the author.

Rating: 3 Stars

Blurb:

Down-to-earth falconer Rowland is determined to marry his childhood sweetheart Rowena, just when her life is turned upside down by bereavement, illness and debt. A strange old jeweller forges the perfect engagement ring for the proposal, but Rowland refuses to pay the unusual price the jeweller demands. From that moment on, Rowland is drawn further and further into the realm of the supernatural, as everything he loves slips away from him. Part of the collection The Green Man and Other Stories.

Content Warning: Life-threatening illness and death. I will not discuss these themes in my review.

Review:

Everything has a price.

The most memorable scenes for me were the ones that took place when the jeweller was creating the special ring and then negotiating the price of it with Rowland. This happened early on in the storyline, so I feel comfortable talking about it in more depth here. There were so many magical  moments in those scenes that made me perk up and wonder where the plot might evolve from there. It was also interesting to see some of the protagonist’s personality quirks emerge during the course of that day as this was an excellent opportunity to show what he was like when he felt negative emotions like boredom or frustration. Wondering what the jeweller was up to also piqued my interest as the effort he put into creating the ring didn’t quite match what the protagonist or I knew about how jewelry is made.

I would have liked to see more character development for Rowland. Normally, I’d expect the protagonist in a tale like this one to have some glaring personality flaw that overshadowed his or her common sense at least on occasion, but this wasn’t what happened. Yes, Rowland could be a little too stubborn at times, but he had a good heart and was genuinely trying to do the right thing not only for himself but also for everyone around him even if his choices didn’t always create the desired effects. The ending didn’t quite sit right with me because of how much I liked Rowland. If there was a lesson to be learned here, I struggled to know what it might be as those scenes felt more like something that would occur in real life than in the fantasy genre.

One of the things I appreciate the most about Mr. Parson’s stories is how willing he is to take risks and bend the rules of the genres he chooses. This means that I’m never quite sure what to expect when I return to his work, whether that’s related to plot twists or which characters might get to live happily ever after among many other subjects. It makes the reading process exciting and is why I keep reviewing him here. He really knows how to keep his audience guessing.

This tale is part of a collection that does not need to be read in any particular order.

The Merlin was thought provoking.

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June 19, 2025 · 1:00 am

A Review of Anatomy of a Violin

Title: Anatomy of a Violin Book cover for Anatomy of a Violin by J.M. Taylor. Image on cover shows a drawing of someone - possibly the Statue of Liberty? - wearing a blindfold and a long, loose garment. They are standing in front of a yellow background and leaning back as they play the violin. The person looks like they are made of metal and painted with a shimmery metallic paint that looks blue, green, purple, and red depending on which portion of the body you’re looking at.

Author: J.M. Taylor

Publisher: Self-Published

Publication Date: May 8, 2025

Genres: Horror, LGBTQ+, Paranormal, Contemporary

Length: 37 pages

Source: I received a free copy from the author.

Rating: 4 Stars

Blurb:

A musician finds the ultimate prize in Prague – an instrument that can make anyone sound like a virtuoso. But his obsession with the violin threatens not only his relationship but his sanity.

Content Warning: Murder.

Review:

Everything  can be fixed with a little elbow grease and patience.

The unnamed protagonist was a complex and fascinating man. I liked the fact that his flaws weren’t superficial but instead had real effects on both his life and the plot. That was exactly the right choice for this piece, and I commend the author for being willing to take the risk that readers might not like this character. This is something I wish happened more often in fiction as it really adds depth to a character, especially in cases like this one when the reader is supposed to be weirded out by what is happening.

I would have liked to see a little more world building in this piece. Specifically, I’m thinking about the origins of the violin and how it was passed around among various owners over the centuries. The explanation for how this all happened made sense, but having more details would have helped those scene come alive in my imagination as I read. There was so much more that could have been done with them to accelerate the horror elements of the plot, and I would have gone for a full five star rating if that had happened. This is something I’m saying as someone who otherwise loved this tale.

Honestly, it was easy to see where the plot was headed early on, but this wasn’t the sort of tale that needs to surprise a reader in order to entertain them. What made it so interesting was taking note of what the protagonist had and hadn’t figured out about his incredible new violin. He was so enamoured with the workmanship and beauty of it that nothing else could grab his attention. I’ll leave it up to other readers to discover what he was missing in those moments as they ponder whether they, too, might have made the same choices he did.

Anatomy of a Violin was delightfully scary.

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June 12, 2025 · 1:00 am

A Review of Their Other Selves

Book cover for Their Other Selves by Benjamin Parsons. Image on cover is a black and white drawing of a river running through a city. The city is so dense that you can’t see any trees in it, just skyscraper after skyscraper right next to each other. Oddly enough, the water in the river is bright yellow. Title: Their Other Selves

Author: Benjamin Parsons

Publisher: Self-Published

Publication Date: September 28, 2024

Genres: Fantasy, Historical

Length: 24 pages

Source: I received a free copy from the author.

Rating: 3 stars

Blurb:

Caletha isn’t ready to settle down until she meets someone who loves her as much as she loves herself. It’s a joke, but she half-believes it. Then one evening she and her father take a walk along the riverbank and meet themselves— their exact doubles coming towards them. Sudden tragedies follow this ominous encounter, which drive Caletha to doubt everything she used to believe. Are the misfortunes merely coincidental, or caused by the supernatural? And who was the mysterious figure lurking in the shadows behind the uncanny doppelgängers? Evenking, or Their Other Selves is a short folktale-inspired story, part of the collection Blaquoby: Country Town Tales.

Content Warning: Grief and death.

Review:

The mind is a powerful weapon.

Some of my favourite scenes were the ones that explored Caletha’s guilt and grief. She was an ordinarily bubbly and cheerful young woman who didn’t always put deep thought into how other people saw the world. While it was never done out of malice, she did have a blind spot when it came to how her actions affected others, and I believe she would have happily tried to change those interactions if given a second chance. I appreciate it when authors create characters who are likeable but whose flaws are issues that genuinely make life more difficult for them sometimes. In this particular case, that was precisely what the plot needed to move forward.

I found the doppelgänger storyline confusing, especially given the folklore surrounding why someone might have this experience and what they may have done to bring it on. Caletha was not a perfect person by any means, and she had made a hurtful decision early on in the storyline that I agree should not have happened. Still, the explanation of why she saw her double didn’t quite match up with what I learned about her as a person. If the decisions she made earlier were enough to trigger it, I’d argue that everyone deserves that same fate because none of us get through life without occasionally doing things, whether intentionally or unintentionally, that we later come to regret.

With that being said, I did enjoy the fairy tale qualities of this piece. It felt like the sort of story people might have told to their children generations ago in order to explain why it’s important to keep promises and what sad fates might await those who break them too easily. There was nothing at all gory or gross here, but there were themes that included stricter rules for etiquette and interpersonal relationships than many modern people are held to today. This gave the plot a timeless feeling in the sense that it could have occurred 80 years ago or 800 years ago with few if any changes to the fates of the characters.

This is the fifth book in a series that does not need to be read in any particular order.

Their Other Selves was thought provoking.

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May 22, 2025 · 1:00 am

A Review of Desert Soul

Book cover for Desert Soul by Alejandra Cue. Image on cover is a photograph of a desert filled with red sant. There are no signs of life anywhere, but there are a few small mountains on the horizon. Title: Desert Soul – Old Tales of the Traveler 

Author: Alejandra Cue

Publisher: Self-Published

Publication Date: February 3, 2019

Genres: Fantasy, Paranormal

Length: 20 pages

Source: I received a free copy from the author.

Rating: 5 Stars

Blurb:

When the desert of ashes decides your fate, there’s no escaping it. When death crawls in the blackness, struggling is pointless.

Or is it?

This is the story of a boy with one such fate, a boy who lost and found hope in the desolate land, hope that came in the form of a mysterious traveler. But does this newcomer have the power to invalidate the desert’s will, or will they struggle in vain? And even if they succeed, so what? How will they escape the nothingness of ash and sand and death?

Prepare for the tale of a boy and a traveler, who at the time no one knew would become the Traveler.

Content Warning: Death.

Review:

Let the punishment fit the crime.

I was impressed with how Ms. Cue balanced the plot and character development of this short story with her world building for this series as a whole. As someone who has never read anything set in this universe before, I immediately felt at home in it. Yes, there were questions I had about how everything worked that were left for later development, but those mysteries in no way impeded me from enjoying the conflicts here as the traveller tried to save the life of a child whose life was endangered by the heat and intense thirst he felt in the desert. Kudos to the author for pulling this off as it was such an intriguing introduction to her work. 

The conflicts kept me heavily invested in this tale. Not only was the child in dire need of water and medical treatment from the time he’d spent alone in the desert, the traveller who assisted him faced multiple obstacles in his attempts to help the boy. Along with figuring out how the kid had ended up in this predicament, I wanted to know if he was going to be okay and if anyone could help them. This is an excellent example of how a short story can provide all of the necessary details to pull a reader into their world and make us care about the people we find there. Not everything needs hundreds of pages to be effective. Sometimes brevity is the best option!

As excited as I already was by this story, the twist at the end only amped up my interest. Obviously, I can’t share spoilers there other than to say that it made me look at certain characters in a new light and wonder what other secrets they might be hiding up their sleeves. There is definitely something to be said for revealing information only as it’s needed and trusting the audience to figure out the rest with the sufficient number of clues we are provided.

This is part of a series, but it works perfectly nicely as a standalone tale.

Desert Soul has piqued my interest and made me want to learn more about this world.

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March 6, 2025 · 1:00 am

Newlywed Questions: A Review of The Ring and the Knife

Book cover for The Ring and the Knife by Benjamin Parsons. Image on cover shows a black and white drawing of a shirtless white man and a white woman who is wearing a long, flowing dress. They are standing in a graveyard during a time of year when there are no leaves on the trees. It’s probably very cold there, so why don’t they have the common sense to dress warmly for the weather? She looks pensive and he’s pointing at something behind them and trying to get her to turn around and see what it is. Title: The Ring and the Knife

Author: Benjamin Parsons

Publisher: Self-Published

Publication Date: March 11, 2023

Genres: Romance, Paranormal, Historical

Length: 32 pages

Source: I received a free copy from the author.

Rating: 4 Stars

Blurb:

Something happened to William Mortimore in Berecombe churchyard, many years ago – something he can’t quite remember. When he unexpectedly finds himself that little country village again, fragments of the past start to haunt him – and lure him to uncover a forgotten secret.
Berecombe – why does William remember the name of that little village? When was he there before? What happened to him that day in the churchyard, long ago? Why can’t he remember? Why does he feel compelled to return? As the questions smother him, he searches to understand the dreadful, portentous meeting his memory has supressed – the terrible secret of his own past.

Content Warning: Murder. I will not discuss it in my review.

Review:

Cemeteries are as full of answers as they are of new questions.

Romance isn’t a genre I visit very often, so it’s quite the compliment for me to mention how much I loved this one. William and his wife were deeply in love and determined to enjoy their honeymoon when the audience met them in the first scene. I looked forward to getting to know them better and was pleased with what was shared. Newlyweds are so full of hope that this particular pair created a nice contrast between their happiness and the sad things that were happening in the churchyard they decided to visit.

There was a plot hole involving William’s past that I wish had been given more time to develop as the order of events for it never quite made sense to me. Some of these moments were shared non-linearly, so it took me a little bit to piece them together and come up with a reasonable explanation of what must have occurred. If more attention had been paid to this issue, I would have happily gone for a full five-star rating.

With that being said, I enjoyed the plot twists that were revealed later on. They created a satisfying mixture of romantic and paranormal themes that made me wonder what else the characters were about to discover about that quiet little pocket of the countryside that felt so peaceful but was simultaneously filled with intrigue and uncertainty, too. What a treat it was to dig more deeply with them as they pushed forward to figure out why William’s memory had a large blank spot in it.

The Ring and the Knife was romantic and eerie.

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