Heather Graham seems to write paranormal romantic mysteries and The Dead Room is no exception though it comes with a bit of a unique twist at the end which won't be spoiled here. I will say that it caught me totally by surprise.
The story is about Leslie MacIntyre an archeologist who works on sites in urban areas of the United States. She has recently survived an explosion that killed her fiance and is just now returning to work in the same area where he was killed and she was injured. Though always good at finding bones the explosion has left her with ability to see and talk to ghosts which proves to be quite helpful in her line of work though does make some of the finds a bit hard to explain.
Upon returning to the area she meets Joe, her fiance's cousin and near look-alike, who happens to be a private investigator searching for women who have gone missing in the area. Gradually Joe and Leslie start to work together which makes Leslie's life much more complicated and more dangerous.
The mystery is interesting though not one of the best and as a mystery reader the way the story is presented left me feeling dissatisfied. I have a preference for stories that leave me thinking that if I'd recognized and followed all the clues I could have solved the mystery but that doesn't work in this book.
The paranormal aspects were much, much better especially those not related to the overall mystery. The ghosts are fascinating pieces of human interest who tell short stories of their lives and deaths. This was the best part of the story and made me look forward to reading more of Ms. Graham's books.
The romantic aspect was there, though a bit unusual, and it fed nicely into the ending.
Overall not the best but certainly not the worst first read for 2014.
No comments:
Post a Comment