Let me begin by stating that I am fan of Elle James' novels, but this is only the second novel I've read in her Devil's Shroud series, set on the Oregon coast, and it brought me back to my high school fixation on the Gothic novels of Phyllis Whitney and Victoria Holt, complete with the air of mystery surrounding a lost treasure in missing jewels, the possibility of a resident ghost, an oppressive fog, a Gothic mansion, and it all worked for me--I give it 4.5 stars.

As the novel opens, scarred yet handsome Wall Street billionaire Andrew Stratford is searching for his 6-year-old daughter, Leigha, and her dog, Brewer, in the thick fog that regularly descends over Cape Churn, Oregon. Although she's not supposed to leave the house, she's a willful, adventurous and curious little girl who spends far too much time alone with only their housekeeper, Mrs. Purdy, and an imaginary friend she's rather tight-lipped about, for company in Stratford House, the huge, 3-story Gothic mansion high on the cliffs above the Pacific ocean. As the Devil's Shroud fog closes in, Andrew senses a presence just before someone (or something) shoves him off the edge of the cliff, yet he manages to grab onto a tree root and climb his way back up to safety, rather than falling onto the jagged rocks 300 feet below. While at the hospital to have his wounds seen to, he reports the incident to the deputy policeman who, after hearing his tale, suggests that he contact SOS, the Stealth Operations Specialists, who have recently opened their service in Cape Churn, to have them recommend a bodyguard for his daughter. He's expecting a big brawny bodyguard, but that's not who they send him. If you're expecting a faint-hearted damsel in distress, you're in for a surprise.

Enter Dixie (Dix) Reeves, a new hire at SOS, a well-trained Army Ranger who was once captured and tortured by terrorists, and has the PTSD and emotional scars to prove it. She's also a champion MMA fighter, and she doesn't like Stratford's assumption that she's too small and weak to be of service until she has no problem subduing him. While she didn't expect that her first assignment with SOS would be something so common as to be tasked with being a bodyguard to scarred and reclusive Andrew Stratford and his daughter, Leigha, she’s committed to doing her best to keep them safe, and the sparks that fly between Dix and Andrew are a distraction she doesn't need.

What follows is a rock-solid, suspense-filled Gothic romance novel, with quite a bit more sexual tension between the main characters than the novels I read in high school. Leigha is an absolutely charming child, although she too bears emotional scars from the incident that caused Andrew's physical burns and scars, and the explanation for all that is one I won't reveal, but it was hard to miss the similarities between this story and elements of Daphne de Maurier's classic novel, Rebecca, and Charlotte Bronte's brilliant novel, Jane Eyre--two of my all-time favorite reads.

My only complaint with the novel is that Ms. James never gives us a full explanation of exactly what happened while Dix was held captive to make her so wary of a relationship that she calls herself "damaged goods" when Andrew makes his attraction to her known. It was far easier to understand Andrew's physical scars when the explanation for how he got them is revealed.

Aside from the aforementioned minor flaws, this was a very good read, with well-drawn characters, mystery-upon-mystery, and it was hard to put down. The nefarious goings on at Stratford House, ghostly encounters, hidden tunnels, and the multi-layered family history behind them is riveting, the characters are compelling, and although part of a series, it all worked perfectly well as a standalone, and I am happy to recommend it.

I voluntarily reviewed an advance reader copy of this novel.

While the cover image has nothing to do with the plot description, the story was pretty good to follow. Drama, thrill, suspense, romance, mystery, intrigue everything was rightly balanced to ensure a complete and enthralling reading experience. The characters were pleasant to get to know and I was hoping for some more involvement and maybe an epilogue containing the ghost.

It's Harlequin so we get or happy ending but it's the getting there that's have the fun. Gothic mansion , rich hero damsel in distress same formula but the setting and backdrop of this mystery made it great

Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) provided by the Author and Publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an fair and honest review.

I am an unabashed Elle James fan. I love her hot SEAL books and I love her sweet romantic-suspense work too. In "Deadly Fall" fall we have all the elements of a great gothic mystery worthy of Phyllis A. Whitney, brooding mansion; scarred, handsome hero; competent, take charge, also scarred heroine; sad lonely child; and even a ghost. But, this isn't a gothic mystery, it's a fantastic romantic-suspense.

Dix Evans is a veteran Army Ranger who was captured and has the scars, on the inside, and anger that goes with it. She turned that anger into a successful career in the MMA until the anger got away from her and she seriously injured an opponent. She quit MMA and took a job with Stealth Operations Specialists, SOS, as a bodyguard to reclusive billionaire, Andrew Stratford, and his daughter, Leigha.

Andrew Stratford is a handsome billionaire who has scars from rescuing his daughter, Leigha, from a fire that killed her mother. He has lived in Cape Churn, Oregon in his grandfather's gothic mansion for almost a year with little contact with the town. Someone pushed him off the cliff and he is concerned with the safety of his daughter so he hires SOS and gets Dix as his bodyguard and what he gets is much, much more.

These two scarred people have lots of issues to overcome, but the attraction is not to be denied. They also have ghosts from the past and an enemy in the present to deal with.

A little bit of spooky with ghost stories, a lot of intrigue with a treasure hunt and old mansion with secret hallways, and lots of love between three broken people in desperate need of healing are the makings of this tale. A final episode, so to say, to a well-loved series where most of the previous characters get to visit for a minute of two, and Andrew, the stockbroker, gets his chance with a mending of wounds inside and finding happiness.
All three of the main characters Andrew, Dixie, and Andrew's daughter Leigha have a form of PTSD from their former times. The past events were glanced over just enough to explain them to the reader. I enjoyed the instant connection and development of the relationship between Andrew and Dixie, yet I wished they would have spent a little bit more time reconstructing themselves from the past. Both Andrew and Dixie are slightly intimidating, yet easy to be around with, and so obviously falling for each other. Andrew's daughter has them both wrapped around her little finger, and the trio soon form a family unit. I loved watching both Andrew and Dixie just melt when it came to anything to do with Leigha.
Leigha was an absolute delight, with her ghostly friend and loyal dog, they provided the entertainment and light fun to the story.
The suspenseful attacks towards the characters, the excitement of the possible treasure, mixed with Andrew's family history was enchanting and fascinating.
The book was easy to read and had a nice flow to it. I felt that most of the issues got an easy solution, and were treated lightly, but that didn't dim the pleasure of the story or the entertainment of the tale.
~ Four Spoons

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