For some reason I find this one a bit difficult to review. I liked it, but I didn't connect with Eleanor even when she was being real as opposed to being a fake medium. The cast of characters was good and I did become suspicious of all of them at one point or another. I would read another book in this series, I just would like to see Eleanor be more relatable and less one-dimensional. She must have interests, hobbies, etc?

Thank you to Netgalley and Kensington Books for providing this ARC.

I didn't think I was going to like this book much based on the description but I loved it! I had a difficulty time putting it down. It is a wonderful look at the behind the scenes of a "medium" and the family that she helps. The development of the characters and the relationships between them are so interesting. I really hope that there is a sequel. #SéancesAreForSuckers #NetGalley

I loved this book. It is completely different from most I read. It has an entirely different take starting with Ellie Wilde who is a ghosthunter who doesn't believe in ghosts. This book gives her a trip to England to help a rich aristocrat with his haunted castle. He doesn't believe in ghosts either but his family does so needs help finding out who is causing the haunting.

Loved this book and look forward to more in the series.
I received an eARC from the publisher via NetGalley for my honest review.

This new series featuring Eleanor Wilde, a ghost hunting cleanser, is somewhat unusual and very interesting. Seems Eleanor now uses the theatrical effects expected of medium/psychic types, since good investigative techniques apparently disappointed her clients when she found mundane reasons for their “spirits”.

After an especially dramatic purification ritual, Eleanor is approached by Nicholas Hartford III to come to Castle Hartford, his family’s ancestral estate, to get rid of Xavier, a ghost that whispers in his mother’s ear. Interesting note: Nicholas knows Eleanor puts on a show, but actually gets to the bottom of any “spiritual” mystery, his primary requirement.

Playing along with Eleanor’s mystic persona for his mother Vivian’s sake, Nicholas brings Eleanor to England to ferret out Xavier. When Eleanor begins exploring the castle, looking for signs of Xavier, she stumbles across a dead body that mysteriously disappears when she goes for help. However, a decades old skeleton, is found in the hideaway under the back stairs where Eleanor found the fresh dead body.

A well-thought out mystery complete with relatable characters, Seances Are for Suckers is a fun and engaging read, the outcome somewhat unexpected.

Thank you to Tamara Berry, Kensington Books, and Netgalley for the pre-pub access.

I really liked this book much more than I expected I would. Based on the synopsis and the cover, I expected a fun/silly read, which it was, but it was also smart, self-aware even, in places where the characters didn't fall into cliches. It's definitely a series I will keep my eye out for in the future!

Séances are for Suckers: An Eleanor Wilde Mystery
By Tamara Berry
Kensington
October 2018

Review by Cynthia Chow

Just like it says on her business card, Ellie Wilde’s Eleanor’s Cleansing Service rids homes of whatever is haunting her clients. If that happens to be rats in the attic or mischievous teenagers playing pranks, at the end of the day everyone is still satisfied. It of course helps that Ellie dresses for the part and enhances her efforts with a cold-air blasting portable air conditioner and 21st century technology. It’s also why wealthy Nicholas Hartford III has come to hire her to convince his mother that their ancestral home is not haunted, or failing that, exorcise the castle of ghosts. Nicholas doesn’t care whether or not Ellie’s abilities are genuine, and in fact would prefer that she simply put on a good enough show to relieve his mother’s worries. It takes a crook to catch a crook, and a very cynical Nicholas is willing to pay generously for Ellie to identify who is pretending to haunt Castle Hartford.

Ellie never set out to be a fraudulent psychic and medium, and in truth she came to her professional honestly. For over a decade her sister has laid in a coma, the result of a car crash that left a then 18-year-old Winnie unresponsive and wavering between life and death. Ellie spared no expense at attempting to communicate with her triplet sibling, which why Ellie is so familiar with the ways of con artist occultists. While their brother may distain of her pretense, his salary as an elementary school gym teacher does little to contribute to the insurmountable medicals costs. The lucrative incentive being waved in front of her by Nicholas is what has Ellie jetting off to England to scare away an imaginary ghost, although she soon finds that it has been created by very living human hands. Ellie knows how to put on a show, but a far more deadly one is being put on for her when she discovers a disappearing body, very old bones, and an intelligent but unbelievably named Inspector Peter Piper.

Ellie emerges as one of the most unique, acerbic, and often heart-breakingly funny characters in mystery fiction. Her razor-sharp wit and cynical attitude hides the pain and guilt she feels over the fate of her sister, who was always the peacemaker of the family. Having lost nearly her entire family in the car wreck, Ellie can’t help but envy the legacy of the admittedly dysfunctional Hartford family. The highlight of this first of a series is the relationship between Ellie and Nicholas, with their fast banter and sharp barbs only highlighting the romantic sparks that fly when they meet. Nicholas is as vulnerable as Ellie, although she has painfully learned that hope, optimism, and faith are traps that result in pain and sorrow. As perplexing as puzzle of haunted Castle Hartford are the complicated personalities of Nicholas and his hired psychic Ellie. Ellie may attempt to hide her generous heart with a veneer of jaded pessimism, but the lessons she learns about herself and the world ensure for extraordinary adventures in her future.

Before I write my review I want to beg Tamara Berry - PLEASE write the next book in this series quickly. I want to read it ASAP!!!

I was immediately drawn into this book and only tore myself away when the dog could not wait any longer to get outside. This book will make you smile. It will make you laugh. It will make you GASP and wonder what is going on! And then the major twist... made me do a double-take, or at least pause and flip back to see if I really understood how that could happen.

Madame Eleanor Wilde is not a real psychic medium. She is a creative problem solver. Then again, don't we ALL have a bit of psychic ability? You could argue that she is just more observant than most. I fell in love with her from the very beginning, felt sympathy for her brother Liam. I was surprised how deeply I came to care for Winnie. (Not to do a spoiler but I was relieved in the very end.) Which is why I want the next book NOW!

Nicholas is another matter. He knows from the start that Ellie's powers are not "real" which is precisely why he seeks her out. At first I was amused by him, then confused, then annoyed, etc. He did take my emotions on a bit of a ride. There are other secondary characters who will also muddy the waters for a bit. Talk about a dysfunctional family!

Do not peek ahead. Enjoy this story just as it unfolds. Have fun with it.
I have discovered a new favorite series.

Ellie Wilde is a ghost hunter, realist, and triplet. While she doesn’t truly believe in ghosts, the service she provides “Cleanses” homes of ghosts and brings peace to families who have been living with them. After all, Ellie’s always been able to find what’s causing the supposed hauntings and sets them right, all while putting on a good show. While her brother doesn’t agree with her line of work, it pays the bills, particularly the medical care that their sibling who is in a coma requires.

When Nicholas Hartford III, as much of a skeptic as Ellie when it comes to the supernatural, hires Madame Eleanor to rid his family estate of a ghost, things turn deadly. While Ellie finds herself taking a shine to the family, whomever is playing ghost is putting Ellie in danger…and she’s far from home in a foreign country.

I loved the author’s portrayal of Ellie. The way she speaks and carries herself is real and relatable. The final reveal will surely surprise you! A fun new series that I look forward to following as Ellie and the crew move forward.

Thank you Netgalley and Kensington Books for the ARC

Ellie Wilde is a ghosthunter who doesn't believe in ghosts. However, she does believe she can help her clients get peace of mind from whatever it is that's haunting them. Faking the tricks of the trade, she's made quite a name for herself. Then one day when visiting her twin sister in a care facility, she's whisked away by this stranger, Nicholas, to join him at Castle Hartford in England, supposedly to help his family get rid of their ghost. Ellie agrees, while not believing a thing about there being a ghost. But from the moment she arrives this beast is on a rampage, causing havoc in the castle, almost taking our ghosthunter down.
Ellie's a really good investigator though and pretty soon all family members are suspects. The mystery turns into murder, adding another exciting level to the story. The writing is fluent, taking the reader deep into the secrets of the Hartford family.
I laughed out loud at Ellies hilarious train of thought. I enjoyed the telepathic contact she has with her twin sister back in The States. I loved the banter with her brother. The book tells of family bonds, the good and bad, the joy and sadness. It ends with an unexpected twist.
'Séances are for suckers' is a fun read, filled with quirky characters and one very clever cat. I'm looking forward to more Ellie Wilde adventures.

Great new cozy! Has some paranormal aspects that are a ton of fun, great characters that I hope grow more and more each book. Can't wait for the next book!

I didn't really like any of the characters and I thought Eleanor could have handled things better than she did. She's supposed to be relatively savvy. There was also a few elements that we're introduced but not developed, though the ending leads one to think that they'll be addressed in the next book.

I'm curious enough to give the next book a shot, but I'm not eager.

I received my copy from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

Funny and quaint cozy mystery. Good flow and a great read. Good and atmospheric subject matter and enjoyable characters

I didn’t think I’d enjoy a book about a charlatan and wealthy Brit quite as much as I did! The faux-supernatural genre is not a familiar one but I loved the way this tale unfolded.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I was not paid for this review.

A Medium Who Goes to Extremes

I loved this book. It's a paranormal mystery of the old-fashioned variety, in the sense that there’s a moldering castle and the romance is fairly chaste, but it also features a modern woman who knows what she has to do and isn't afraid to be called a witch in order to do it.

Tamara Berry knows quite a bit about ghost hunting, from the modern tech and parapsychology jargon to the history of Spiritualism and Victorian mediums. She’s sprinkled her knowledge throughout the book in a way that lends it authenticity without bogging down the story.

And it's a great story! It kept me guessing up to the last, and the climax was nerve-wracking. Ms. Berry has created a wonderful character in Eleanor Wilde. I'll leave it to the reader to discover the particulars, but I'm delighted to see that this plucky heroine will go on to give us more adventures.

I thoroughly enjoyed the plot, atmosphere, and characters. I would recommend the book to friends and family for their reading pleasure.

It's not often that I find a mystery that I just don't want to put down for anything, but Seances Are For Suckers by Tamara Berry definitely falls into that category. I would've read it all in less than a day, but I had to eat and sleep eventually. I loved Ellie, a.k.a. Madame Eleanor. The author made her seem so real. She was funny, but also serious when she needed to be. The other characters were very well-developed, too. I also really loved how the story wasn't predominantly a murder mystery. It reminded me a lot of a Nancy Drew book, but for adults. The plot was mostly trying to figure out the source of the ghost haunting a family's castle. A dead body and murder didn't even factor in until right around the middle of the book. Now, normally I don't like for the murder part of a murder mystery to take that long, but the author did such a fantastic job crafting the ghost mystery part of the plot that I didn't mind. I truly cannot wait for the next book in this series. I hope there are many more because I'm already attached to Ellie and can't wait to see what happens in future books.

Note: I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of this book through Netgalley in exchange for my fair and honest review.

This was a very different book, but it was refreshing to read a book that wasn't the typical cozy mystery. I loved that there were no easy answers in this book and nothing was as it seems. It was very entertaining and kept you guessing till the end. I will definitely read more in this series when it comes out. Highly recommend!

This book was cute. Having a major paranormal twist to it was a plus for me. Eleanor Wilde works as a psychic so she can afford to pay for her sisters care. When she's asked to go to England to get rid of a ghost by a wealthy man she can't resist. Even though they both know she is a fake and things aren't always as they seem. But this case is a bit different and there is more to the story than at first glance. Ellie will have to put herself in a bit of danger to uncover what is really going on in this drafty estate.

Eleanor Wilde can divide her life into two parts: her early years as one third of a set of triplets, happy with their single mom, and the decade since a traffic accident claimed the life of her mother and left her sister in a coma.

Now she works as a medium, making people happy by removing the ghosts that are haunting them. It's satisfying work and it pays for her sister's pricey health care. There's just one catch: Eleanor doesn't belive in ghosts. She figures the "ghosts" she removes are relationship issues in the households that hire her, and she has a high-tech bag of tricks to supplement her insights into her customers.

A challenging job, her brother, and a carefully built up protective carapace of darkly self-deprecating wit keep Eleanor reasonably content, even if there is a deep vein of sadness in her life. But then she meets Nicholas Hartford III, a wealthy English landowner with his own tortured past.

She heads to Castle Hartford, a creepy pile in a quaint English village. There are eccentric characters and complex family dynamics, but there are also a lot of really scary things going on... Has Eleanor finally met her ghost?

The characters are smart, the writing is witty and suspenseful, and the story is full of twists and turns. There's a little bit of romance and plenty of surprises. Highly recommended.

Easy, fun read with a main character who doesn't take herself too seriously bizarre ending but what do you want from a fake psychic anyway