Cover Image: Spirit of Prophecy - the Psychic Detective #1

Spirit of Prophecy - the Psychic Detective #1

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Member Reviews

Unfortunately this book was not for me, it was a bit slower than I would like and it just didn't hold my attention. I am sure other people will love it!

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A fast-paced suck you in taunt riveting thriller. It starts out with heinous visions a woman is having in the night. An accurate representation of what I put in three categories: possible, probable & unchangeable situations you see ahead of time, usually not even knowing who, where, what, why or when. Why the hell you are traumatized with some of these without being able to pinpoint basics of the above I will never know. In the book the detective in question has alot more help with AI programs & inside intel of areas from maps, law enforcement & a global organization, an altered, better reality of the actual scenario presently. Once again though, when she tried to warn & bring in reinforcements in this situation, she is thwarted from all she could have accomplished. The victim in this case has some major flaws not just in choices but ethics & responsibility to those that have been entrusted to her care & is driven by her own ego. One would have thought this would have been a major life lesson she should have learned a while back. Ethics which seems to be an issue nowadays: is winning or advancing yourself in any way really worth betraying friends & being craven to the needs of those that depend on you? What happened to strong moral/ethic compasses? I was binge reading this all day & totally enraptured but took a bit of a dip on a bridge too far in a couple spots for me in last 100 or so pages. Much better than 99% of the romance type novels but then descended into fatal flaws I think of trying to add yet another angle group/personas. The author should have hired a consultant specifically of that group versed in both their history, culture & belief systems to even try to enter this story line into the book & it would have altered everything immediately & taken alot of the OMG am I really reading this feel out. I also think that she should have stayed completely away from any types or stereotypes or using someone "famous" or exploiting a group of peoples that have been pan created by outsiders in manners that they never were. The whole Native American & ancient evil curse is really manifested guilt on the part of Europeans over what happened here. The true evil was the invasion By Latins starting with columbus & his carnage & atrocities of the most gentle peoples on the islands of the east south areas off continent coast. areas. Then armies pillage murder & unspeakable acts [conquistadors, priests & settlers] after. There are over 574 federally recognized Tribes in the US & more that aren't or are off shoots. Everyone has their own traditions, beliefs & ways. [quotes from book partly from wiki then added onto]"The murders devastated Geronimo. In the tradition of the Apache, he set fire to his family's belongings and then, in a show of grief, headed into the wilderness to bereave the deaths. There, it is said, alone and crying, a voice came to Geronimo that promised him: "No gun will ever kill you. I will take the bullets from the guns of the Mexicans … and I will guide your arrows." To take a famous individual of a particular culture this way & change their words or manner of death to suit a book is to me very wrong. Most Apaches used grass huts made like hogans or yurts. Other nonnomadic tribes used the same including around here like the Wichita. That is my major beef & without it or even done with the help of someone that knew the culture & not a known persona would have given this book five stars in my review & really wished that someone around had brought this up as the rest was excellent & that particular vein of the book was beyond choppy including the story & the end where that story line would go which is really really regrettable for all the hard work & excitement throughout the rest of the book.

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Description
Are you a believer? Psychic Detective Rosetta Barrett has the highest security clearance with the Elite Paranormal Intelligence Services. But Rosetta can’t tell anyone what she does, not even her family. Her divorce from her ruthless husband was sheer hell. He’s a top Russian diplomat, and she lost a custody battle for her children Edward and Alice, because of her paranormal beliefs and supernormal abilities. For weeks Rosetta has been having sleepless nights, haunted by a horrific premonition. Suspecting what it might mean she tries to warn Juliet, a top Olympic event rider. But will her warning come too late?

My Review
WOW - Spirit of Prophecy is one of the best novels I have read recently. It is engrossing, captivating and thought provoking. The characters are complex and very well-written.

The story starts with a quote "Magic is just science that we don't understand yet." by Arthur C. Clarke. Then you read about Rosetta in her room in the dark being spooked. You know already this is going to be one of those novels that grabs you from the beginning and does not let you go until the very end.

I thoroughly enjoyed enjoyed the fact that the author suggest in the end you listen to your intuition and trust that you can develop your psychic skills, your healing abilities and manifest your gifts.

This ARC was provided in exchange for my honest opinion. I give this a definitely 5 star!!

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I was attracted to this book as it had a an unsual mix of a crime thriller that was horse centric with a paranormal element that gave it a very unique appeal. I am not sure the book however knew quite what it was trying to deliver as for me the elements didn't quite blend.
The premis starts quite well with Rosetta, who forms part of the Elite Paranormla Intelligence Service (EPIS), having a vision foretelling a horse rider being mowed down by a car. She attemps to make contact to warn Juliet, the Olympic Rider, but it is in vain. Juliet lives but her horse and a young rider , Isobelle, out with her both die.
The regular police force take the lead with the investigation, with the support of Rosetta and her virtual team. There is good layering within the plot and a focus on a number of characters that are involved, and so to be fair it had all the right ingrediants but it just wasn't executed that well . Some of the issue was the dialogue - it was so twee, it was often painful to read. Juliet is completely focused on the death of the horse and the impact of a young girl's death whilst she is was under her supervision is too sparcely referred to, and this and the impact needed to be fleshed out far more. The affair Juliet has was hard to totally buy into - just a fling would have been enough - soul mates that weren't made this aspect a bit OTT. The paranormal element had the potential to have a strong and influential component, but felt more of an add on - a bit of bolted on side story that consequently lost its impact. I was disappointed by this. The relationship between Rosetta and Rav didn't feel a good/credible fit either.
There is a nice balance with some humour, and the story does have a good pace. There are parts when the book does engage and find its groove, which was then enjoyable.It's not an awful book, but there were just too many clunky elements that meant I couldn't rate the book that highly.

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Rosetta Barrett has had the supernatural in her whole life. She is now a psychic detective in the year 2021. She works for the Elite Paranormal Intelligence Service. Working for this agency has cause a divorce with the husband who has custody of the two children. Her ex-husband has caused her children to think their mother is “crazy.” She has been having psychic visions of accident that keeps her from sleeping at night. She tries to stop the accident but it’s too late. Rosetta discovers it wasn’t an accident but done on purpose. Why?

A novel that includes the paranormal in this mystery is done differently than others that I have read. The author did surprise me when she introduced reincarnation in this mystery. I found myself intrigued with the twists and turns of the novel. It kept my interest throughout the story.

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Spirit of Prophecy⭐️

I am not a hugr fan of paranormal or sci fy so if you are a fan you will probably love this. This was a cover request. It was gold and i wanted it. The summary sounded interesting as well but it didn’t capture my attention and I couldny get into the world and the characters.
Since this is an ARC i wont judge to rashly on punctuation errors, but the amount of run on sentences was excessive.
Besides the sentence runons the writing was good and the characters were developed but this just wasnt the book for me.
Thank you so much to booksgosocial via netgalley for sending me an ARC copy of spirit of prophecy by j j hughs. This will be released on April 14 2019
All opinions are my own.

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I really wasn't sure what to expect with this book, but wow! I cannot even define what the novel is - it is such an eclectic mix of different genres that it makes a whole new one of its own. Hughes combines a Dick Francis style horse related mystery/crime with a spiritual/psychic aspect and international intrigue. It is such a combination of elements that it seems unlikely to work, but Hughes is a master crafter and writes a spellbinding mystery. The characters are wonderfully real, with flaws and all included. The different points of view allow different insights into the various characters and the world of the paranormal agency that is interwoven with our own world. A wonderful set up for the series. I am very much looking forward to the next one in the series. It is really refreshing to see a truly modern novel which does allow itself to be forced into a single genre.

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Spirit of Prophecy is a wondefully complex and intriguing story. I’ve watched the trailer too and it gave me some idea what I can expect but it gave me so much more. The start was a little confusing but after the first few chapters I got the hang of it.

The story revolves around a police investigation and told from the POV of two of the investigators Rosetta and Rav and than from the POV of Juliet. I’ve grown quite fond of them. Rosetta is definitely my kind of woman, she is a very bullheaded, strong, purposeful character with a heart full of love and faith. She is also a mother and I respect her singlemindedness when it comes to protecting them.
Juliet is all about horses, they are her life. She wants to go the Olympics and she does everything in her power to achieve the goal. But s**t happens and her life takes a turn.

What I like the most in this book is these two strong female protagonist. They know what they want anf they are going to get it no matter what.

I highly recommend it to everyone who want to read about strong female lead characters, horses and soul mates.

Thank you to NetGalley, BooksGoSocial and J.J. Hughes for this ARC.

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Thankyou to NetGalley, BooksGoSocial and the author, JJ Hughes, for the opportunity to read a digital copy of Spirit Of Prophecy in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.
I was so excited to receive a copy of this book to review. From the premise of the story, I knew it would be a book that I would really enjoy. And I most certainly did.
I loved everything about this book. From the well written storyline and characters to the descriptive scenery, I was enthralled. I cannot wait to read more. 4.5 stars.
Well worth a read.

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"Spirit of Prophecy" is about two women - Rosetta, a detective with the Elite Paranormal Intelligence Services, and Juliet, an equestrian rider set on going to the Olympics. They are connected because Rosetta keeps having terrible visions of Juliet being run down by a car, so she attempts to warn her.

I found the premise interesting. A psychic detective trying to prevent crimes from occurring. This story though is set in the future, where AI determines where a police presence is most likely required, and this case was determined to be low priority, so tragedy ensues. A deeper mystery is unraveled as Rosetta sets out to discover why Juliet was targeted. I appreciated the themes the story was exploring - AI reliance, aftermath of divorce, discrimination, depression, etc. However, I struggled with the formatting, and the writing got confusing in places. Also, some of the early descriptions were a bit too gory and graphic for me. Overall, this story was not really my style. But, if you like reading about psychics, mysteries, karma, and past lives, then "Spirit of Prophecy" should appeal to you.

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Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the opportunity to read this book for my honest opinion.
I immediately fell in love with this book in the first chapter. Just the characters and the descriptions of the scenes are amazing. You cannot but become irate and just want to find justice for the victims of the road rage incident. We have all heard of or been a witness to a case of road rage but nothing like this.
I love the fact that Det. Rosetta is bringing in the spirit side to this story because we are here because of another lifetime. It is especially nice to see that the horses are involved.
Juliet is a spoiled and pampered rider that is involved with Matt and he is no good for her but will she realize that before it is too late? Where is here parents and why aren't they protecting her from the evils of the world? Will Det. Rosetta be able to become a friend to Juliet and vice versa? Just ask Sweetpea!!!

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The Spirit of Prophecy by JJ Hughes
Okay. I’ll admit it. This book was a total cover request for me from Netgalley. I didn’t think I’d get approved but YAY!!! I almost bought it JIC, but I am on a hubs-imposed book buying ban. While waiting, looked up everything I could about the book: blurbs, reviews, the trailer- OH MY GOSH! Have you seen the trailer? Even if you’ve read the book already, you need to watch the trailer. Seriously. NOW. It’ll make you wanna read the book all over again. But enough about my drooling with anticipation over this book.

I got the eARC and excitedly started reading. I was confused as heck! I started skimming (NOT a good sign for me.) I started to catch on and then I started again from beginning with a bit of context. Ok, so about three pages in of legit reading, I had already decided that this was going to be a brilliantly bizarre read. And I was right. When you see that it is a paranormal-fantasy fiction-suspense-sci fi-crime- supernatural-thriller-mystery… believe it. It is all of those and even more. I don’t want to give any spoilers, but let’s just say, if you read the blurb and watch the trailer, you get the gist of the premise of the book. What you won’t realize, however, without reading the book- is how remarkably and masterfully Hughes has accomplished blending these genres together.

TBH, I cannot do this novel justice by using my own limited vocabulary and lack of ability to create a sense of imagery or description. Thus, I will employ an age-old tradition of using another’s words. Specifically, and unabashedly I might add, I am going to employ the words of the trailer:

“What if your past came back to haunt you and became your worst nightmare? ...A dream destroyed, a desperate detective, a deadly deception, a desecrated grave… The world’s top psychics and precogs work together when the past and future collide, creating devastating wrinkles in time. The Elite Paranormal Intelligence Service investigates and prevents crime. Can they save humanity from a rogue A.I.? Get on board a metaphysical rollercoaster from the future to the past and back.”

Are you kidding me? How can I NOT read this book after THAT?!?!

Ok, so basically, it’s this: Rosetta Barrett is a psychic detective in the year 2021. She works for the Elite Paranormal Intelligence Service (EPIS.) Of course, she can’t reveal that to anyone and it wreaks havoc in her personal life, causing her to divorce and lose custody of her children. The book opens with her continued sleeplessness related to haunting visions of a disaster she doesn’t know how to stop. It’s revealed that the visions causing her insomnia are related to the death of a girl on a horse because of road rage. Or is it? Soon Rosetta finds herself caught in an investigation wrought with ‘revenge ad retribution’ and if she fails to solve the crime in time, the consequences will lead to a catastrophic and endless sequence of events.

The narrative takes on various POVs. Many different characters, and their own voices help to tell the story. A story that takes the reader on a journey through time and location via unnatural forces. The chapters are fairly short, though engrossing. Each perspective and orator gives dimension to the narrative as a whole. I know it’s so cliché to say this but, I LITERALLY could not stop reading, even though it cost me my own sleeplessness. But in the best way. (And I had to go to work the next morning!) But, I digress.

Rosetta. Oh, Rosetta. Let’s just go on a bit about how awesome and dynamic she is in this book. She has flaws and imperfections, yes, but she is also incredibly vigilant, resilient, and such a bad a&& female lead! You can’t help but relate to her and cheer her on. Did I mention that she is an astoundingly perfect example of the type of female protagonist many women love to read about? At least I do. She is one of my new fictional role models. Seriously. I can’t spoil it, but I want to tell what happens SO, SO badly, I can’t even stand to write this review. I just want everyone to read this book and all of us to just talk about how crazy perfect it is, like one ginormous book club discussion!

If you can’t tell by now, this debut by JJ Hughes gets a 5/5 from me. I could go on about what a ridiculously detailed and meticulous writer she is; how every setting, every character, every scene, every bit of dialogue was so immersive, that it made you feel as if you were in the story yourself. Incredible. Just amazing. I mean this is her debut novel people! It’s disgusting to me how all that talent and imagination are collected into one single person. Ok, it’s not disgusting. It is bewildering though. I believe I will absolutely HAVE to read anything this woman writes in the future. She can’t go wrong. You’ll just have to read it yourself to believe me. Again, 5/5.

I received this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions and thoughts expressed are my own.

This review, or portions thereof, will be posted (when able) on Netgalley, Amazon, B&N, Goodreads, Kobo, IG (Bookstagram), Litsy, FB, Pinterest, BAM, and my own blog. Unfortunately, I am unable to provide all links at this time as I am using my phone.

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A little bit different reading material for me, but it was nice change. It is a brilliant story and pretty entertaining that kept me turning pages.
It is paranormal mystery novel about a Rosetta - psychic detective that is fighting to stop a cycle of revenge on the Indian territory.
All the plots, twists and turns in the story were brilliant and the main character was so good built with all her imperfections that was just perfect.
I really enjoyed reading and I this is definitely not my last book by J.J.Hughes

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This was an intriguing book set in the near future with a psychic detective who isn't allowed to let her family or anyone else know what she truly does for a living. She is caught in a recurring precognitive dream and attempts to warn one of the victims. The twist and turns this well written mystery takes you on kept me hooked throughout. Enjoyed the paranormal aspect and Native American cultural reading. In the end we are once again reminded that greed and karma rarely take a back seat.

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