Member Review
Review by
Reviewer 397197
This was a perfect October read. It was a mix of paranormal, mystery, and romance.
Willa Dunn was a successful author of YA ghost stories. Lee Chandler was a single mom to her geeky teenage daughter who absorbed Willa’s books and was the ultimate fan. Lee was also the director of Camp Prism, an overnight summer camp for LGBTQ kids ages 8-14. Both women knew each other when they summered together with their families at Forestlands Lake. They even shared a few kisses. When the girls were almost sixteen, a heartbreaking event took place and the girls never saw each other again…until twenty-five years later. Willa returned to the lake to work on her new book. She took her 17 year old rebellious sister with her in the hope that they returned to the close bond they once had. Willa also hoped to reestablish that closeness she shared with Lee. But a series of ghostly events continually disrupted their lives.
Aside from the paranormal storyline, there were other interesting elements that made this story engaging. The characters were very likable with a history that accelerated their romance. It was instant love type of relationship. Even though they weren’t in each other’s lives for so many years, they were always in their thoughts. Willa’s sister was a bit rebellious at times, but you felt for her because of her backstory. She was also quite funny with her sarcasm directed mostly at her sister. I think she actually made the story more interesting because of her troubled ways. The secondary characters added a good mix to their diverse community neighbors. For example, there were the friendly supportive gay dads and in direct opposition were the fanatical neighbors condemning LGBTQ people as sinners. These and others added depth to the story.
I also liked the mother- daughter relationship and how they handled the artificial insemination topic when explaining it to others. It was nice to see these children represented in a story. It was different and welcoming.
I enjoyed this author’s writing style. The ghostly/mystery storyline was entertaining while other parts were both heartbreaking and heartfelt. But everything balanced out nicely.
An ARC was given for an honest review.
Willa Dunn was a successful author of YA ghost stories. Lee Chandler was a single mom to her geeky teenage daughter who absorbed Willa’s books and was the ultimate fan. Lee was also the director of Camp Prism, an overnight summer camp for LGBTQ kids ages 8-14. Both women knew each other when they summered together with their families at Forestlands Lake. They even shared a few kisses. When the girls were almost sixteen, a heartbreaking event took place and the girls never saw each other again…until twenty-five years later. Willa returned to the lake to work on her new book. She took her 17 year old rebellious sister with her in the hope that they returned to the close bond they once had. Willa also hoped to reestablish that closeness she shared with Lee. But a series of ghostly events continually disrupted their lives.
Aside from the paranormal storyline, there were other interesting elements that made this story engaging. The characters were very likable with a history that accelerated their romance. It was instant love type of relationship. Even though they weren’t in each other’s lives for so many years, they were always in their thoughts. Willa’s sister was a bit rebellious at times, but you felt for her because of her backstory. She was also quite funny with her sarcasm directed mostly at her sister. I think she actually made the story more interesting because of her troubled ways. The secondary characters added a good mix to their diverse community neighbors. For example, there were the friendly supportive gay dads and in direct opposition were the fanatical neighbors condemning LGBTQ people as sinners. These and others added depth to the story.
I also liked the mother- daughter relationship and how they handled the artificial insemination topic when explaining it to others. It was nice to see these children represented in a story. It was different and welcoming.
I enjoyed this author’s writing style. The ghostly/mystery storyline was entertaining while other parts were both heartbreaking and heartfelt. But everything balanced out nicely.
An ARC was given for an honest review.
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