I am a big fan of supernatural romances so I was very excited for this one, and while there are some things that were really well executed, some of it was not. Overall, the book landed in an average category for me. Really wished some of the execution had been better, but it was still a good one-time read.

4/5 Stars

Very cute story. I liked the paranormal aspects of it alot.
The leds are very lovable and that's always a plus.
I liked the addition of heavy topics and with that hit of humor.

The ghost aspect just wasn’t for me in this one. I just couldn’t get past it. So definitely in the “it’s me not you” category

Not sure I like the ghost aspect but this was a really good read with a great cover. I'll try more of Beharrie in the future.

I was originally introduced to this book by reading “And they lived happily ever after”.
While I loved that story, I often felt the lines between fantasy and reality were blurred in a way that was confusing.

However, when we get introduced to Gemma in the end of that novel, I was ready to read her story.


Grump/Sunshine trope where the grump hero is a ghost? HELLO.

That being said, I found this book was confusing in the same way the first one was, with a warping of realism and fantasy.

Was this still fun? Yes. However, there were a few things I would have done differently.

I don't read much paranormal romance so I don't know the genre well, but this felt like a really original concept. I had no idea how Gemma and Levi were going to work out, but their emotional journey is sweet and funny with lots of banter, but also real emotional depth. Highly recommended if you like character driven, grumpy/sunshine romance with lots of heart.

Once haunted . . .
Gemma Daniels has never been quite the “down to earth” woman her adoptive parents raised her to be. She even has a unique gift: she can see ghosts—and she likes helping them settle their unfinished business. But the hotter-than-hot stranger she impulsively kisses on a bet is not only a phantom, he's determined to help her. And the only way Gemma can explain his presence is to pretend they’re a real-life couple . . .

Twice shy . . .
Levi Walker lived—and died—to save his sister. Now he’s got a second chance at life if he assists Gemma in reuniting with her own long-lost sibling . . . and then never sees Gemma again. But as he starts to enjoy her irrepressible personality, he’s finding it hard to abide by any rules at all . . .

Third time’s the unforgettable charm . . .
Gemma is thrilled to be getting to know her sister, but it causes a family rift she may not be able to heal. On top of that, she’s falling for a ghost with a dilemma. For Levi must decide what loyalty—and living—is truly all about. To fix their mistakes, Gemma and Levi must risk being real with themselves—and each other—if they’re ever to claim true love . . .

Rate : 3 out of 5
Thoughts : Good blurbs but not a good execution to me. It feels flat. just so-so
Thank you Netgalley for the advanced copy!

Beharrie is always pushing the envelope with her books ‐ from a trilogy where everyone takes in love in 24 hours to the forefront of the new cozy paranormal trend. I couldn't imagine how she was going to pull off a happy ending for these two, but she made it look easy.

A Ghost in Shining Armor starts when Gemma, who has seen and helped ghosts since her teenage years, meets a ghost who's actually there to help her and not vice versa. She's been going through a lot lately. A private investigator hired to look into her bio family turned up more than she bargained for-- namely, a twin sister who wasn't adopted with her as a baby and spent a life in the foster system, instead. Gemma's twin was the protagonist in the first book in this series, so the events that play out on the reconnecting sisters front will be familiar to those who've read book one.

Gemma's new, inept guardian ghost is Levi. To be fair to him, he just died and got the assignment, and he has a lot on the line if he can help her-- with severe consequences if he can't. And a sort of slapdash orientation followed by the minimal support of a whimsical being doesn't exactly a professional make. The two flail around trying to get Gemma's life on track, all while fighting their growing, inconvenient feelings for each other.

The chemistry between Gemma and Levi is off the charts at the start. It's a grumpy/sunshine romance with forced proximity that crosses universes, timelines, and the demarcation between life and death. They also bond on an emotional level over the shared experience of molding yourself to what your family needs. With the same core issue, though they've gone about it in different ways, they work to support each other in seeing their worth outside what others want or need. The conversations are compelling to start, but it does lead to some repetitiveness since they're each working toward the same goal.

Though it's an annoying dynamic, at least there's a sensible reason for our lovebirds' will they/won't they vibe. Levi either succeeds and returns to his life in an alternate reality with his beloved sister, or he ceases to exist. No presented options include unliving out his days at Gemma's side, even though he's happier now than he's ever been in life. It does have the consequence of killing the chemistry from earlier in the story. I'm glad the fight didn't go out of the characters, but it did go out of me a bit. It didn't help that it's not quite a closed door but in an adjacent category with some making out and fade to black as our prizes. This was unexpected for me, which made it all the worse.

Outside the romance, the author does a lot to make the book loveable:
1. The HUMOR (it's great)
2. Caring about the details of other characters and relationships-- i.e. Gemma and her bestie Lacey tell each other when their emotions need to come down to a more manageable level for conversation's sake using a numbered scale. The LOYALTY and the love is *chef's kiss.* But even so, their friendship is unbalanced-- Gemma seeks to make herself helpful and unobtrusive in all her relationships, not putting her burdens on anyone else even as she helps herself to her friends' problems to ease their way. Some tough boundary conversations give this friendship plot a satisfying arc.
3. Taking the time for ghost world-building in a fun way without getting hung up on details-- it makes the world seem real, with rules and quirks, even when the characters aren't aware of them all or choose to ignore some.
4. Queer rep in a gender-changing ghost guide-- pronouns shift as easily as Jude's form
5. Seeking consent, even for a kiss
6. Holding important conversations about feelings and appropriately acting on them

There are a couple of reasons that this book didn't stir the same enthusiasm in me as its predecessor. As I mentioned, the romance fizzled in the latter half, victimized by its own angst and fade to black evil. Between repetitive conversations and a lack of romantic progress, everyone is frustrated, including me. Furthermore, the sister storyline lacks oomph since it's essentially a repeat of the first book. Trying to juggle not copying book one leads to vague storytelling at some points that are a disservice to this book. A scene will begin and then shift to a recap instead whenever the twins have a big moment together. It was annoying enough for me who recognized the elements from book one as they buzzed past. It would be extra unsatisfying for a reader picking it up as a standalone romance when such big emotional beats are passed on in such a secondhand manner.

For all its potential and lovely aspects, this book wasn't all I hoped it would be. I still appreciate the writing and look forward to reading more from this author. Thanks to Kensington for my copy to read and review!

This is a super cute book. The characters aren't super deep or anything but they have their troubles and are likeable and relatable.

dnf at 30%. At first it had a cute, interesting concept of supernatural and romance but then as the story progresses it started to be confusing and dragging. It didn’t work for me and I’m sad about that.


Thank you NetGalley for the chance to read this book.

I might be biased cause this author is an auto-read for me.

I just love the many layers to her characters and the connection the love interest make me want to ugly cry every single time. This Ghosty forced proximity had me crying and I did not expect the ending. I was wondering how was it going to possible for them to be together and I cried.

I loved this so much.

i love paranormal romances but this one felt a little flat for me. i struggled to finish it and didn't feel any strong connections to any of the characters unfortunately

I'm usually a big fan of paranormal romance but this one fell kind of flat. I wasn't vested in the characters. It had a good premise but not enough to hook me.

Similar to "And They Lived Happily Ever After", the premise drew me in, but the first half of the book dragged for me. This story is about a ghost named Levi sent to help Gemma deal with the discovery of her twin sister. I was interested to hear Gemma's perspective, after reading in the first book that Gaia had a sister. The plot was focused on the sisters meeting but I felt like it battled a lot against Levi's story line. The latter half was very good, especially with Levi's battle between the life he had versus the life he wanted for himself, along with Gemma really finding her self-worth in terms of what she deserves and demands from those around her.

**I received this ARC in exchange for my review. Thanks to Kesington Books.**

This was a hilarious take on the 'fell in love with a ghost' story. I always enjoy out of the ordinary storylines, and this one did not disappoint.

rating: 2.5
romance type: paranormal romance
book type: standalone
point of view: 3rd pov limited

Thank you NetGalley, Kensington Books, and Therese Beharrie for this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This review (and finishing the book) is waaaay overdue, but anyway on to the review.

I won't lie: my expectations for this book were so low for the book.

At one point I thought that I'd leave a one-star review, but it somewhat got a tiny little bit better around the second half that I bumped it up another star. Not that much, but it's not a one-star.

The plot was promising, I liked the premise, but the actual story was disappointing. A lot of parts just kept jumping from one scene to another, it was confusing. Sometimes, I had to reread a couple times to get what's going on because it kept jumping scenes. It took me the longest time to even reach 50% because of this, but I somehow did.

The main characters (MCs) were okay. Sadly, I couldn't connect with them much.

Overall, A Ghost in Shining Armor is an okay book. Nothing much to it, pretty standard.

I had a hard time getting through this because I kept putting it down. It didn’t hold my interest and moved too slow at times.
Covers topics of grief, panic attacks, parental abandonment

Unfortunately I just couldn't get into this- really great premise, but not my jam. Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read!

I didn't think I would be into this since I generally dont like magical stgories, but I really loved this, both leads were excellent and the chemistry + real attention to not only love but grief was lovely