I wanted to love this novel since the synopsis is my type of story. My issues started pretty early on when the world-building just started throwing details in willy-nilly. I like my fantasy stories to have some common sense elements in them and I am 100% over yelling Multiverse to explain things. I felt an overabundance of couple bantering went nowhere, leaving me wishing for more plot. I give this book 2..5/5 stars.

I voluntarily read an advanced copy of A Ghost in Shining Armor by Therese Beharrie. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you to Netgalley and Kensington Books for providing an ARC to review.

The writing is funny, and gives me light Meg Cabot vibes (a high compliment), but I don't think I'm in the headspace for this right now. I recommend it though. I just feel that any deeper analysis from me wouldn't be relevant.

So many books are coming out tomorrow! Just trying to keep up. I'm a couple chapters in and loving the idea of a woman who can see ghosts and has been able to since she was a teen.. Now she has a ghost guide to help her with something difficult in her life.

Her guide is new to the undead and is def her type and he has to complete his task so he can go back to send a message.

But since Gemma acknowledged him all her friends can see him. So now a fake dating relationship with a ghost! Also, forced proximity because he needs to stay close by he's on a time limit.

Love this cover!!

I enjoy ghosts and spirits when they aren't being all evil and ruining people's day. I like when it's all cute and rom comy.

Thank you kensingtonbooks and netgalley for the e-ARC for my honest and voluntary review.

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me the opportunity to read an ARC of "A Ghost in Shining Armor" written by Therese Beharrie.

Overall, I rated this novel a 3/5 stars!

This book tells the story of Gemma, who is a woman capable of seeing ghosts/spirits. She goes out with her friends one evening and ends up kissing an attractive-looking ghost named Levi, whose ulterior motive is to help reunite Gemma with her sister. I found myself enjoying this novel for the most part, despite the fact that I typically do not enjoy the fantasy romance sub-genre.

My second paranormal romance from the author, and I honestly wish it was better than the first.

The first half of the book was much more promising and exciting because it contained all of the book's interesting aspects, so you could say I was expecting more in the second half after being so impressed in the first.

Unfortunately, the inconsistency of the writing begins in the second half. With how things unfolded there, I'd say the characters and writing became a little bland to me.

Although the characters are entertaining and I can tell that the chemistry exists, I would say that these two fell short in the second half, let alone in terms of growth. The romance in the second half felt forced, with the constant back and forth of their moments rather than moving forward.

Overall, I wish the second half had continued to be good, but it didn't. However, the concept remains intriguing, so 3 ⭐

Thank you for the e-ARC, NetGalley.-

This was an entertaining, well-written book. It was sweet, fun steamy and I wanted to find out what would happen. I enjoyed this book and look forward to reading more books by this author.

Ghost In Shining Armor
3 stars
Pub date: 9/27

Gemma can see ghosts, and has been able to since she turned 18 and her dead science teacher showed up in her bedroom. Ghosts usually come to her for help, so when Levi shows up and tries to help HER, she’s confused.

When Levi Walker dies, They (the entities that govern the universe) tell him that if he promises to help Gemma get her life back on track, he can go back to his mortal life. Because he needs to get back to his timeline and see his sister again, he readily agrees.

Gemma and Levi share a lot of really sweet moments throughout the book, and I enjoyed the slow burn and the tension between them. They both seem like good people, always putting others before themselves and doing their best to help when they can. I loved all of the laugh out loud moments throughout the story and I thought the supporting characters played their parts well, even though they were all very unlikable.

I fell in love with the idea of this premise, but there are a couple things that just didn't work for me. The pacing is VERY slow. I picked this up and put it back down multiple times before finally finishing. Levi is so lackluster about everything that it’s hard to know how he feels about anything, even when we see the story through his POV. Gemma delivers a lot of cringey dialogue and I had a hard time relating to her or Levi. I think the author missed a real opportunity to explore Levi’s internal struggle over his big decision at the end and it left the ending feeling very flat.

This book comes out just in time for spooky season! Thank you so much to NetGalley and Kensington Books for my early copy.

If I was the type of person to have a book boyfriend, Levi would be it. Handsome, built, attentive, and loves to cook and bake, the man is pretty much the whole package. Okay, so maybe his emotional intelligence is a little stunted and maybe he considers grunts and hums to be acceptable forms of communication but I can work with that.

While Gemma might want to climb him like a tree (her words) and kisses him in a bar within seconds of meeting him, she’s not exactly happy with his presence. Though who would want a ghost hanging around saying it’s his job to help her straighten out the mess her life has become? Especially when he has motives of his own.

As far as guardian angels go, Levi was kind of terrible. Thankfully, Gemma didn’t need a guardian so much as someone to see her for who she was and take care of her since she was always so busy taking care of everyone else. In that role, Levi excelled.

This book was heavy on the side of their individual development and growth, rather than the romance arc. While the romance arc is very satisfying, both characters had a lot of personal issues to deal with before they could be together. Levi and Gemma both spent so much of their lives doing everything they could for others that they forgot to care for themselves much of the time. Each of them prodded the other into facing themselves and how truly wrong their lives were.

While I would have enjoyed a bit more world-building around the ghosts, guardians, and how the magic worked, the story came together nicely. It was full of interesting characters, heartwarming moments, a touch of angst, so much secondhand embarrassment, and humor. Not too heavy on the paranormal if that’s not you’re thing but just enough to add some magic. Ghost in Shining Armor does not disappoint.

This is different from what Theresa Beharrie usually writes. Didn’t think that I would enjoy it but I did. This is a great read that I would recommend. A Ghost In Shinning Armor reminds me of a book that I had the pleasure of listening to an audio by another author. It was a about a young woman that was able to see and talk to a ghost only she could see. The two fell in love and the ghost had a ghost girlfriend and when she found out she began to do things to the main characters. It was a great book that I enjoyed. Gemma has the ability to talk to and see ghost every since she was 18 years old. She loves helping them out with unfinished business as they go into the afterlife. Levi is a super sexy male who recently died and has become a ghost trying to save his sister when he meets Gemma at a bar and the two share a kiss and things are not same for Gemma anymore. Levi has been tasked with returning to help Gemma find her long lost sister and return to his life on earth. As these two navigate their way thru helping each out Levi realizes that he wants to stay with Gemma. These two are so cute together, I love the camaraderie between the two. This is an entertaining read that you do not want to miss out on.

Will Levi get to have a second chance at life on earth or once he has finished his task he returns to the afterlife and/or make a new life for himself and Gemma? Team Gemma and Levi.

I received an ARC via NetGalley and Kensington Books, Zebra and I am leaving my review voluntarily.

Such a fun book! A Ghost in Shining Armor is adorable. I loved reading about Gemma and Levi, but Gemma tried too hard not to be like other girls.

So this would've been a somewhat decent romance if not for the amount of sexualizing in the book. I honestly felt like the two main characters didn't love each other they were only attracted to each other's bodies and the fact that they constantly talked about it was so annoying even when they were disscusing important life changing situations and this says alot of bad things about the characters like the fact that they can't control their desires at all. When I read a romance I don't want it to imply that love is only about the bodies no that's not it. The book disscused really important subjects and I loved the idea but the author ruined it by sexualizing the characters in a horrible way. If I could've gotten over it for the sake of the story believe me I would cause I liked it but it was impossible. I may sound a little harsh but I don't mean it like that I just wanted it to be clear that this is not a good thing I hope the author learns from this in the future. Thank you netgalley and the publisher for giving me an e-arc of this book.

While not listed as such, A Ghost in Shining Armor is the second story in a duology about two sisters who are separated at a young age and only learn about each other in adulthood. However, you don’t have to read the first book - And They Lived Happily Ever After - to enjoy this one.

Before I get too far into this review, I want to clarify two things. The first is that as the title clearly indicates, this novel deals with ghosts and the afterlife. The second is that it does so in an oblique, non-religious manner and that the extremely mysterious powers that be which run this capricious world are referred to simply as They.

Gemma Daniels sees dead people. It began on her eighteenth birthday, when one of her high school teachers popped into her room after his sudden death and asked her to aid him with some unfinished business. Since then she has been helping ghosts find closure and move to whatever comes after. There is also a unique side-affect to the gift - she can help others see ghosts, too. If Gemma interacts with a ghost in public, they will become solid and real to other people for the length of that interaction.

Levi Walker devoted his life to helping his family. When his mom walked out on them, his two-year-old sister and grieving father were in no position to handle things, so Levi stepped up and took over. When They meet with Levi after his mortal accident, he is told his sudden and tragic death can be averted provided he helps Gemma deal with and fix some emotional issues within the next three months. He eagerly signs up, anxious to return to where he should be.

Levi is just supposed to be observing Gemma as she celebrates with friends at a bachelorette party in a dive bar. However, a challenge from her fellow drunken attendees has Gemma walking over to him and claiming a kiss. Levi doesn’t typically kiss strangers but he is supposed to help Gemma, so of course he gives it his all. Both of them are stunned by the heat that fuels between them once their lips lock. And both of them are stunned that that one moment has caused a big problem. Levi is now corporeal and needs a place to live, food to eat, showers - in short, he’s human once more. They provide him with a hotel for a week but not directions as to how to fulfill his responsibilities or what he should do while living in this reality without money or paperwork. Fortunately, Gemma lends a hand. Once his time is up at the inn, she lets him stay at her place, providing him with food, clothing and shelter. Living with her certainly helps him have plentiful chances to fulfill his mission but it also provides a stumbling block. Levi finds himself falling in love and isn’t sure he wants to go back to a life that doesn’t include Gemma.

This is a light tale with a lot of under-the-surface depth. We have the sweetness of the love story, combined with the whimsical humor revolving around Gemma’s gift - I literally laughed out loud when her high school teacher first appeared - and the heavier issues that Gemma and Levi are dealing with. Gemma has recently found out that she has a sister. When her parents adopted Gemma, they left her sibling in foster care and then chose to lie to Gemma about it for decades. Levi has lived his whole life for his family, and being with Gemma has made him realize that doing so has made everyone happy but him. Now that he finally has a chance at some joy for himself, he struggles with the idea of leaving it behind to return to a caretaker role that no longer satisfies him. Their unique situation enables them to open up to each other more than they typically would to a near stranger, an intimacy that fuels both their growth as a couple and as individuals.

The strength of the narrative lies in the charm of its leads. Gemma is funny, sunny and sweet. Levi is grumpy and stern but cares about literally everyone around him. Simply put, both are really good people who always put others first. Levi has lived in a holding pattern for years, giving his all to his family and in this life, giving to Gemma, her friends and neighbors. Gemma has been near perfect, determined to prove to her parents that they made the right choice in adopting her. Neither of Gemma nor Levi has been true to themselves, neither feels free to say “no” to anything asked of them. It is only by seeing the pain of the inability to carve out a bit of your life for yourself in each other that they are able to start working on healing that pain in themselves.

The attraction/tension between them starts from that first volatile encounter and intensifies throughout the book, even though they’re both trying to fight it. Gemma and Levi are aware he will (likely) be leaving and are also concerned that anything more in their relationship than what was outlined by the mysterious They may jeopardize both their futures. A large part of the story is watching them juggle their strong feelings/desire for each other against common sense.

My only quibble with the story is that it suffers from a mild case of what I call the “terrible toos”. In this case, the story felt too dense and heavy at times, which made the humor fall flat occasionally. It also had too much going on - Gemma has parental/friendship issues to deal with PLUS falling in love, PLUS working out the problem of her sister. Levi has to help her resolve her issues and deal with his own family issues, PLUS all the problems that crop up because he died, PLUS worrying about all the problems that would occur if he didn’t handle post-life existence properly, PLUS falling in love. That’s a lot for a relatively short book.

In spite of the above listed hiccups, A Ghost in Shining Armor is a sweet, heartfelt novel. It’s not perfect but I would still recommend it to anyone who likes contemporary stories and doesn’t mind a bit of a paranormal twist.

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Thank you to Netgalley & Kensington Books for this e-arc in exchange of an honest review.

We all know by now that I am a complete sucker for illustrated cover art and I found this one really cute. It grabbed my attention along with the synopsis. I don't know why but I got major "Ghost" vibes from the novel & I loved it.

I really enjoyed the mix of paranormal & contemporary elements & that the story is set in Cape Town, it's not everyday you get to read books set in your home country.
I honestly had a great time reading this & I thought that the characters were ell rounded.

I had no idea that this was a sequel but I am definitely going to read the first book as well.

3.5⭐️

This was a delectable character-driven piece about a woman who finds out at 18 that she can see ghosts.

STOP HERE if you haven’t read And They Happily Lived Ever After. They’re interconnected standalones and I can’t tell you why but you need to read them in order to get a full understanding of what’s going on.

Gemma is as the MC describes her, “a literal piece of sunshine”. She’s a bubbly glass half full type, but mostly because she went out of her way to fill up half an empty glass because it made someone else sad. She moonlights as a much happier Melinda a la Ghost Whisperer until she finds out that she’s secretly a twin separated at birth. She found out her parents adopted her and left her twin to fend for herself

Confrontation is not her jam but she wants to know her sister. Only she’s positive that unearthing this secret is going to destroy the family she does have.

Levi lived him life for his little sister but being dead doesn’t stop him from trying to get back to her. In the afterlife (wherever that is!) he’s presented with an opportunity to help Gemma and get back to his sister. It seems like a win win—as long as he doesn’t catch feelings for Gemma.

Gemma and Levi are kind of awkward. Gemma is the sunniest sunshine and Levi is super grumpy and early days it feel like they’re mostly tolerating each other. There’s no instalove (plenty of insta-lust) but I don’t get that they fall for each more than it takes for their stop/start under the pants or fade to black sessions. They spend so much of the book pulling away from each other and with the whole premise being Levi leaving, it would make sense that they don’t end with an HEA.

Only, neither Gemma or Levi showed up whole. Gemma’s people pleasing need is sustainable and the side characters in her life are pretty damaging. Between Lacey (😡😡😡) & her parents, no one seems to be really looking out for her. Levi was a kid when his sister became her whole world and never got the chance to grow up and find himself.

This was as much a coming-of-age story as a romance built on quirky characters who happen to realize their quirks fit together. If you’re looking for a quirky, light paranormal read this will fit the bill and answer a lot of the questions that came up in And They Lived Happily Ever After.

4.5

A Ghost In Shining Armor was such a fun read with a perfectly intriguing setup: Gemma has the ability to see and talk to ghosts and Levi is one such ghost who has been sent to help her through some difficulties in her life. The book follows the couple as they learn to love each other - and themselves - through a series of events.
First of all, the characters were so lovable and frustrating at the same time, making them unpredictable and enjoyable. Both of the main characters were incredibly selfless, always putting other people’s needs before their own and inevitably suffering because of those things.
But at the end they learn to put themselves first, and are able to find a HEA despite all the shit going on in their respective lives.
The plot was easy to follow, filled with funny and witty dialogues. This book was also spicy without including actual smut (if that makes sense LOL).
Just one tiny complaint I have with this book is that it got confusing at certain points. Like, it was difficult to understand what was happening at times. Even though that confusion was cleared within the next paragraph itself, the writing style broke the flow of the book for me.
STILL the book is a solid A+ for me. The author certainly knows how to create intricate plots and keep her readers hooked till the end.
Definitely recommend the book to someone who is looking for an escape read that will make you feel all the feels.

P.S. i would like to include this wonderful quote from the book
So, really, this came down to her, what she believed she deserved. And that was to know unreservedly that she was worthy of love.
She was.
She was worthy of love.

<3

No, because I need to read more books by Therese Beharrie! How does she pull off writing books which have such such amazing character arc, plot development, with a pinch of steaminess? I can't even.

I STRUGGLED with this story. Gemma was a bit annoying playing hot and cold with poor Levi who’s already dead and is socially awkward in the sense that his demeanor is soooooo blah.. everything he does is simply dispassionate and lack luster so to speak. It’s like being dead shut off all his emotions and he’s going through his “life” with Gemma on sort of auto pilot. And Gemma can’t figure crap out on WTH she wants and it’s soooooo irritating for someone who seems to be so headstrong and confident in the beginning. I didn’t connect with any characters and it felt flat for a romance or even a comedy.

Love, Love, Love!!!! I truly loved everything about this book!!! The concept was so creative and cool. I loved the dynamic between Gemma and Levi! From the beginning, you saw the obstacle that was going to come between the two but the obstacles they are facing on their own kept you engaged. I think this is the perfect book for to read in October. It's got great elements that will really get you into the spirit.

Thanks to Netgalley and Kensington Books for the ARC of this!

Very cute, slightly paranormal romance. Perfect for if you want a romance with no actual scares that feels right for spooky season! I really liked the characters and their chemistry.

I was very excited to receive this ARC, when I read the description and that Therese Beharrie was a South African author! It sounded like a super interesting storyline (did not disappoint), and I work with a lot of (former) South Africans and get a lot of stories about “home” so knew it would be great in all aspects! Plus, another favorite author is South African but only bases some of her books or parts of the stories there. I love that this was in Cape Town, but not a lot of descriptions of the country or area. I did try to hear it read in my mind in an Afrikaans accent, though!

Gemma has a special skill - since she was young and her teacher shows up in her bedroom and she learns that she can see and help ghosts. Levi is a new ghost. Gemma spots Levi across a bar during her friend’s bachelorette celebrations, and is bet to kiss a stranger. Little did anyone know that acknowledging, especially kissing, a ghost, makes them visible to everyone. Levi is a special case already, as he has been sent to help Gemma in a mission - connecting with her long-lost twin sister (main character in Beharrie’s previous book, And They Lived Happily Ever After - which I hope to read immediately, it sounds great and now I need Gaia’s story)!

I totally enjoyed this book and the writing and characters, chemistry, pacing - everything! I’m going to go and read more of her works and definitely recommend this to everyone, whether they think they want to read a ghost romance or not! I think about a 4.25-star, not just 4.

I received an advance copy from NetGalley and Kensington Books, Zebra, and this is my honest review and feedback.