Good story. There were a few twist and turns you are given. For me though it just didn't measure up to some other books I've read in this genre.

Thank you Netgalley, Stephanie Hanson, and publishers for gifting me a copy of this book in return for my honest review.

2.5/5 stars

Irish folklore meets small town USA (novella.) A heartbroken half banshee, a cockle-selling soul possessor, and a town haunted by mysteries…if they don't find the killer, Orla and Molly might die before finding their soulmates. Orla and Dave's love has been unrequited for as long as they can remember. Cormac and Molly are used to drawing outside the lines. None of them are prepared for the new ghostly neighbors. In a town that's always ostracized them, can Molly and Orla finally use their powers openly in order to save the citizens?

The premise of this novella grabbed me right from the blurb. But once I started reading I was let down. The pace of the book was great and I like the Irish folklore and mystery of it, but everything else was lacking.

I didn't connect with the characters we weren't given much backstory or really anything deep about the characters other than their abilities. It was a very choppy book and it made it hard to read, if it had been any longer I probably would have DNF it. This novella had so much potential but for me, it was just lacking too much.

This was an interesting quick little read.

I enjoyed the LGBTQIA+ representation, the romance for all the characters, and the plot was reasonably interesting. The chapters are told in alternating POVs, Molly and Orla, and that aspect is pretty easy to follow.
I did have to reread the last 15% of the book three or four times. I felt like I missed something. It was almost as if chapters were missing that would make the sudden conclusion happening make sense. It wasn't that the actual plot didn't fit, that was explained pretty well; it was just that it seemed to reach climax and conclusion out of nowhere.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for the dARC of this work in exchange for my honest review.

The concept of the book is incredibly intriguing. Orla is a soul possessor who can possess souls through contact, and Molly is a banshee who can sense when somebody is about to die, days, even weeks in advanced.

I found the folklore to be refreshing, with Irish quotes at the start of every chapter. The book is very atmospheric, giving a small town port town vibe mixed with a ghoulish vibe. The mysteries were interesting.

The book felt too short for the amount of mystery introduced. The dialogue is awkward between characters, and sometimes the way the chapters and POVs would jump between Orla and Molly also felt awkward.

Overall, this was a quick read that was interesting, but it just didn’t quite feel like all it could’ve been.

An enjoyable paranormal YA. The writer has created a good story and characterizations. There is a lot of time spent on the relationships of the different people. The paranormal aspect has been woven deftly into an otherwise pretty normal small town.

The only problem was the big climax. It felt rushed and disjointed. I thought there were some parts missing.

Overall, though, a solid book.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in return for an honest opinion.

Unfortunately the blurb for this book was better written than the novella itself. Every interaction is rushed and forced, and all the plot points needed much greater development. If this were a treatment for consideration, I would give it a second meeting, but it’s far from a finished product.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my free copy. These opinions are my own.

Ethel is a port city where two women are best friends despite being isolated from the rest of the community. Orla possesses people's souls with a single touch, a special gift that also serves as a curse. Molly is half banshee and can sense when someone has died or is about to pass through an auditory ringing in her ears. Orla and Molly have been aware of their abilities for as long as they can remember and have learned to adapt as necessary. Orla and Dave have known each other for a long time, but they've never felt each other's skin in the way they both secretly want. Molly and Cormac's relationship appears to be confusing and complicated from the outside, and it is still being worked on. Aside from the two girls in working relationships who have paranormal abilities, there has now been a murder. Who was responsible? Why?

Even though there are descriptive sex scenes, the author's story captivated me. The novel is most appropriate for "mature readers." The author did an excellent job of describing the characters. There is some cursing. I enjoyed reading about the paranormal activity in the story. It's a fast-paced and occasionally humorous read.

Finally got around to reading this one after catching up on my extensive TBR pile. While I liked the story, there was something about it that I felt was missing. The characters are likeable, but to be honest, it fell a bit in the middle of the road for me.

This book starts out a little rough, reads as something a teen in the literature class wrote as a short story. It does get better as it goes on, but in general reads more like a short story that ironically isn’t short. For my taste, too many details omitted and it gets a bit confusing. All in all, it’s not terrible but it’s not great.

This was an average read. It could get a little dramatic and over the top in some places. It was entertaining, but just sometimes too much.

Ethel is a port city where two women are best friends besides being separate from the community. Orla has the special gift that pairs as a curse of possessing people’s souls with a single touch. Molly is half banshee with the ability of knowing when someone has or will die, through an auditory ringing in her ears. Orla and Molly have had their abilities for as long as they can remember and have learned to adapt as needed. Orla and Dave have been friends for a long time, but have never felt each other’s skin in the way that they both secretly desire. Molly and Cormac have a relationship that could look confusing and complicated to the outside, and is continuing to be worked on. Besides the fact that there are two girls in working relationships, both with paranormal abilities, now there has been a murder. Who did it? Why?

The author has written a story that captivated me even though there are descriptive sex scenes. The novel is best suited for “mature readers.” The author did well describing the characters. There is some profanity. The story has paranormal activity which I enjoyed reading. It is a fast-pace and at times a funny read.

First, I really enjoyed the premise of the story, and the characters that were created. I really liked the small town feel, and the bits of Irish mythology mixed in. It really gave me a ‘Charmed’ (TV Show) feel.

I liked the pace of the story, and I enjoyed that each chapter began with a quote or saying.

I found the writing style a little problematic as I was reading. I didn’t have a feel for the ages of the characters. From the story I could tell they were independent, but their behaviour suggested they were pretty young. The characters read like a YA novel, but the level of spice and intimacy suggested an adult PNR, It just didn’t seem consistent.

I think because of the writing style, I had trouble investing into Dave and Orla’s relationship. They were friends, and then one touch and he’s calling her babe, etc.

Overall, the story is thrilling, exciting and has a good feel, but the inconsistency in the storytelling detracts from it.

Ghostly Howls is a fast-paced mystery with a diverse paranormal cast of characters in this community. If you have been reading a lot more Romance-driven Paranormal, this one will seem VERY light on the romance side for something in this genre.

Orla and Molly are the main FLs that we follow, and their stories are through the mysteries in the town and their issues in love. This story is fast-paced enough that you'll wish you had longer chapters before you jump to the next POV, and this also makes it hard for readers to end up connecting with one or more of the cast because we don't learn a ton about them.

While I left this book bummed because I REALLY loved the blurb, I don't think this means you shouldn't pick up this book or that it won't be good for a YA audience. I'm also excited to follow what Stephanie Hansen writes next and how she continues to grow.

I received an advance review copy for free and am leaving this review voluntarily.

This is going to be a very short review. I am sorry to say that the blurb for this novella was the only thing that I enjoyed. The plot was all over the place, the characters make very questionable choices, and when the mystery was finally revealed I just groaned; it made no sense for this town to be targeted by this entity. Cannot recommend this one.

Thank you to NetGalley & Hypothesis Books for this advance reader copy. All opinions are my own.

Ghostly Howls is a fantasy romance that follows two couples, Dave and Orla and Molly and Cormac. Hansen is great at incorporating inclusivity within this novel while also having a fast paced plot that delves into the world of supernaturals. My main critique about the book is that I wanted more within chapters as at times I felt it was going too fast which left myself somewhat confused as to what was going on. The romance was also seemingly underdeveloped but I can understand that the book is primarily focused on the fantasy and supernatural element. I wish that there was more and longer interactions between characters as it all felt a bit rushed. It is definitely still worth a read and is good at incorporating supernatural ideas and concepts.

The description makes this book sound awesome.

The disjointed writing, lackluster plot, and shallow characters were not awesome.

There is so much potential on the pages and I could see where the story might’ve been great but I failed to understand why this mystery mattered and why I should care about characters.

ARC kindly provided via NetGalley in exchange for an honest view.

Based on the blurb description, I was excited to read this book. Alas, the book didn't live up to its description.

I found the writing disjointed, which was magnified by the switching between 2 characters POV..

The plot lacked depth and the characters were flat. There was nothing to grab and sustain my interest.

I thank Netgalley and the publishers for allowing me to read this ARC and give my honest review.

This book is based around Irish Lore. Orla, a soul posseser and her best friend, Molly, a halfling (half Banshee) live together. Strange things start happening around town when people start hearing ghostly voices and a girl turned up murdered.

Orla's power is instant to touch and therefore hasn't been able to make physical contact with the person she has loved for as long as she can remember. Until she finds out that touching Dave could help guide her powers in the right direction.

Molly and Cormac are in an on/off emotional relationship and aren't used to being open with each other.

They all need to work together in order to solve the mystery of their town and the unknown girl's murder.

I enjoyed this book very much. From the beginning it gave me Nancy Drew vibes - and not ordinary Detective Nancy Drew, but the 2019 tv series SUPERNATURAL Nancy Drew.

It was fast-paced and interesting bwritting in first person narrative from the perspectives of both, Orla and Molly.

I wasn’t able to finish this book. The writing was reminiscent of work completed by an early writer. Too detailed and trying too hard. I found the switching between POVs to be annoying and the characters to be one note. The story had potential but the writing was too cringy to read on.

This was a fun book. The author weaved in some great twists and turns. Great characters to get hooked to and I couldn’t stop reading once I started.

Definitely would read more from Stephanie Hansen.

Thanks to NetGalley for this eArc for my honest review