REVIEW: COPPER BEACH, BY JAYNE ANN KRENTZ

 

 

 

A story that features psychic/paranormal energy, the power within crystals, and family legacies, Copper Beach (Dark Legacy Novel) grabs the reader and doesn’t let go until the final page.

Offering up a rich variety of interesting characters and settings, primarily in the Seattle area and on one of the San Juan Islands, the author gives us the Coppersmiths, like Sam and his parents, along with Abby Radwell, who has been blackmailed into searching for a mysterious lab notebook. One that holds valuable formulas, but must be unlocked via psychic energy. Then there are a number of nefarious characters, like Lander Knox, not to mention annoying ones like Orinda Strickland, Abby’s step-grandmother. Another interesting subplot involved Abby’s father Brandon, his third wife Diana, her stepbrother Dawson, and Brandon’s focus on his “perfect family” image that led to Abby being placed in a school for troubled teens when she was younger.

And why are all of these people seeking the notebook? What can it bring to any of their lives? And how does a seemingly disturbed young man named Grady Hastings set everything in motion? And who has hypnotically controlled him?

I was intrigued by the puzzling elements, but the romantic aspects added a lighter note to the story. There was an obvious connection between Sam Coppersmith and Abby that shows promise for the future. And let’s not forget the contributions of Abby’s dog Newton. A delightful romantic suspense novel with a twist, I recommend it to all fans of the author. 4.5 stars.

REVIEW: STARTER HOUSE, BY SONJA CONDIT

Eric and Lacey are having their first baby, and the house hunt has been long and grueling. After the childhood Lacey had, moving around all the time and sometimes living in the car, she has been looking forward to finally having just the right home.

When she sees the dusty rose Cape Cod in the neighborhood they have selected, she is ecstatic. Yes, it is a fixer-upper, but she can visualize it when completed.

So they move in. But unfortunately, things are not going the way they’d hoped. Somewhere in the house is a malevolent presence. It shows itself as a nine-year-old boy named Drew, demanding and jealous, reminding Lacey of the “noisy boys” she used to teach. She thinks she can somehow persuade him to leave her alone. None of it is working.

Meanwhile, Eric works long hours and Lacey is alone a lot. Eric is not very supportive, so she feels more and more isolated.

Starter House: A Novel is a story about mysterious and deadly secrets, and how the beautiful cottage has been the scene of loss and horror. Trying to unravel the stories of the house, Lacey hopes to find peace at last.

But what must happen before the presence leaves them alone? Will Drew leave them alone if they vacate the house? Or will he follow? What does he want?

This was a story that I had a hard time liking, but I kept turning those pages, because I wanted to know what would happen. I did not like Eric, who seemed like a controlling and somewhat whiny man who blamed others for his problems. And Lacey was entirely too patient with Drew…almost wimpy. But who is to know how to handle these paranormal nightmares? I was relieved when the book ended, although I thought the conclusion wrapped up a little too neatly. 3.5 stars.

INTERIOR MUSINGS: WHAT I’M READING NOW

 

Welcome to another week of musings, hosted by Should Be Reading.  My musing today is from this topic:

Tell us what you’re reading right now — what you think of it, so far; why you chose it; what you are (or, aren’t) enjoying it.

***

I am currently reading Starter House, by Sonja Condit, an ARC from Amazon Vine.

 

 

I selected it because of this portion of the blurb:

From the moment Lacey sees the house with the beautiful wood staircase, she knows she’s found her dream home. Growing up rootless with her flighty mother, Ella Dane, a self-proclaimed psychic, Lacey is determined to give her unborn baby the stability she never had.

I love stories about houses.  Love visualizing them, decorating them or watching the characters do that…and yet, there was the next part of the blurb that gave me pause:

But shortly after she and her husband, Eric, move in, the warm and welcoming house becomes cold and dark. There is something malevolent within these walls that wants to hurt her unborn child—a terrifying presence that only she can sense. And there is Drew, a demanding and temperamental little boy who mysteriously appears when Lacey is alone.

To protect her unborn child and save her family, Lacy must discover the truth about her dream house and the troubled Drew—a decades-old mystery involving secrets, violence, and guilt—and confront an evil that has lingered in wait for years.

***

What I’m not enjoying is how the character, Lacey, seems powerless to do anything but “go along” with the “demanding and temperamental boy.”  And I don’t like her husband, Eric, who is not supportive at all.  He dismisses everything she tells him, so she keeps secrets.

But….the story is suspenseful, and after reading it for awhile last night (I’m almost finished), I dreamed about it.  In my dreams, the story had a variety of endings…I wonder which one will actually happen?

***

Do you ever do that?  Pick a book you are not sure about, but you’re drawn to it anyway?  And you keep reading, even when you don’t like the characters?

***

What are you musing about today?