Synopsis

Can a wrong be rectified in death?

Eight months ago, Simone experienced her first spectral encounter. It awakened a dormant second sight and opened a chasm to the afterlife. Now, another spirit from 1917 New Orleans has wandered through that passage, haunting her with an intoxicating jasmine fragrance and wicked antics.

To escape this mysterious ghost, Simone jumps at a seven-day complimentary Mardi Gras hotel package, unaware there might be an ancestral power behind her decision, an identity she grapples with. Is the ghost’s name Bleu?

She’s a lady of the night who lived a dangerous life in the infamous Storyville. A place lined with mansion-like brothels on the edge of the French Quarter run by unscrupulous madams and frequented by dangerous criminals. WWI is on the horizon, jazz music is burgeoning, and Bleu’s life unravels.

Visions of her past and horrific death beset Simone as she explores present-day New Orleans with her three roommates.

But why are the images fragmented? Has Bleu forgotten what happened the stormy night she died? Can Simone uncover Bleu’s murderer and reunite her with her loved ones before it’s too late?

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Review

Possessions, ghosts, spirits, and a 103 year old mystery bring together a cast of characters that will intrigue and possibly horrify you.

This is the second in the Simone Doucet series. Simone has Creole blood and discovered in the first book that she could communicate with her ancestors and uncover the mystery of why they perished. While the first book was tame, this one is a bit more dangerous because it isn’t just Simone’s body that the ghosts inhabit, they take over several of her friend’s bodies, and it creates quite an incident.

In the first book, we get the full story of her ancestor, but in this novel, it is told in bits and pieces until near the end. I’m not sure which way I prefer, but I know that the little dribs and drabs sprinkled throughout the first half of the book only piqued my interest in who was trying to communicate with Simone and why. I did find it interesting that the ghosts were able to track her to New York, where she lived, and were not bound to the area where they died. But this is what brings her to New Orleans during Mardi Gras, well, partially, anyway.

Outside of trying to decipher what the ghosts are trying to tell her, Simone is connecting with other family members that she never knew about before. She is connecting with them in an unusual way, but it brings an added dimension to the story. We all have skeletons in our closets; we just may not know about all of them. But Bleu wants her help in solving her murder and reconnecting her with those that were important to her 103 years ago.

I enjoyed the interactions between the characters and the ghosts. I am not sure why Simone tried to keep it a secret from her roommates, but they figured it out pretty quickly. This was actually a good thing because they could watch out for her and make sure she was ok if a ghost inhabited her body.

There is even a little romance in this book between Simone and her roommate Mitchell. She keeps him at bay until she realizes that he can adapt to her gift.

This book is set in early 2020, and Covid is just beginning, so there are several references to the virus. I think that helps bring it closer to home in a way. It is something that is happening in the world and in the book.

If you like mysteries and paranormal facets, you just might enjoy this book. We give it 5 paws up.

About the Author

E. Denise Billups was born in Monroeville, Alabama, and raised in New York City, where she currently resides. She’s a former Financial Analyst turned writer. A multi-genre fiction author, she’s published six novels and several supernatural short stories. A skilled artist, she trained as a dancer (ballet, modern, and jazz dance) in her younger years and dabbled in writing, which she would not pursue until much later. As an avid reader of many genres, she was greatly influenced by magical realism, mystery, suspense, and supernatural novels. When she’s not reading or writing, she’s running miles in the park, finding her inner calm with yoga, experimenting with vegan dishes, and enjoying time with family and friends.

Presently, she is working on book two of her trilogy, Twilight Ends, a paranormal historical fiction, and book three of the Simone Doucet Series.

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