Review #166: Haunted Love by Jessica Frances and Blog Tour with Giveaway

                                                                               
Review:

My rating: 4 of 5 stars                                                                               


“You are mine, woman, and I am yours. Until you, my life was desolate. I existed, but I didn't truly live. Now I live, even in my death.”
-----Gena Showalter, the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of paranormal and contemporary romances, as well as young adult novels

Jessica Frances, an Australian author, penned her new adult paranormal romance book, Haunted Love that captures the love of two souls in death and life.



Synopsis:

My name is Thea Bell and I was murdered.

I always assumed that death was the end. So when my life was cruelly taken away from me, I never thought I would get a second chance to say what I needed to.

But then I was given a choice, a choice that allowed me to see the people I had left behind, and I knew I had to take it.

I wanted to say a proper goodbye. I needed justice for what happened to me.

But even in death, things rarely go to plan.

I never expected to meet him. I didn't anticipate falling in love. I hadn't considered the repercussions of coming back. I never realized I would put another person in danger.

I didn't know my actions were going to haunt us forever.


My name is Detective Aiden Mercer, and I think I have gone insane.

I am seeing the murder victim of my current case alive and in the flesh, and that is simply not possible.

I can see her, hear her, touch her. She’s real to me, however I know this cannot be real. Right?

But try telling my heart that, because as I grow closer to catching Thea’s killer, I also fall deeper into trouble.

Because love is rarely anything but trouble and I know this love will haunt me forever.


The story begins with Thea- a regular woman with a good career. But what did Thea do to die so early and that too murdered on the hands of someone else? In her afterlife, Thea is told that she would get an opportunity to visit one person from her life, unfortunately that too came with **conditions apply**. The person she gets to see is Aiden Mercer- a workaholic detective, who worships his work and can never think anything other than his cases. When Aiden sees the ghost of Thea, he believes that it's due to his workload that he is seeing the vision of the woman whose murder he is investigating. But soon it becomes evident that Thea is a ghost and she is here to guide Aiden to help him catch the culprit of not only her case but also of others. Eventually their partnership blossoms into something promising, and soon without their knowledge their love becomes haunted and challenging.

I rarely read any paranormal romance books, so this happens to be a new beginning in my reading genre preferences. Jessica Frances is a new name for me and because of a blog tour, I got this opportunity to read it. Anyways, the book is pure soul touching, has the power to make you feel the raw emotions that the author portrayed in her story, and the mystery- will simply keep you on your toes.

But what kept me turning the pages is the partnership-turner-relationship of Aiden and Thea. The author depicted their relationship so skillfully yet with time, so their slow yet evolving relation demands patience and when you watch them falling in love will simply warm your heart by putting a tear into your eyes. In fact, I liked, now striking the author tried to keep it, by not portraying the sweet relationship with passion and lust, rather than portraying with warmth and depth.

The plot is layered with not only painful and deep emotions, there are lot of light moments to cherish for that will make you laugh and smile. Well, let's just say, the emotions are depicted in a balanced manner. The story-telling/ narrative style is simple and articulate. In fact, the conversation between Aiden and Thea sounds pretty intriguing yet enthralling. The characterization was the only flaw in the book, or it maybe due to the fact that I prefer reading realistic novels, which is why, I felt the characters to be out of depth and through their conversation we could create a mental picture of them.

The author portrayed the mystery quite proficiently. I mean, it was so easy for to guess the identity of the killer, midway through the book, but the author managed to bring out the word, OMG from my mouth, at the end of the book! I mean, please don't guess, there are lot of clues that will give us a wrong idea, moreover, if you read it with a clear mind, then the story will keep you anticipating till it's very end.

Overall, the pace is really good, moreover, the mystery is pretty tightly wrapped under the clouds of haze and confusion. The picture of death is pretty grim an sad in the beginning, but once the story starts unfolding, death becomes more pleasant and less scary! Thea is the perfect epitome, who will provoke our thoughts to think about how the good life passes by without our knowledge while we busy climbing the ladders of success or whatever.

Verdict: Insanely beautiful story that brings out all kinds of emotions from it's reader.

Courtesy: I received the book for a blog tour! 
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Haunted Love Excerpt:

I leave Aiden scanning over the boxes, moving back through my house and taking time to look over the photos I have hanging up. It’s strange how I had them along my walls, in my eye line for years yet never took the time to look at them. I used the photos as decoration instead of a reminder of the good times I shared with friends and family as well as the few amazing places I got to visit.


I take my time now, smiling at the memories sparked of Flynn, laughing at the reminders of the fun times we shared and yearning for the places I will never get to visit. I had a list of countries and activities I wanted to do for my summer vacation. I wanted to take at least one trip every summer and slowly work away at the list. Now I’ll never get to see any of those places, never have the chance to skydive in New Zealand, eat gelato in Italy, or go skiing in Switzerland. The most exciting thing I managed is a school field trip to New Orleans where we toured the main tourist destinations, and I ate beignets and gumbo.


I shake my head, slowly moving through the lower level of my house, checking over the mess made from the forensics people who appear to have coated every surface looking for foreign fingerprints. I don’t find anything suspicious here or out of place. There is nothing I can see that is missing, and nothing screams to me that there is a clue here. While I’m disheartened to still have nothing to give Aiden to go on, I stare up my staircase, knowing I will need to check up there, too.


With each step, my legs grow heavier. Soon, I’m dragging my feet. I purposely check every other room, leaving my bedroom for last. I’m dreading what will happen when I glance back inside that room. I feel ill as I approach the still ajar door.


I know I need to get this over with. I might remember something about the murderer in there. If anything is going to be amiss that might help us figure out who my killer is, it will be in my bedroom. But how am I supposed to enter the room where I lost my life?


The room where I was beaten and violated?


Even if it means catching my killer, can I face what I might see in there? Do I really want that memory etched into my brain? Isn’t already having a good idea what I went through bad enough?


Then again, what if he is out there right now, terrorizing other women? What if my reluctance to walk into this room means another person will lose their life?


I take a deep breath, my hand reaching out to push the door open.


“You don’t have to go in there,” Aiden tells me.


I glance over my shoulder, seeing both worry and fury in his eyes. “I do.” I sound more sure then I feel, but I force my feet forward. Within two steps, I am standing inside my bedroom.

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Author Info:

Jessica Frances was born and raised in South Australia, quite possibly born with a book in her hand already. An avid reader her whole life, a pen finally appeared in her hand and she began her journey writing her own stories. The voices in her head have not slowed down and hopefully they never will.

 Connect With Jessica On:  Facebook | Google+ | Goodreads

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Giveaway:

And now is your chance to win away a copy of this lovely book. Participate in the giveaway to win yourself an e-copy of Haunted Love or an e-copy of Earth or a 25dollar Amazon gift card. Good Luck!
 

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