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If you enjoy a paranormal mystery written from the point-of-view of a sassy 15-year-old, you’ll like this book. It has all the elements of a paranormal–ghosts, witches and human monsters. It also has a touch of teenage romance.
That leads to our heroine, Dibby Caldwell, to question the ten-year-old mysterious disappearance of a young boy. She sticks her curious nose in enough places to disturb the sleepy, spooky little town of Hangwell, Kansas and soon disturbs the human monsters who live there. Her partner in the search for answers is the new kid in town, whose good-looks attract Dibby’s tomboyish, cold heart.
Not to give too much away, I will simply add, that Dibby finds out more than she bargained for and ultimately puts her life in jeopardy. Oh, yes, her dad is the local mortician which adds some ghoulishness to the story. We can almost hear the spooky laughter of the dead bodies stored in Dibby’s basement.
Readers will not only enjoy the mysterious happenings, but they will also take pleasure in the colloquial atmosphere in this well-described small town. Hangwell could be anywhere from the deep South to the Mid-West. Towns like it exist all over this country. West does a nice job of describing the strange characters who live in Hangwell, and he uses language consistent with that population.
I’ve earmarked some writing that I particularly enjoyed:
…in Peculiar County where death comes a’knocking in an anything but a natural manner.
True friends tended not to last long, worn out faster than cheap sneakers.
So why had his flirtation with Suzette plugged my heart full of lead?
As I’d only known him from a vague boogeyman status, his gentle nature caught me off-guard.
In the morning, my overalls and flannel shellacked me with a nice coating of normal.
…the wind dosey-doed through the Judge’s tree’s naked tree limbs, whistling quite the jaunty melody.
My hope is Mr. West will not stop here but will continue this story into a series.
How many stars will I give this book? Only because I’m not much into paranormal, I gave it 4.5 but on Amazon that’s as good as 5.
Read my interview with Stuart R. West here. You’ll love his humor!
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