Author: Lena Gregory
Genre: Mystery/Paranormal
Trade Paperback; Digital Book
ISBN #: 9781954717442
Beyond the Page Publishing
202 Pages
$13.99; $4.99 Amazon
July 13, 2021
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Cass Donovan is confronted by ghoulish crimes both old and new when a defunct asylum is the site of a fresh murder and a long-hidden injustice...
The old abandoned buildings of the Twin Forks Lunatic Asylum have always fascinated and frightened clairvoyant Cass Donovan, but she never dreamed her psychic abilities would be put to the test there. Then the new owner of the site tells her he plans to renovate it and turn it into a boarding school, and he'll pay Cass handsomely to determine whether the place is haunted! Cass accepts his offer, but her search for hints of old ghosts soon has her looking for clues among the living when the man who hired her turns up dead.
Returning to the shuttered asylum looking for evidence of who may have wanted her client out of the way, Cass stumbles upon signs of yet another murder, even as she's besieged by an onslaught of haunting voices from the past. When it comes to light that rival real estate developers have been hatching plans of their own for the property, Cass sees no shortage of motives for the murders, but she'll have to find a way to quiet the disturbing voices from long ago and focus on the here and now, because whoever's behind the killings has targeted Cass as their next victim...
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Cass Donovan is an ex-psychiatrist who moved to Bay Island when one of her patients died, and her marriage fell apart. She discovered that she has strong psychic abilities, and has since opened a shop where not only does she sell items that help others, but gives both private and group readings.
Her best friend Bee is trying to get Cass to start a vlog where she shows people what she does, and he's sure it will increase business for her. But Cass can't get a solid reading, and so when the weather turns, he packs up his equipment and they head back home, where Cass is slated to do a group reading that evening.
It's at this popular group reading that she discovers she still can't get a full grip, like something is blocking her. She feels as if she's having trouble allowing her mind to truly open up. But Bee insists she'll be fine, and so she proceeds. During the reading however, a woman stands up and insists that 'sometimes the dead need to be left alone.' With this cryptic statement, she leaves. After the reading, a man tells Cass that he owns the old closed Twin Forks Lunatic Asylum and wants to open it as a boarding school for children. Others who are on his board, and especially his wife, want him to sell it and leave it alone. But he will only do so if Cass investigates the asylum and tell him whether it's truly haunted or not. If it is, he'll give up his plans. He tells her that he will pay her well to do so, and writes her a check.
Bee thinks it will be perfect for their vlog, and so the next day they venture out. But while there, Cass definitely senses and hears something, and it's not long before they hear a shot, and look outside to see a man lying on the ground. When she discovers it's her client, she wonders why he was there in the first place. But even then her new visions don't leave, and Cass thinks she can find the murderer. But first she needs to find out who had the best motive, and if they're going to kill again...
This is the sixth book in the series and I have read every one of them. I do believe that they keep getting better and better, as Cass's psychic ability gets stronger with each book. Each time I read one I declare that it is my favorite, and here we go again. This one is definitely my favorite. Cass not only finds herself investigating a murder once again, she finds herself in the protective 'custody' of Bee, her six-foot-plus best friend, who gives up working in his shop on his own schedule to watch over her. We also get to meet Simone again, whom I took a definitely liking to in the last book and am glad to see that she's back once more.
But we also have the subplots involving her other friend Stephanie's new adopted son, Aiden, who is autistic; and a newcomer named Thea, who is a link to Cass's investigation, although you will have to read the book to see how.
The plot was indeed suspenseful, and it kept me reading in one sitting, which is a very good sign. It means that the book kept me interested enough where I didn't want to veer into anything else. There were secrets long held, ghosts both old and new who wanted justice, and a cunning murderer who so far had been able to escape the eyes of police. But when the ending comes, the climax is gripping and when it all ends, you wish that the book would go on. I definitely loved this book and await eagerly for the next in the series.
More on Lena Gregory's Books: https://www.fantasticfiction.com/g/lena-gregory/
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