To Each His Ghost #0.5 prequel
S.M. Boyce
Self-Pub, Mar 2016
Kindle, 25 Pages
Only in digital
Genre(s) Paranormal, Ghost
Source Author
Other books in this series
Ari #1
My Disclaimer:
I was provided a complimentary copy of this book. I am voluntarily providing an honest review in which all opinions are fully my own. I am not being compensated in any way.
~ Judi E. Easley for Blue Cat Review
What it’s about… Mel is five years old when she makes a pinky promise with a ghost named Hazel. She promises to never leave him. And you know you can’t break pinky promises, right? Especially to a ghost.
Ghosts can be scary. And little girls grow up and forget things. But once you have a ghost, you always have a ghost. Mel is in her twenties and married to Greg. They have a little boy named Dorian who’s just learning to say a few words. ‘Puppy’ is a new word, but Mel didn’t teach it to Dorian.
Hazel is back and this time he’s brought a monster with him who just might look something like a puppy, but it’s still a monster.
But Greg doesn’t see ghosts or demons…
Technical Tidbits…
The cover is a bit disappointing to me because it’s mostly text. I do love that big, bold font, but I prefer something that relates to the book, the story. The handprint and eye just don’t really do that for me, though they are creepy. The cover is consistent throughout the series as far as I’ve seen.
The storyline is very good. In this case, the cliffhanger works for both the story and as an introduction to the series. I wouldn’t normally say that, but from here you would have to deal with a psychologist who also sees ghosts. Does he say you’re sane because he also sees ghosts? He’d be locked up with you in a heartbeat. Does he say you’re insane because you see ghosts, alienate you, and not be able to help you deal with your situation?
The characters were not too highly developed as this was never intended to be a full novel. This is a teaser for the series. So what we get here is a brief introduction to some of the characters in the series or one of the books. I haven’t read forward, so I really don’t know, yet, what’s ahead.
The pace was fast. In 25 pages we moved from Mel’s childhood to her parenthood. And the only question I had was how did she and Greg meet.
The tension was chilling. I’m not normally a horror fan. And this one isn’t going to change me to one. But this is very well done with the tension picking up as soon as they pinky promise because you know how those things go. And the chill still runs up and down my back when I’m writing this after I’ve closed the book.
And this is where you STOP if you don’t want to see any SPOILERS…
The good, the bad, and the ugly…and how much it lit up my life… ✰✰✰✰
I really don’t like reading short prequels like this. And I won’t be reviewing them alone anymore. I’ll be reviewing them with the first book of the series from now on. But this one was already on my TBR&R list, so I had to do it. Also, S.M. Boyce is one of my favorite newly discovered writers and I’d probably cut her some slack.
On the cover there’s the handprint that would be bloody, I think if it weren’t green. It has an eye in it. This is going to be the same throughout the series from what I can see. Only the color scheme will change from book to book. I’m not sold on this. I really like a cover to relate to the book I’m reading. I suppose this eye and its bloody handprint are relevant because these are paranormal ghostly horror stories.
If I’m still spooked from reading 25 pages by the author, I don’t think I will hold up to a full-length novel of this genre by her. I don’t think I’d be able to go to sleep at night. But for those of you who enjoy the total chills and thrills of this sort of story, I recommend S.M. Boyce’s To Each His Ghost series. Currently, there is only the prequel and the first book, Ari. But I believe book #2 is due out reasonably soon.
758 wc
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