Author:
Jamie Lee MoyerPublication Date: September 17, 2013
Publisher: Tor
A
dark, romantic fantasy set against the backdrop of San Francisco devastated by
the Great Quake
It is the dawn of a new century in San Francisco and Delia Martin is a wealthy young woman whose life appears ideal. But a dark secret colors her life, for Delia’s most loyal companions are ghosts, as she has been gifted (or some would say cursed) with an ability to peer across to the other side.
Since the great quake rocked her city in 1906, Delia has been haunted by an avalanche of the dead clamoring for her help. Delia flees to the other side of the continent, hoping to gain some peace. After several years in New York, Delia believes she is free…until one determined specter appears and she realizes that she must return to the City by the Bay in order to put this tortured soul to rest.
It will not be easy, as the ghost is only one of the many victims of a serial killer who was never caught. A killer who after thirty years is killing again.
And who is now aware of Delia’s existence.
It is the dawn of a new century in San Francisco and Delia Martin is a wealthy young woman whose life appears ideal. But a dark secret colors her life, for Delia’s most loyal companions are ghosts, as she has been gifted (or some would say cursed) with an ability to peer across to the other side.
Since the great quake rocked her city in 1906, Delia has been haunted by an avalanche of the dead clamoring for her help. Delia flees to the other side of the continent, hoping to gain some peace. After several years in New York, Delia believes she is free…until one determined specter appears and she realizes that she must return to the City by the Bay in order to put this tortured soul to rest.
It will not be easy, as the ghost is only one of the many victims of a serial killer who was never caught. A killer who after thirty years is killing again.
And who is now aware of Delia’s existence.
That didn’t make telling her any easier or take away the worry of what she’d think. I folded my hands in my lap and swallowed back tears. “What would you say if I told you I thought – I knew – that a ghost was following me? That I was being…haunted.”
Sadie
grabbed both my hands. “A real ghost! How exciting. What’s her name?”
The
dream began like all the others I’d had, but the ghost didn’t follow behind,
waiting for me to find an answer. This time I was inside her skin.
“Dear
God in heaven. I’m so sorry, Shadow. So sorry.” I understood the sorrow in her
eyes now and some of the reasons she followed me. She’d never gotten home.
Shadow needed someone, needed me, to know why.
I
was a huge fan of the hit TV series called Ghost
Whisperer starring Jennifer Love Hewitt, in which she portrays a woman who
can communicate with the deceased and help them solve any unfinished business
they may have had while alive. Even
though I am not the fan of anything remotely eerie or creepy, I loved this show
and own the entire series. My point in saying all this is that Delia’s Shadow reminds me so much of Ghost Whisperer. Delia Martin can communicate with ghosts
and in this story one particular ghost has caused her to travel back home to
1915 San Francisco, only nine years after the huge earthquake that killed both
her parents. Delia doesn’t know why, but she knows that the ghost has a
connection to San Francisco, and so she decides to go home and find out what
that is. Only when she reaches her hometown she discovers there is a serial
killer on the loose, a killer who had some connection to Delia’s ghost!
This
story is a perfect Halloween read if you are looking for something that is just
spooky enough to make the hair on your arms stand on end. The particular ghost
that is haunting Delia, and I love how she calls her “Shadow”, has something to
do with all the murders that are taking place. I hate anything to do with
serial killers, but this particular story line had enough added details to make
the story light and not too dark, in a scary sense. I was very involved and
interested in Delia’s love interest which transpires after she has returned to
San Francisco. Gabe, a detective working on the serial killer case, develops a
quick connection with Delia after Sadie, her best friend, plays matchmaker. I
was glad that the two joined up!
Delia’s
ghost was able to help Gabe, and his partner, Jack, as they tried to solve all
the murders that were rampant across town. I also loved the fact that Gabe
alludes to this particular serial killer as one that he thought he remembered his
dad chasing so many years prior. Everything ties together quite nicely, and San
Francisco is a wonderful backdrop. The main and secondary characters are all
developed nicely, and I am personally hoping that Moyer is writing more as we
speak with these particular characters, especially Delia!
***A
copy of this book was provided to me by the publishers at Tor in exchange for
my honest review***
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