Tie Me Knot

Ghost Cupid #1

by Allie Brahms

So far, while working at a ghost matchmaking agency, the past week has gone thusly:

1) a murdered ghost bride who is very very pissed off (don’t blame her, I’d be pissed off too)

2) adopted by Chinese hellhounds (I THOUGHT THEY WERE DOGS, OKAY)

3) wake up magically soul-bonded to the sexy demon slayer Zhen (While I agree he’s -expansive hand waving- HOW DID THIS HAPPEN?!)

I do not need a fourth incident to make my life more interesting, please and thank you.

Spoiler alert: I get one anyway.

Tags:

Magically bonded, insta husband just add ghost, speed marriage?, ghost matchmaking, ghosts deserve love too, Kris might have accidentally been feeding Chinese hellhounds, oops?, chosen family, Kris and Zhen actually communicate, buying hardcovers is a marriage proposal, just ask Kris, demon slayer on crutches can still fight, as the bad guys find out, whole story is just mindless violence and fluff, Zhen is a walking green flag, Chinese mythology, multicultural romance, ghostly shenanigans ensue, seeing ghosts isn’t all it’s cracked up to be

Cover Artist: Katie Griffin

Genres: Romance, Paranormal, Fantasy, Magic, Mystery, Urban Fantasy, Ghosts

224 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 25, 2023

About the author

Pen names breakdown:

Honor Raconteur – M/F steampunk mystery

Allie Brahms – M/F urban fantasy and paranormal romance

Allie Hunter – M/F crack fantasy

AJ Sherwood – M/M urban fantasy, high fantasy, paranormal mystery

AJ Warden – M/M crack fantasy

Reviews

[Krista · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not bad but a little over the top for me with the descriptions of what she thinks (Yesss!), what she eats, what she wears...you get the picture. Its weird that the same author can write a story you LOVE (Jamie and Henri in Case Files for Henri Davenforth) and stories that just don't resonate (this one).

The love interest Zhen was ok, it just felt like it happened a little to easy and fast. It would have been nice to see his POV. And nice touch with some sex scenes, hadn't seen much spice in the Danforth series. What to say? I rushed through it. Interesting concept, just didn't hold my interest to continue.

[Sonia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book.

I saw a reviewer saying that it was a bit of an MF version of a cross between Jon’s Mysteries and Human’s Familiar (same author, writing under AJ Sherwood), and I agree for the most part (the bonding, the mystery, the good family vs bad family, etc), although Kris also kinda reminds me of Ross, with her kindness and genuine innocence whilst dealing with the otherworld that she can barely see.

Have I said I loved this book? Well, I did. If you're a fan of any of the author's pen names you'll love it too.

Can I haz next one now, pretty please?

[Natalie H · Rating 3 out of 5]

September 2023
Kindle edition

Initial after thought: Uh, what was her name again? I am awful with names. Right. Kris. Thanks blurb.

So the blurb in this one pretty much gave everything away, so instead of thinking ooh what's next, it's shouldn't this have happened already? Kris and Zhen were cute pretty much insta-love. I liked the ghost matchmaking and the way Kris just befriends absolutely everything. I only recently found out what a ghost bride was thanks to title curiosity on Netflix. Over my dead body. Great film, made me tear up.

Anyway, the ghost stuff was interesting and sweet. I liked how the Boss encouraged her to go outside the norm with Min Min and the guy. I'm curious what Zhen's fellow hunters are going to think of Kris and who she's going to befriend there.

So amongst the fluff, there's a murder mystery with a DF criminal and toxic family. The parents were awful, but the worse one of the lot was Charlotte for blindsiding Kris with an unwanted reunion and lashing out when she didn't get the result she wanted. I hope that's the last of them.

[chelle (serial downvoter) · Rating 1 out of 5]

“All typos are left on purpose to prove it’s not AI written”

I don’t know what that proves considering AI can’t spell worth shit.

Instead of using AI as a very thin excuse, just hire an editor.


DNF

(my luck with books hasn’t been great lately. Talk about back to back DNFs)

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a super cute and fun mystery romance with a shot of paranormal.

i really enjoyed the writing and being inside the main character's mind was just a fun ride. She's fun and sweet.

Pretty much everything about this book was a good time, but there were things that just didn't make sense (which I'll go into later but they are spoilers).

Kris came from a privileged White California family. She fell in love with Chinese culture and language and ended up majoring in Mandarin. She's now living in Louisiana where she finds a job with a Chinese-American woman who matchmakes people after they have died to honor their parent's/family's desire that their loved ones be married in the afterlife, even if they weren't married in life.

I'm not sure how much of this book is based on Chinese culture and mythology... but it felt respectful and loving.

Her boss's grandson comes by because he broke his ankle fighting demons and needs a place to lay low while he heals. He's cute and thinks she's cute... and they have a pretty quick flirting to dating to relationship arc.

In the background, Kris has family troubles because she doesn't follow her family's bigotry. That's a level of drama in the background that I thought would be more important to the overall story than it was while in the foreground, Kris and Zhen (the grandson) end up working together on a mystery for why a ghost bride won't accept any potential husbands.

Safety deets
- Both have been with others, but we don't hear much about past lovers/dates.
- No other people drama in the book.
- Happy for now ending, but they're pretty tight and likely to end up together.
- Great consent.
- Spice is descriptive without being explicit.
- Condoms used but no other conversations about disease/birth control.

It's a cute and quirky story... and I enjoyed it. Now, for the spoilers/rant...
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One of the big events (that's not resolved in this book) is that all of the sudden, Kris and Zhen get soul bound, which means they get "married" like the ghosts do. Apparently, this isn't a thing that happens to living people and no one knows how it happened. And we don't learn how it happened at all.

But, what made it bizarre is that they both start agreeing and talking about them being married. They don't have a ceremony or anything... but they start calling each other husband and wife and Zhen gets her a ring. It's bizarre. I get that they are "soulbound" but why would they need to tell everyone they are married if they are trying to figure out how to dissolve the bond? It didn't make sense to me.

Secondly, we hear over and over that "Kris is as sensitive as a brick" to the paranormal/spiritual world. She's not a medium and can't see ghosts or interact with spirits the way her boss and Zhen can. But... she has been greeting ghost/demons (don't ask me... I don't understand) and even arranges a date between two of them. And, even though she's been feeding "dogs" who turn out to be fantastical creatures and we hear that she can't see them which is why she thought they were dogs, Zhen is able to introduce her to one and now she can see more and talk to them.

So, it's really bizarre when, at the end of the book, she is finally able to see one of the matchmaking client ghosts and she freaks out that she can... because she's been seeing things the whole book, even before Zhen was on the scene. Can anyone explain this to me!? The worldbuilding just doesn't hold together.

[Taylor Jefferson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fun premise but poor execution. Kris is an assistant at a ghost match making agency. When her bosses demon slayer grandson comes to town there is an immediate attraction and romance ensues.

There were a few things that I liked. Even though Kris didn’t have much ability to see the magical world she managed to attract an odd number of supernatural beings just by being nice. Accidentally feeding hellhounds kibble and setting up blind dates for the dearly departed garnered her a spooky fan club. Kris and Zhen had good communication with each other. Unfortunately the dislikes outweighed the likes.

This was told in first person from Kris’s POV and her perspective felt shallow. Most of her inner monologue was observational about immediate events. We never dive too deeply into the world or her as a character. The banter between her and Zhen was cringy and forced. I don’t want to be repeatedly told how sarcastic and witty Kris and Zhen are. It felt like the author didn’t trust us pick it up from their interactions alone, she had to spell it out for us. The central mystery of the murdered ghost they had met through the matchmaking agency basically just gets handed over to the police to solve. For such a short book I expected the plot to be like a shot of novacaine, but it meandered and fizzled.

Overall not a book I would recommend.

[Emmalynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute

[Dan · Rating 2 out of 5]

There's not many book that I can say I'm glad they're over but sadly this one was one of them. The main plot is supposed to be about the murder and the secondary one about the romance, but there's so many subplots that not only it's hard to feel engaged with them all and care about how they end up, but at times I even forgot what the main plot was supposed to be or that somewhere in there I was supposed to care about Kris's love life along with all of the giant plate of stuff in her life I was also supposed to care for. I also didn't feel much of a connection to Kris and therefore couldn't really get happy or exited when she managed to tie up one of the many subplots in a bow.

It very much didn't help that I thought Kris was supposed to be a man and it hit me like a freight train when Zhen called her a woman. That one is on me, though in my defense nowhere in this blurb or the one for the sequel is there anything to label her as a woman, and her nickname is pretty masculine.

[Angelena · Rating 5 out of 5]

So I know the author Allie Brahms as A.J Sherwood, and under that name I've read a good 44 of her like 50ish books. So, it's safe to say I'm already a well established fan but this was my first time reading a M/F pairing by her. She did not disappoint, at all. I LOVED Zhen and Kris, yes the bedroom scenes were superb, but it was honestly their banter and everyday little interactions that was the star of the show for me. They amount of times they made me laugh or smile is uncountable. In terms of romance plot it's pretty low angst, which I enjoyed, with no stupid misunderstandings, 3rd act breakup scenes, or OW drama. None of that was needed as the murder-mystery subplot was enough to keep my interest, even the the side characters were l flushed out enough that is enjoyed reading their interactions with our MC's. I will say the ending felt a bit abrupt, maybe because I was just enjoying the read so much but I was genuinley surprised with I turned the page and found myself staring at the author's note. No obnoxious cliffhangers or anything, just a HFN pause until the next book which I will now wait very impatiently for.

[Jamie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’m not sure why, but this book felt like I was reading the second book in an existing series. I felt like I was blindly thrown into a paranormal world where I was expected to know everything and where people were just okay seeing ghosts.

There was zero explanation why people were just okay with seeing demon like ghosts wandering around. But then they weren’t okay with seeing a spirit doll? Everything seemed to contradict itself in this book.

Also, the romance felt extremely forced and instalovey in a bad way. The bad way being that the characters just liked all the same things and flirted immediately with no conflict or reasoning for why they liked each other. It was all based on insta lust. Which is fine, and is definitely something that a lot of people enjoy, but it’s not something I really want to read about.

What I did love and the main reason why I didn't DNF was the Chinese culture representation. It was so lovely to read and learn more about the complexities of what needs to be done for a safe passing even after death.

[Layla · Rating 1 out of 5]

good premise but bad execution

Cute story idea. Interesting cultural mix. Amateur writing in desperate need of an editor. Author describes minutia that furthers nothing for pages at a time. I lost interest and DNF. Story should have started at the airport. And then moved forward rapidly from there. No such luck

[Sabine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kris has an unusual job: She works for Boss who owns a Chinese ghost matchmaking agency. She cannot see ghosts but she is fluent in Mandarin which makes her perfect for the assistant job. Things get complicated when Boss' grandson Zhen comes home for healing after he has broken his ankle during his demonslaying job...

This was a breath of fresh air for me. Something new in the pot of the usual fantasy books. I liked the Chinese element, the ghost brides were entertaining and the whole story was kinda cute. Now I hope that there will be more books in the series. I thoroughly enjoyed Kris & Zhen and the rest of his family were also quite interesting. Hopefully there comes more.

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun and entertaining premise

This was a fun read with a very entertaining premise. Matchmakers for the dead. I’m not knowledgeable enough about Chinese culture to know how much of this is fiction and how much is reality. If it’s totally fiction it makes me happy to think it could be true. Of course we get a meet cute and then a perfect match for the MCs. The writing is funny and clever. I’m looking forward to reading more in this series and by this author.

[Tania · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

I really enjoyed this one and I'm so looking forward to reading the second book. the FMC was strong, witty and kind. The MMC was absolutely perfect. Great cast of secondary characters. Loved the writing style. Demon slayers, ghosts, murder mystery, witty banter and some spice. I loved this book so very much.

[Katie Rooker · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5. I both enjoyed this book and was incredibly frustrated by it.

It’s short but the world building was non existent. A major plot point is just not wrapped up. But I enjoyed the mystery and was entertained.

[Belles · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to like this but there is almost no plot. I had to start skim reading to plow through it.

[Amanda S · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars ⭐️ but I’ll round up because it might be a me problem. I really didn’t vibe with the writing style of this book for some reason, but I really liked the plot/story.

[Monty · Rating 5 out of 5]

Zhen is the most green flag book boyfriend, I have ever read about.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Firstly, the kindle version had a much less
stupid cover. Idk where this even came from. Secondly, did I enjoy reading? Sure! Would I recommend it to my friends (/friend) on Goodreads? Probably not. I only have the one and she’d also hate that cover.

Decent book, not a ton of plot but a quick read. don’t judge by THAT cover. 3.5 ⭐️

[ReadKnitHoard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun. Hilarity, action, hot smexytimes, humor. Feel-good.

[Sandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Re-read of the new edition.

Wonderful new series, looking forward to more ghosties and Kris & Zhen, and Zhen's welcoming family of demon slayers and mediums.

[M Lowe · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story is amazing!!!!! Straight away I was caught up by the idea of a wedding agency for ghosts. That is something I've never seen as an urban fantasy setting. The Asian element was new for me too and I loved it.....the cultural differences, the family dynamics, something as everyday as the food - it all added up to a fresh and enticing book.

It's an open magic story but even that trope is tweaked. This author is just so talented and has come up with a very original world. I'd say this is a character driven story because it's Kris and Zhen's interactions that kept me glued to the page, even while they were working through a mystery, dangers, dysfunctional family meetings and getting to know guardian hellhounds.

The characters are all brilliant! I want Kris as my best friend - she is funny, sharp, caring, genuine and a straight talker. Zhen is a wonderful grandson, son and a protective boyfriend who can cook AND build bookshelves (necessary after taking Kris to a bookstore on a date where he bought her trolley of books). I think that makes him book boyfriend of the year! Their communication is life goal level! I just need more of them.

The story emphasises the importance of family and community support and never once is the miscommunication trope used. It's honestly one of the best books I've 'read' in a very long time and I now understand how people want to be able to read a book for the first time again. There's a second in the series though so I'm going to read that one next.

The narrators are so good! I love their voices and accents. They both do emotions and a range of characters well, bringing them all to life with energy and real skill. My only problem was that Zhen's voice often seemed to be coming from a distance, so his volume was lower than Kris'.

This is a real gem of a book, written by an accomplished author (Allie Brahms is a pen-name for Honor Raconteur, who I often see recommended). I can't wait for more in this series.

[Toni · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was suggested after reading the m/m paranormal romance, “Adopt a vampire” -by A.J. Sherwood and I could not get over how similar the writing style was.

I do not discriminate when it comes to books. If it’s good, it’s good, I don't care if it's F/M or M/M or anywhere on the spectrum, so I did not think twice about reading this book in my preferred, paranormal mystery/romance genre.

This book did not disappoint. Of course, there were some parts where you wanted to yell at the FL for stupidity, but all-in-all, it was a good read. It was not hard to figure out who the killer was, but I have to say, the synopsis did NOT say anything about murder so it was misleading in a good way. It mentioned a crazy bride ghost, so the little plot twist was unexpected but welcomed.

My only two disappointments in the book were: 1. The description of the characters. It was definitely lacking, so though I learned a lot about them, I could not picture them in my mind, so they fell flat and 2-dimensional in that aspect. 2. How they got bound together. That part of the book was so vague and by the end, there was not even a hint as to what caused it. I wish we were given some hints as to how it was caused, and then in future books, it could be solidified and the culprit identified, but nope. For that, it almost seemed unnecessary and the only reason was to have a segway to having Zhen visit with her family and for her to go on demon hunts with him, but I feel like that could have been discussed and done either way since they were dating.

One thing I appreciated, the sexy times were not overdone-as in every second page, nor were they smut. No overly explicit descriptions of anatomy or of the scenes, more of a making love kind of description rather than a f**king kind of description.

I'm excited to read book 2.

BTW - The writing style was similar because Allie Brahms and A.J. Sherwood are the same author. i understand the need to have a pen name as A.J. is known for her m/m paranormal romances and I get that some people do not wish to read m/m romances.

[Veevee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked this book. It was cute, it was fun and the good guys were full of green flags.

Things to like: The characters are the main selling point to this book. You have a real feeling of found family and even though you maybe don't get a super deep look into most of them they still felt solid and interesting. The MMC was one of my favourites in a while, protective but not smothering and an overall riot. I loved that he couldn't sit still, I feel like that isn't a trope we see a lot with MMCs despite the fact that it is a very realistic 'flaw'. I also really liked how the FMC, despite perhaps being on the shy side was willing to put herself out there and flirt with the MMC. There was a very cute will-they-won't they sort of vibe, but it wasn't drawn out unrealistically (e.g. they are about to kiss but someone interrupts them repeatedly... I hate that trope).

I also quite liked the world building done here, we got enough info so that we understood what was going on but not so much to be overwhelming. There is still plenty to explore in future books (assuming there will be future books) and I am quite interested in reading further into this world.

Things to like-less: There isn't really much that I disliked about this book (I did give it 5 stars after all!), but I will say that it wasn't the most climactic book I've ever read. Things are pretty tame from start to finish, so don't go in expecting a wild ride.

Also, you may or may not know that Allie Brahms is a pen name for A.J Sherwood and Honor Raconteur (I think they might have other pen names besides). One thing to note about this, is that all of the books that this author writes are pretty much the same. Same types of characters, same general romantic and plot arcs, etc. I wouldn't recommend reading a bunch of these book all at once because the same-ness might get a bit overwhelming, but as the occasional light read I find these books to be uber comforting and just generally good reads.

[Eden · Rating 5 out of 5]

2024 bk 74. I love the series written by this author under a different name, and was not quite sure what to expect. What I got was a delightful, light-hearted and fun romance, mystery, paranormal guide to the Asian mythological creatures, and an introduction to matchmaking for the dead. Our main character is not Asian, but because of her love of Asian cultures, major in Mandarin, has been booted from her family and the possibility of any job in California. Moving to her best friend and former roommates town in Louisiana, she finds work as a receptionist, trainee matchmaker to the dead, and all around jill of all trades. Into this well-paid job enters the Boss's grandson. The first male to make her knees melt in 6 (or more) years. When the angry ghost of a possible bride communicates that she was murdered, well, the pair become involved in a mystery that keeps the action flowing. Well done book - and I am eagerly awaiting the second title. A quick read that ook over my life the day before yesterday.

[Blake · Rating 4 out of 5]

(FYI I tend to only review one book per series, unless I want to change my scoring by 0.50 or more of a star. -- I tend not to read reviews until after I read a book, so I go in with an open mind.)


First time read the author's work?: Yes

Will you be reading more?: Yes

Would you recommend?: Yes


------------
How I rate Stars: 5* = I loved (must read all I can find by the author)
4* = I really enjoyed (got to read all the series and try other books by the author).
3* = I enjoyed (I will continue to read the series)
or
3* = Good book just not my thing (I realised I don't like the genre or picked up a kids book to review in error.)

All of the above scores means I would recommend them!
-
2* = it was okay (I might give the next book in the series a try, to see if that was better IMHO.)
1* = Disliked

Note: adding these basic 'reviews' after finding out that some people see the stars differently than I do - hoping this clarifies how I feel about the book. :-)

[Mandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved this! It was just so funny, so outrageous! Kris is an amazingly kind, soft-hearted woman who happens to work for a ghost marriage agency. Okay, so that alone got me intrigued. Then she meet's her boss's grandson, Zhen--so sexy, strong and fun!--and things get even more interesting! She's got a bestie who looks after her, an adopted family who is so much better for her than her blood, and a whole lot of friends....that aren't exactly among the living anymore, but, hey, that doesn't stop them from being good company! I laughed a lot with this, but there were also sexy times, which is always fun, too! So much happens to this poor woman, it's so hard to believe!

If you enjoy the paranormal, sexy times, and adorable people being adorable and smartassy (I don't think it's a word, but I'm going with it), I highly recommend this. And, I am eagerly looking forward to the next in this series!

[Bibliophile · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a new M/F book by the author who also goes by AJ Sherwood. Given how funny and sweet her M/M books are, I read this book with great anticipation. While the premise (a woman who works a ghost matchmaking service accidentally adopts hell hounds and gets her soul tied to a hot warrior) sounded so fun and adventurous, the actual story was pretty ho hum in reality. The story lacked a lot of the humor and quippy dialogue that makes AJ Sherwood's M/M series so popular. In addition, I felt let down because the story didn't have enough quirky characters. The romance, too, felt anti-climatic because it lacked conflict and tension. Even the pay-off of her accidentally adopting hellhounds was a bit of a let down because of how quickly the reveal came and her (and others) relatively blase reaction to the news.

I'll still read the next book in the series because it's AJ Sherwood and I have hope she can turn things around. Fingers crossed that she does...

[Laura Schäfer · Rating 4 out of 5]

4,25 ✨

I really really liked this book.
Or the characters I should say.
Ngl, going into the book I thought it was mm, so for like the first 10-15% I thought Kris was a guy.
Regardless, I totally loved her. She was a sweetheart. So chill and kindhearted but also incredibly relatable to me as a fellow bookworm and Asian novels/Danmei reader!
Her and Zhen were so lovely together.
Their chemistry was amazing and felt so natural.
The way they bantered and teased each other but also the support they showed one another and the mature way they communicated made it feel like they’d known each other for years.
There was just something soothing and familiar about how naturally they fit together that I haven’t felt with all that many other book couples.
I loved them so much together but also as individual characters.



Side note…I feel like it’s a little ridiculous to put something in the synopsis that only happens like, 70% into the book? That’s a pretty big spoiler.

[Síne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Action and fluff, Love it!

I haven't read an m/f romance in years. I got soooo sick of the typical female MC tropes. This one popped up in my recommendations though and the blurb caught my eye.

After giving it a go I have no regrets.
-I enjoyed the story, especially since it focused on Chinese mythology and traditions. It's not a genre you see much.
-The intimate scenes had none of those utterly ridiculous references to flowers or whatever crazy terms so many authors use.
-There was some good action but it is primarily a fluff piece, which turned out to be exactly what I needed.
-Zhen is beyond sweet. As Kris says, every woman needs a Zhen.
-Best of all? It turns out Allie Brahms is an alternate pen name of one of my favourite m/m authors. AJ Sherwood. No wonder I loved it.