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Ghost Point
Eight years ago, Dennis Carlsson returned from Vietnam with a chest full of medals, a head full of nightmares, and a plastic foot. Now he just wants the world to leave him alone on his isolated point of Maine coast, caring for injured animals and living as simply as he can.
However, both real and spirit worlds have other plans for his guardian strength. His nightmares have followed him home in a face from those memories, wildlife biologist Susan Tranh — prickly as a porcupine and with some strange bond to eagles, stalked by criminals for no reason she can see.
Tied deep into land and lore, the Haskell Witches know a lot more about Ghost Point than he does. The Naskeag tribe calls his home Spirit Point, a place to meet spirits and find visions. They avoid the place because they know the spirit world is dangerous.
And winter has its own deadly agenda . . .
However, both real and spirit worlds have other plans for his guardian strength. His nightmares have followed him home in a face from those memories, wildlife biologist Susan Tranh — prickly as a porcupine and with some strange bond to eagles, stalked by criminals for no reason she can see.
Tied deep into land and lore, the Haskell Witches know a lot more about Ghost Point than he does. The Naskeag tribe calls his home Spirit Point, a place to meet spirits and find visions. They avoid the place because they know the spirit world is dangerous.
And winter has its own deadly agenda . . .
- GenresFantasyUrban Fantasy
287 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 1, 2014
1 person is currently reading
39 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
July 5, 2014
While the story grabbed me right off, it actually took me a while to get into the book. I know that sounds weird, so I'll try to explain. Some of that is that it does a fantastic job of evoking the late 70s—an era I lived through but have little love for. This is heightened by the strong ties to the disaster that was Viet Nam, what with Dennis being a vet with lingering issues and Susan being Vietnamese (sort of). Viet Nam is years over before the book starts, but the tension is still strong—strong enough that Susan suffers more persecution than I remember existing (but then, I was living in the backwaters of Utah where the only Vietnamese I knew really were boat people and the whole community was busy pitching in to help them).
But the biggest deterrent to fully engaging with the story was Susan, herself. She's pretty wrapped up in her own head, in her own pain, and that gets in the way an awful lot. Dennis has his issues, no mistake, but he is, at heart, a kind and generous guy. Susan isn't kind and isn't generous and while we have lots of hints that she has a gooey center if only she can find it, that discovery takes a very. long. time. And it's almost worse that we're in her head for much of that because we, the readers, know how very much she is standing in her own way, even as we learn sympathy for where she is.
But then, I'm a romantic at heart, so I was very engaged in her getting together with Dennis (who was the perfect guy for her in so many ways).
Anyway, this story is relentlessly well-paced. So much so, that I found myself fully engaged in it way before Susan starts thawing and wouldn't have been able to put it down even if she had remained the stone-cold bitch she seems to be at first. And once engaged, I found myself simply enjoying it all and hoping it'd never end. And it's not just that Dennis is seven shades of lovely or that the story and place wriggle themselves into your heart (even over my loathing of that era). It's all that, but it's also the magical world that Hetley evokes almost effortlessly. A world of American natives who dragoon Vikings and Vietnamese Warrior Princesses into their tribe as representatives of Eagle and Bear to stand guard over their spiritual center. A world of not-quite familiar witches and rich families and drug smugglers and human stupidity and avarice all mashed up into a whole that is both hauntingly welcoming and achingly strange.
I got lost in that world and the characters inhabiting it and did so in the best possible way.
A note about Steamy: A single explicit scene that was everything it needed to be; including short and emotionally satisfying.
But the biggest deterrent to fully engaging with the story was Susan, herself. She's pretty wrapped up in her own head, in her own pain, and that gets in the way an awful lot. Dennis has his issues, no mistake, but he is, at heart, a kind and generous guy. Susan isn't kind and isn't generous and while we have lots of hints that she has a gooey center if only she can find it, that discovery takes a very. long. time. And it's almost worse that we're in her head for much of that because we, the readers, know how very much she is standing in her own way, even as we learn sympathy for where she is.
But then, I'm a romantic at heart, so I was very engaged in her getting together with Dennis (who was the perfect guy for her in so many ways).
Anyway, this story is relentlessly well-paced. So much so, that I found myself fully engaged in it way before Susan starts thawing and wouldn't have been able to put it down even if she had remained the stone-cold bitch she seems to be at first. And once engaged, I found myself simply enjoying it all and hoping it'd never end. And it's not just that Dennis is seven shades of lovely or that the story and place wriggle themselves into your heart (even over my loathing of that era). It's all that, but it's also the magical world that Hetley evokes almost effortlessly. A world of American natives who dragoon Vikings and Vietnamese Warrior Princesses into their tribe as representatives of Eagle and Bear to stand guard over their spiritual center. A world of not-quite familiar witches and rich families and drug smugglers and human stupidity and avarice all mashed up into a whole that is both hauntingly welcoming and achingly strange.
I got lost in that world and the characters inhabiting it and did so in the best possible way.
A note about Steamy: A single explicit scene that was everything it needed to be; including short and emotionally satisfying.
Read
July 14, 2014Wow, did I get into this book right off the runway. Ended up reading madly most of a night.
The time is 1979, the place, Ghost Point, Maine, just as winter starts. Dennis Carlsson, a big, blond, blue-eyed, one-legged Viet Nam vet unexpectedly sees a Vietnamese woman in a cafe, and flashes back to one of his many horrible combat experiences: he sees an enemy soldier, and she sees an arrogant racist pig sneering down at the brown-faced 'Gook.'
Unfortunately, they are going to have to deal with one another, for Dennis is the local wildlife rescue and rehab person, and Susan Tranh is also a wildlife scientist, tracing pairs of increasingly rare bald eagles. What she doesn't know is that this apparently sleepy backwater is home to smugglers, drug dealers, and other crazies, even though it borders on a Navy Base that is on heightened alert because they think a Soviet sub is inserting spies.
And if that isn't enough, Dennis, and Susan are seeing visions that they cannot explain. That is before they meet the Naskeag witches.
The setting, the weather, the wildlife are so well described that they form as important a character as the humans and the, ah, non-humans. And the sense of period (the mindset especially), one I lived through, is tight.
But most of all I really, really like this particular mixture of action with resonating cost, complex characters, a fast-paced voice with a strong vein of humor counterposed with tension, and a glimmer of the numinous.
The time is 1979, the place, Ghost Point, Maine, just as winter starts. Dennis Carlsson, a big, blond, blue-eyed, one-legged Viet Nam vet unexpectedly sees a Vietnamese woman in a cafe, and flashes back to one of his many horrible combat experiences: he sees an enemy soldier, and she sees an arrogant racist pig sneering down at the brown-faced 'Gook.'
Unfortunately, they are going to have to deal with one another, for Dennis is the local wildlife rescue and rehab person, and Susan Tranh is also a wildlife scientist, tracing pairs of increasingly rare bald eagles. What she doesn't know is that this apparently sleepy backwater is home to smugglers, drug dealers, and other crazies, even though it borders on a Navy Base that is on heightened alert because they think a Soviet sub is inserting spies.
And if that isn't enough, Dennis, and Susan are seeing visions that they cannot explain. That is before they meet the Naskeag witches.
The setting, the weather, the wildlife are so well described that they form as important a character as the humans and the, ah, non-humans. And the sense of period (the mindset especially), one I lived through, is tight.
But most of all I really, really like this particular mixture of action with resonating cost, complex characters, a fast-paced voice with a strong vein of humor counterposed with tension, and a glimmer of the numinous.
Read
October 19, 2016This was really good. I found the start a little slow and bog-like, but once it hits its stride, it's really compelling and quick-paced. I particularly liked the ending. This was a really enjoyable read.
February 13, 2017
Ghost Point, by James A Hetley is an interesting look at the lives of two people; Dennis Carlsson, a Vietnam vet who has returned to the United States minus part of one leg, and Doctor Susan Tranh, a biologist who although born in the USA, happens to be Vietnamese.
Here is where it gets difficult—not between them, although there are plenty of complications in their relationship—but rather in how to write a decent review without giving too much of the plot away. Hetley has woven a masterful tale about these two people, the spirits that inhabit the picturesque coast of Maine where the story takes place, and others, from witches who try to help, and the United States Navy, that unknowingly causes pain and angst to one of the spirit creatures.
This is not a genre I would normally be attracted to, but having spent a great many vacations in and around the area in the book, I was compelled to request it through Library Thing’s early review program. I confess, this is obviously not an ‘early’ review and having just finished the novel last evening, I wish I had been able to get to it sooner. I apologize for my tardiness. Life sometimes gets in the way of the best laid plans of mice and men.
Okay, back to the review. Ghost Point has a complex plot, with wonderful character development and a pace that is fast enough to keep you engrossed in the book, but not too fast that you don’t start to become attached to the characters. I’ve only read one other book that left me feeling completely involved in what happens within its pages as much as this one. If you are the kind of person who refuses to see beyond what you can hold in your hand, perhaps Ghost Point isn’t for you, but if you can imagine, fantasize, and dream of what might be, you will definitely enjoy this story.
I’ll end this by stating that again, although this is not a genre I would normally be attracted to, I thoroughly enjoyed the novel. Perhaps it put me in touch with a spirit of my own, as I’m sure it will with you. Suffice it to say, I don’t give out stars easily and Ghost Point easily earns the four I give it.
www.daniellittle.com
Here is where it gets difficult—not between them, although there are plenty of complications in their relationship—but rather in how to write a decent review without giving too much of the plot away. Hetley has woven a masterful tale about these two people, the spirits that inhabit the picturesque coast of Maine where the story takes place, and others, from witches who try to help, and the United States Navy, that unknowingly causes pain and angst to one of the spirit creatures.
This is not a genre I would normally be attracted to, but having spent a great many vacations in and around the area in the book, I was compelled to request it through Library Thing’s early review program. I confess, this is obviously not an ‘early’ review and having just finished the novel last evening, I wish I had been able to get to it sooner. I apologize for my tardiness. Life sometimes gets in the way of the best laid plans of mice and men.
Okay, back to the review. Ghost Point has a complex plot, with wonderful character development and a pace that is fast enough to keep you engrossed in the book, but not too fast that you don’t start to become attached to the characters. I’ve only read one other book that left me feeling completely involved in what happens within its pages as much as this one. If you are the kind of person who refuses to see beyond what you can hold in your hand, perhaps Ghost Point isn’t for you, but if you can imagine, fantasize, and dream of what might be, you will definitely enjoy this story.
I’ll end this by stating that again, although this is not a genre I would normally be attracted to, I thoroughly enjoyed the novel. Perhaps it put me in touch with a spirit of my own, as I’m sure it will with you. Suffice it to say, I don’t give out stars easily and Ghost Point easily earns the four I give it.
www.daniellittle.com
January 18, 2015
It took me a while to begin this book. I picked it up a few times, read the first page, put it down again for something else. I'm not really sure why I never turned that first page and kept going. Once I did, there was no looking back - Hetley rapidly sucked me in to his world and we were away.
Ghost Point is an interesting novel, full of action and a lot of questions leading everyone on. It seems the locals, the Spirits, and the weather (almost a character in itself) all are determined to drive the two main characters together, but Vietnam vet Carlsson and US-born Vietnamese scientist Tranh took one look at each other and set off a chain of misunderstandings and actions make that a painful prospect for both. Then there's the local Navy base running about like a poked anthill, tracks of a strange creature possibly out of myth, meddling Spirit totems, and a good deal of idiocy by the local drug runners.
There are definitely points for improvement (We don't see any deeper into Tranh for the first half of the book than Carlsson does, for instance, despite the viewpoint switching back and forth between them). There are sections where the prose could be tightened, particularly in the beginning of the book. There is a scene fairly early on with a dog which - while great job of emotionally screwing with readers - was overkill and unnecessary, and it squicked me to the point I almost stopped reading. (Fortunately, that was the only scene of such ugly, violent intensity in the book.) I would have loved to have seen more from the point of view of She-Who-Swims - the two small sections we did get were fascinating insights into another world.
But overall - a good read. I'm glad I finally moved past page one and read it! I've now gone looking for more of Hetley's books.
Full disclosure FYI: I received this ebook as part of librarything's early reviewer programme in exchange for a review. This affects whether I write a review of a book: it does not affect the content of the review.
Ghost Point is an interesting novel, full of action and a lot of questions leading everyone on. It seems the locals, the Spirits, and the weather (almost a character in itself) all are determined to drive the two main characters together, but Vietnam vet Carlsson and US-born Vietnamese scientist Tranh took one look at each other and set off a chain of misunderstandings and actions make that a painful prospect for both. Then there's the local Navy base running about like a poked anthill, tracks of a strange creature possibly out of myth, meddling Spirit totems, and a good deal of idiocy by the local drug runners.
There are definitely points for improvement (We don't see any deeper into Tranh for the first half of the book than Carlsson does, for instance, despite the viewpoint switching back and forth between them). There are sections where the prose could be tightened, particularly in the beginning of the book. There is a scene fairly early on with a dog which - while great job of emotionally screwing with readers - was overkill and unnecessary, and it squicked me to the point I almost stopped reading. (Fortunately, that was the only scene of such ugly, violent intensity in the book.) I would have loved to have seen more from the point of view of She-Who-Swims - the two small sections we did get were fascinating insights into another world.
But overall - a good read. I'm glad I finally moved past page one and read it! I've now gone looking for more of Hetley's books.
Full disclosure FYI: I received this ebook as part of librarything's early reviewer programme in exchange for a review. This affects whether I write a review of a book: it does not affect the content of the review.
July 6, 2014
I was immediately gripped by the vivid winter setting on the Northeast coast, drawn into the hero Dennis and his careful survivalist routines in his hermitage shared with wounded wild animals he’s rehabilitating. There is a powerful bond between this wounded Vietnam-War vet and the animals, as his own scars haven’t yet healed. When he butts heads with Susan Tranh, a brash wildlife biologist dealing with her own troubled legacy as the daughter of Vietnamese immigrants, sparks fly. And then reality bends, as they both begin to embody spiritual powers of totem animals and are called upon to defend this sanctuary from attackers both human and other. I liked the involvement with the local native Americans and their spiritual Guardians. Dennis made for a very sympathetic and full character, but I did wish for more development of Susan Tranh beyond being so angry and petty for much of the novel. But the pacing and events carry you along, with wonderfully vivid descriptions and action!
February 5, 2017
Ghost Point made me homesick for winter in Maine. Hetley's powers of description are quite finely honed and the storm-harried Maine coast setting becomes a character in the novel. The book is fantasy set 8 years after the main male character's experiences in the Viet Nam war. It combines very realistic descriptions of PTSD flashbacks with believable spirituality and magical beasts, a romance (the female lead is Vietnamese by ethnicity if not by birth), and several murders and other acts of violence. The plotting is slowed sometimes by the extensive descriptions and explanations of things like tracking in winter, caring for injured animals, etc. but these are interesting enough to hold the reader's attention, and there are plenty of surprises and action to keep anyone riveted -- I set aside several plans for today in order to read the next chapter, and the next...
July 8, 2015
Love James Hetley and his modern and urban fantasy stories set in Maine. In this story, the Haskell Witches, one old one and a young Alice Haskell as witch-in-training, meet up with two non-natives who embody the spirits of Eagle and Bear. Susan and Dennis do not know about the Naskeag spirit world or their relationship to it, but they get a sharp introduction when something from another world shows up in the middle of a Maine winter.
Lots of examination of distrust of "the other" and making fast and inaccurate judgements of other people's backgrounds and motivations.
I liked learning about young Alice, who shows up in later books as the tenant of Haskell House, but Susan and Dennis are center stage and an interesting pair.
Lots of examination of distrust of "the other" and making fast and inaccurate judgements of other people's backgrounds and motivations.
I liked learning about young Alice, who shows up in later books as the tenant of Haskell House, but Susan and Dennis are center stage and an interesting pair.
July 14, 2014
I'm no good at reviewing things any more, since the grues ate my brain. (OK, fibrofog and CFS, but I like the sound of grues better.)
That said: This is so, so good. Impossible to set down; grabbed me by the throat and drew me in. Setting that feels utterly real; characters I cared about; fantasy with rules-of-magic that are logical, not just handwavium.
It's a prequel, more or less, to the other Stonefort books (Dragon's Eye and Dragon's Teeth) and the novella (Dragon's Bones), but you don't need to have read them to dive into this one. If you haven't read them yet, though, you'll probably want to go grab and devour them.
That said: This is so, so good. Impossible to set down; grabbed me by the throat and drew me in. Setting that feels utterly real; characters I cared about; fantasy with rules-of-magic that are logical, not just handwavium.
It's a prequel, more or less, to the other Stonefort books (Dragon's Eye and Dragon's Teeth) and the novella (Dragon's Bones), but you don't need to have read them to dive into this one. If you haven't read them yet, though, you'll probably want to go grab and devour them.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews