Half Veiled: Half Mortal Book One

by Rachel Reese

As a rule, there are not many days that take Helen Carson by surprise. Not being surprised is actually in her job description. However, there are always exceptions, and this particular morning definitely took Helen by surprise. Or it took her by the throat and tried to choke the life out of her. But why argue semantics? While she survived the morning, this punchy fantasy has more for our charmingly sarcastic protagonist to endure.
Helen Carson is the Half Mortal, a unique being that can see through the veils, or second skins, of all non-human beings. While she and her godlike guardian and business partner Al tackle the weird and unusual on a near daily basis, a severed limb that springs to life and tries to kill Helen begins a wild adventure by any standard. As Helen’s week devolves into several attempts on her life, a trip to the morgue, an unsettling encounter with an ancient being and several pints of ice cream, she struggles to keep everything together. Stretching her own abilities to their limits, it is not clear whether Helen has met her other worldly match. However, with the help of her fierce friends and her own determination, she uncovers the truth- helping a photographer, a mortician and a disgruntled detective in the process.

223 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 4, 2017

About the author

Rachel Reese was born in 1986 to a military family. With frequent moves following her father's Army career, she spent much of her youth overseas, moving back stateside her senior year of high school. In college, Rachel focused on the sciences, getting her undergraduate degree in chemistry and physics and then attending graduate school for chemistry. After marrying a fellow graduate student and chemist, she and her husband decided they wanted a stay-at-home parent for their family. When their first child was born, Rachel turned her focus to being a domestic engineer.

For Rachel's entire life, she has always found joy in escaping to a good book. While she focused on the sciences in school, she harbored a dream that she could be a writer. When her son was born, she decided that she needed to set an example for him: it is important that we chase after our dreams. Her dream was to be an author and to write books that could make people smile. To that end she carved out time to write every day, hoping to improve her skill and complete a novel. The fruits of those labors are now available. She continues to write while raising her growing family.

Reviews

[Jay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Half-Veiled is the story of Helen, a young woman who has very interesting powers of perception. In her world, vampires and other mythical creatures appear human to other humans through a type of cloak called a veil. This veil allows these beings to move through the world without being noticed. Great book can't wait for more adventures with Helen and crew.