An Intimate Ghost

Jane Lawless #12

by Ellen Hart

Restaurateur Jane Lawless is thrilled to be catering the wedding of some family friends, Nick and Lauren Clifford, but when Jane arrives at the reception, she's in for a shock of a lifetime-and one that could jeopardize her career. The food has been spiked with hallucinogenic mushrooms and the drug-hazed guests are engaged in dangerously reckless behavior.

When the groom takes a near fatal dive into an empty pool, an investigation begins and Jane turns to her best friend Cordelia Thorn for help in clearing her name. But when Cordelia's sister, Octavia, suddenly deserts her infant daughter on Cordelia's doorstep, Jane is on her own. Events take a turn for the worse when the father of the groom comes up against shocking accusations, and it's up to Jane to uncover the truth.

Once again, Ellen Hart has woven intriguing characters and surprising twists into a complex and absorbing story.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, LGBT, Cozy Mystery, Lesbian, Lesbian Fiction, Queer

320 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

Ellen Hart is the author of twenty-eight crime novels in two different series. She is a five-time winner of the Lambda Literary Award for Best Lesbian Mystery, a three-time winner of the Minnesota Book Award for Best Popular Fiction, a three-time winner of the Golden Crown Literary Award in several categories, a recipient of the Alice B Medal, and was made an official GLBT Literary Saint at the Saints & Sinners Literary Festival in New Orleans in 2005. In 2010, Ellen received the GCLS Trailblazer Award for lifetime achievement in the field of lesbian literature. For the past fourteen years, Ellen has taught "An Introduction to Writing the Modern Mystery" through the The Loft Literary Center, the largest independent writing community in the nation. Ellen's latest Sophie Greenway mystery is No Reservations Required (Ballantine). Rest for the Wicked, the twentieth Jane Lawless mystery, will be released by St. Martin's/Minotaur in October 2012. Bella Books has recently revived the out-of-print books by publishing them in both trade paperback and E-book. Ellen lives in the Minneapolis area with her partner of over 35 years.

Reviews

[Carol Stanley-Snow · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ms. Hart weaves a mystery like no other. Her Jane Lawless mysteries are superb! Cordelia Thorn is such a hoot!!!

Mystery readers, grab any of the Jane Lawless series and be prepared for a ride!!!

[Sandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another in the Jane Lawless continuum and a good one. Jane has finally recovered from her injuries sustained the last few books and feels and acts stronger. Someone uses her catering business to get back at a client for an unrelated crime many years ago. Ms. Hart pulls all the seemingly unrelated threads together to form a good mystery story interwoven with Cordelia and another possible love interest for Jane. All in all, the series just keeps getting better. It's also a plus that it happens here in Minneapolis so you have that hometown feel behind it. I'm only 12 years behind in reading. Hope I catch up soon. I enjoy these stories.

[Sharon · Rating 3 out of 5]

A gripping, complex and very dark book involving deceit, murder, revenge and the darkness of the soul. Although the story line was good and most of the characters well drawn, I found the character of Cordelia to be distracting and her personality to be too far over the top.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very clever and complex mystery for Jane to solve.

[Freyja Vanadis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I haven't read any of Ms. Hart's books for quite a few years, so it felt great to get back into her world again. I love her style of writing, and she always leaves just enough suspense to keep me guessing. For instance, I knew Kenzie wasn't what she appeared to be - Ms. Hart wrote her as a suspicious character - and I was skeptical of Jane getting romantically involved with her, but I had no idea of the twist that would actually happen with her and Lauren.
Overall, another great addition to the Jane Lawless series.

[Becky Lavoie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book right from the start. literally couldn't put it down. I haven't devoured a book in one day in years (childhood me would die to know that), but since under the weather, grabbed one off the shelf. fast paced, complex, highly recommend. can't wait to pick up another in this series!

[Mary Vermillion · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hattie's first appearance!

[Jan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like this series, & somehow missed this early installment. Good plot lines & a bang up finish kept me engaged to the end!

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Minneapolis, Minnesota restaurant owner, Jane Lawless, gets a frantic phone call from one of her employees while catering a small wedding for the son of Alden Clifford, a local high school history teacher and friend of Jane's. Apparently someone has tampered with the food, causing the wedding guests to behave in very strange ways, as if they've all been drugged. Alden has been receiving some threatening notes lately, but does not know if that is related to the food tampering or not. A mysterious person also arrives in town, catching Jane's attention, but can this person really be trusted?

This is the first Jane Lawless mystery that I have read. I enjoyed this book and the interweaving story line from the past, as it eventually connects with the story line in the present. Jane is a likable, intelligent protagonist. The side story of Jane's best friend, Cordelia, who knows nothing about children, taking on childcare duties for her young niece are humorous, also.

[Kristi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am a fan of the Jane Lawless series set here in Minneapolis. I always enjoy being able to picture exactly were events are taking place. This was not one of my favorite books from the series. I was glad that I did not guess "whodunit" - I always like to be fooled, but thought that the ages of the characters were blurred so that logic did not help solve the mystery. Still will keep reading the series for my brain candy. Kristi & Abby Tabby Childless Cat Lady

[Tink · Rating 4 out of 5]

12 down.

[Mary Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun escapist mystery, a page-turner. A couple of plot points were left hanging though. I will read more of Hart's books since she's a good storyteller.

[Sarah Thornton · Rating 4 out of 5]

The closest thing to a happy ending as Jane's had so far.

Cordelia has definitely grown on me, and spending time with a toddler makes me appreciate Hattie too.

[Karen · Rating 1 out of 5]

I did not like the way the book started and could not get into the story. I did not finish.

[Kathleen Hagen]

An Intimate Ghost, by Ellen Hart, b-plus, Narrated by Aimee Jolson, Produced by Audible Inc., downloaded from audible.com.

In this book Jane’s catering company lands the wedding of the son of good friends of hers. But she is called to the restaurant in an emergency when her catering manager alerts her that something weird is going on. It appears that someone put halucenogenic drugs into the food. The guests are acting weirdly, several have to be taken to the hospital. The groom, thinking he’s diving into a full pool dives into an empty one and is taken to the hospital, it’s not clear whether he’ll survive or be able to walk. His just-married bride is totally unable to speak. Things are weird. She doesn’t evince any interest in how her groom is doing, and he evinces no interest in seeing her, and the best man seems overly interested in her. Jane’s friends, the parents of the groom take her in and hire someone to care for her. Jane is attracted to this caretaker and the feeling is mutual. But who is she? And who, for that matter, is Loren? Jane needs to sort it out so that she can avoid a lawsuit against her restaurant. Very good. This is a reread for me. This book is now available through Audible.com read by Aimee Jolson, who does an excellent job with all these books.

[Erika Nerdypants · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ellen Hart's mysteries are a pleasure to read. They have great characters, a cozy setting, and wonderful descriptions of food! This book does not disappoint on any of the above. Despite being able to see the ending coming, I would still reccommend this a a good mystery. And it's nice to know that Jane has finally found a new love interest - as a lesbian I just wish that Ellen Hart would develop that aspect of Jane's character a little more. At times Jane just seems a little too assimilated.

[Steph Winter · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hart has a knack for weaving together multiple story lines; in this case, at least three plots intertwine. This explains why Hart needs to include a cast of characters at the beginning of her books. Unfortunately, by book's end I don't always feel that she has tied each plot point into a neat package. Nevertheless, she keeps my attention, especially as the story evolves and becomes more complicated. Besides, it's fun to have a mystery with two main characters who are lesbians.

[Nikki · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lot going on in this story! I must confess I don't remember it too well. This may be why I don't think I've kept up with Jane Lawless since this January 2006 marathon of 4 books in a month. Maybe I should see what she's been up to.

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great writing style . A few flaws in the story made it hard to truly be believable.

[Pat]

Jane Lawless

[Judith Guyot · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had a feeling that I had read this book before but really think it has a plot similar to another. In any event, I liked. it.

[Kathryn Bundy · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's a good beach read. It moves along and I was surprised by "whodunit". I felt like there were way too many threads going all at once ---- hard to keep track of who was who and what was what.