“Why does the ghost have his head in the oven?” I groaned at the sight of Joey’s bony ass sticking out of the appliance. He hadn’t even opened the door.
Ex-burlesque dancer and aspiring author Tamara Garvey just had her world turned upside down.
Her best friend died and leaves her as guardian to a teenager. Now, not only is Tamara struggling with her new role but she is also charged with caring for the family home, the Ridaught Plantation known by the locals as the Dead House.
To her surprise, the place is already occupied by an angsty ghost named Joey who has a penchant for wearing her clothes and a fascination for paranormal movies and television shows. Tamara and Joey develop an unexpected friendship but questions remain about how and when he got there.
In an attempt to fit in with the suspicious small town residents, Tamara turns on the charm and decides to host a community wide Halloween party, right at the historic home.
Everything turns out great until the dead begin to show up too.
Can Tamara solve the secret of the Ridaught Plantation before it’s too late?
Can she protect Chloe from the dead who are assembling?
Or will they also become ghostly residents of the Dead House?
I felt like this book had so much unrealized potential, but what I got was a confusing, hurried mess. We are dropped into the story while it is already in progress with characters that we get no introduction to. Later, we get bits and pieces of a confusing backstory, but there is a lot that is left unanswered. The relationship between the main character and what I can only assume is the future love interest is all over the place without explaining why they are at odds one minute and flirting the next. There is a taste of a mystery that doesn’t even amount to an afterthought, with a conclusion so rushed, I wondered why it was even included. I think I’m done and won’t go on to the next book.
I continue my search for fun, frothy and stress-free reads for the pandemic. Having read Wendy Wang's PALMETTO POINT books I was still in the mood for something ghosty and similar. And thus WELCOME TO DEAD HOUSE.
I thought the writing was good, the characters interesting --almost refreshing --in their quirks. I did find myself wanting to get through book #1 as quick as possible so I could see if this series would have 'legs'.
If you want a fun/goofy/light staycation read check it out. Available through Kindle Unlimited.
Great book. Very short so a great me time read. Can't wait to read the others of this series. Ms Bullock really know how to tell a story. Can't miss on this series.
I would give it three and a half stars if I could. I liked the characters and the storyline was interesting. But more than once it felt like we were missing important details or that maybe a section of the book was missing. It felt like the timeline was a bit scattered when the chapters jumped to different character's points of view and things would happen without an explanation. A few times I even flipped back to check if I accidentally skipped pages to see if that's why I felt like I was missing something. That being said I did still like the story and I think it could get interesting moving forward. I do plan on checking out the next book and overall I would say this one is worth a read.
0/10 DNF Why not make this about Joey? Why have POV from EVERY character? Why not give more details about everything else that is important instead of just Joey? But somehow also leaving out important information about him too. So weird.
A first for me by this author...and it was a little strange to begin with...but boy it is an opening that will get you hooked. Becoming a guardian to her best friends teenager and moving to an honest to goodness plantation is a complete change...and with her best friend (the resident ghost) things begin happening that indicates there are hidden depths to our leading ladies that weren't expected. I think it will definitely develop in future books so one to add to my TBR list.of authors.
OH. MY. WORD.!!! What an excellent book! This book grabs you with a ghostly hand from page one and doesn't let go until the end. A wonderful rollercoaster of emotions, chills and spooky happenings as well as well-rounded characters, ambiance and funny happenings. I absolutely loved this book, devoured it in one sitting and can't wait to get my hands on the next one. One word of warning: Don't turn the lights out or look behind you...
This was a fun and spooky ghost story that I enjoyed reading!
Well written and fun story. Somewhat lighter than the Seven Sisters or Gulf Paranormal series. Great characters and a good beginning to another fantastic series. As always, this author leaves the reader wanting to know what's next!
Maybe 3.5 stars. Disappointed as it had so much potential! It almost read like 2 different people wrote this. It had some really good parts but then others felt rushed and fell flat. I had a very difficult time finishing the story. Not sure if if I'll continue with the series or not, I'll have to ponder on that for a bit.
An interesting new series featuring ghosts and mediums, with a mystery to be solved and a little light romance thrown in. I enjoyed reading it and look forward to seeing where this series goes.
The setting and characters in this series are amazing! My favorite character is Joey, his antics and choice of attire are off the charts! Can't wait to read more of this series!
Tamara and Chloe make an unlikely pair. When strange things start happening around the house they must work together, and with their ghost Joey. I'll be reading the next in this series to see how relationship s develop.
Very seldom do I leave a 5 star review. In these days of Covid 19 Pandemic quarantines, this story was just what I needed. Love of family and ghosts were displayed in this light hearted, yet gloomy story. The first chapter had me hooked!
It was ok but not as fun as I was expecting from the blurb. The characters were fine but i didn’t have strong feelings about any of them either way. Author did manage to nail snotty annoying teen quite accurately in Chloe though.
Loved all the characters. Joey is hysterical…I wonder what his story is. Chloe desperately needs her butt kicked. I hope Tamara and Chloe get their act together in the next book. They kinda remind me of the Gilmore Girls except for they don’t actually get along.
Another great book by MRS. BULLOCK. Spookie, funny,suspenseful, mysterious, and delightful to read. Couldn't out it down. A series i am not going to miss. 😁
Wasn't sure I would like this when I started but I did. I started reading it at 10:30 pm and finished it at 4:30 am. I just couldn't stop reading. Can't wait for Book 2 to be out.
Good characterizations with enough story to flow. The only quibble is with the teen. Her abilities weren’t given enough story and her “voice” wasn’t teen enough.
Paranormal investigations, a haunted plantation, teen angst. What more could I ask for? Highly recommended. I love a good series and this is right up my alley.