Masks

Tori Hartley Mysteries #3

by E.F. Townsend

A young woman walks into Tori’s antique shop in historic Louisville and hands her a locket. After the woman and the locket mysteriously disappear, Tori realizes it is the same girl who was killed in an accident the week before. When Tori is plagued by mysterious sounds and frightening apparitions, she joins her boyfriend and paranormal investigator Hal Breakspear, a former police detective, to investigate any link between the woman’s death and the haunting in Tori’s shop. They come up with more questions than answers as they are led into a fatal web of deception, trying to determine if they’re fighting a living murderer or the ghosts of their past.

277 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 10, 2023

About the author

E.F. Townsend holds various degrees in both painting and music, and her love of traveling and architecture led her to the exploration of the beautiful buildings in Old Louisville. She found an abundance of inspiration in the Beaux-Art style homes with their Bohemian flair and charming histories and became enamored with the locale and its people. Her passion for reading, storytelling, and a good ghost story, led her to create her debut novel, The Mirrors. She lives in northern Indiana near her family and frequently runs off to explore abandoned buildings with haunted reputations, or wherever there is the possibility of new adventure and inspiration.

Reviews

[Louise · Rating 5 out of 5]

After her last failed attempt, Tori tries her hand again at Louisville and sets up her shop, selling antiques and buying/researching anything requested by the locals. A horrific accident happened outside her shop a short time earlier, resulting in a fatality. A lookalike appears at the shop, and hands Tori a locket. But both the woman and the locket disappear and Tori puts it down to exhaustion from preparing for her opening. Weird events happen in the shop: unexplained floods and changes to the rooms. Fortunately, Tori's year-long friend - paranormal detective, Hal - helps with the mysterious occurrences. They get more than they expected: further floods, sightings, and audible paranormal events. These occur infrequently and at random times, keeping the readers on edge throughout the book.

A huge thank you to the author for letting me help refine the book, through AuthorsXP. There are great characters, and a very great twist to the entire ordeal, including historical paranormal explanations such as time slips. The writing style is pleasant, and the characters view the entire event through Tori's eyes so readers get a great insight into her character and perspective.