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Ghost Hunters #3
Ghost Hunter
After leaving her too-secretive fianc-powerful ghost hunter Cooper Boone-botanist Elly St. Clair starts over in the thriving metropolis of Cadence City. But when one of her new friends disappears in the eerie catacombs beneath the streets, Cooper turns up just in time to help-and this time he's holding nothing back.
ebook
First published May 28, 2006
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About the author
Jayne Castle
54 books2,159 followersThe author of over 40 consecutive New York Times bestsellers, JAYNE ANN KRENTZ writes romantic-suspense, often with a psychic and paranormal twist, in three different worlds: Contemporary (as Jayne Ann Krentz), historical (as Amanda Quick) and futuristic (as Jayne Castle). There are over 30 million copies of her books in print.
She earned a B.A. in History from the University of California at Santa Cruz and went on to obtain a Masters degree in Library Science from San Jose State University in California. Before she began writing full time she worked as a librarian in both academic and corporate libraries.
Ms. Krentz is married and lives with her husband, Frank, in Seattle, Washington.
Pseudonyms:
Jayne Ann Krentz
Amanda Quick
Stephanie James
Jayne Bentley
Jayne Taylor
Amanda Glass
She earned a B.A. in History from the University of California at Santa Cruz and went on to obtain a Masters degree in Library Science from San Jose State University in California. Before she began writing full time she worked as a librarian in both academic and corporate libraries.
Ms. Krentz is married and lives with her husband, Frank, in Seattle, Washington.
Pseudonyms:
Jayne Ann Krentz
Amanda Quick
Stephanie James
Jayne Bentley
Jayne Taylor
Amanda Glass
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 282 reviews
April 28, 2017
This series is a pretty decent middle-of-the-road series. It's entertaining, but not perfect. The world is pretty cool, but sometimes it gets annoying (Don't worry, my friends, I will vent explain.) But, it is worth reading purely for the fact that there are pet dust bunnies that are alive and adorable. The first heroine had one named Fuzz, and I fell in love with him, but this heroine, Elly, has a dust bunny pet named Rose and I love her a little bit more. Rose has a thing for jewelry and is always borrowing Elly's bracelets to wear as necklaces. She's a little bunny princess. I seriously need a dust bunny
Okay, so in this book we have Cooper and Elly. Cooper is the head of the ghost hunter guild in their town. It's like a union, including the corruption. In our prologue, Elly dumps Cooper's ass because she realizes he was only going to marry her because of her family's status in the guild. He also shows her absolutely no interest. And, he starts out as quite the jerk. Elly splits and moves away to the big city. The book starts 6 months later and is one of those second chances kind of romance things. Also, there is a mystery, but it was kind of easy to figure out.
Seriously, how badly did they run this thing into the ground?
So, as you've been told, this book is set on a different planet that humans colonized and is full of psychic energy. Everyone has a small amount of psychic power, it is just a question of what kind and how strong. They also wear tons of amber in order to strengthen their powers. But, here's the annoying thing, the author thought it was cute and funny to include tons of everyday sayings, stories, etc.., but replacing the words with "amber". For instance, they didn't grow up reading Cinderella, they read Amberella. They didn't have the Hardy Boys mysteries, they had the Amber Boys. Someone isn't "not worth their salt", they are "not worth their amber". Instead of Goldilocks, it's Amberlocks, etc etc etc.... You get the point. Annoying! And, completely unnecessary. I mean, they have fireplaces and salt on this planet. Why bother with the substitutions? Another word that is so over-used you will scream is "Rez". It's short for resonance, which is how they use their psychic stuff. But, everything is rez. People are rezzed up, and when our hero hears an unfamiliar story, he says "it doesn't rez any bells". See? annoying!
Very very slowly.
In spite of this annoying little quirk, the books are still kind of fun. There's the romance and the mystery. Plus, the dust bunnies. Always those.
Okay, so in this book we have Cooper and Elly. Cooper is the head of the ghost hunter guild in their town. It's like a union, including the corruption. In our prologue, Elly dumps Cooper's ass because she realizes he was only going to marry her because of her family's status in the guild. He also shows her absolutely no interest. And, he starts out as quite the jerk. Elly splits and moves away to the big city. The book starts 6 months later and is one of those second chances kind of romance things. Also, there is a mystery, but it was kind of easy to figure out.
Seriously, how badly did they run this thing into the ground?
So, as you've been told, this book is set on a different planet that humans colonized and is full of psychic energy. Everyone has a small amount of psychic power, it is just a question of what kind and how strong. They also wear tons of amber in order to strengthen their powers. But, here's the annoying thing, the author thought it was cute and funny to include tons of everyday sayings, stories, etc.., but replacing the words with "amber". For instance, they didn't grow up reading Cinderella, they read Amberella. They didn't have the Hardy Boys mysteries, they had the Amber Boys. Someone isn't "not worth their salt", they are "not worth their amber". Instead of Goldilocks, it's Amberlocks, etc etc etc.... You get the point. Annoying! And, completely unnecessary. I mean, they have fireplaces and salt on this planet. Why bother with the substitutions? Another word that is so over-used you will scream is "Rez". It's short for resonance, which is how they use their psychic stuff. But, everything is rez. People are rezzed up, and when our hero hears an unfamiliar story, he says "it doesn't rez any bells". See? annoying!
Very very slowly.
In spite of this annoying little quirk, the books are still kind of fun. There's the romance and the mystery. Plus, the dust bunnies. Always those.
February 22, 2010
I listened to this book on audio. Naturally, "Ghost Hunter" turns out to be a new book that is part of a long running series and I'm left feeling confused and clueless right off the bat. Aren't there any author's out there in romanceland who can write a decent STANDALONE novel anymore? This is getting ridiculous.
Many, many moons ago I did read some of the earlier books in this series. Zinnia and Amaryllis I think they were called, and gave up in frustration and utter disappointment. They were well reviewed and supposed to be outstanding paranormal/futuristic novels but to me they were repetitive, silly and utterly boring. And this was before I was a burned out grouch! Castle's other-world was basically earth peopled with earthlings who had some paranormal talents and used words like coff-tea. Sadly I am not making this up.
This book, Ghost Hunter, is set in the same world only it's part of the sub-series referred to as "Dust Bunnies" by fans. It took me awhile to figure out why the book was dedicated to the "dust bunnies of the world". I figured the author was giving all of us poor shlubs who can't afford a housekeeper (because we're too busy buying books) a little nudge but it turns out dust bunnies are characters. This one features a critter named Rose who, if you ask me, has more personality than the heroine which isn't saying much considering Rose doesn't speak.
The story begins when a young lady named Elly gets ticked off at her fiance whom she believes has been courting her only to improve his own station in life. She has high connections via her daddy to some important society and he's a ghost hunter who could move on up in the world with those family ties. She's all hot and bothered because he's really hot and never even kissed her or anything and doesn't think he likes her, if you know what I mean. It's a bit junior high-ish. Then there's some talk about a duel that makes her really mad (sorry my mind was drifting a lot here) and Elly breaks off the engagement. Ghost-hunting dude (GHD for short) just sits there like a lovely lump and doesn't say a word to defend himself. She leaves town in a huff and several months later realizes she needs GHD's help to search for a friend who has gone missing. And, oh the luck, he just happens to be in town. GHD agrees to help her because, wow, she looks super hot in her short skirt and he's been holding out hope that she'll change her mind about the marriage. Awww, gorgeous, desperate, sweet and dumb as a rock. Where are these guys in real life?
Honestly, I would've given up on this long ago if I weren't listening to it on audio. It's boring and it’s reminding me why I've disliked Krentz novels in the past. I liked the dustbunnies but everything else about this romance was blah and forgettable. And if I heard Castle's word of the week, "Rez", one more time I thought I'd lose what's left of my mind! Examples: he rezzed the lock, he rezzed a ghost, his erection was rezzed and ready to go -- okay so I might have made up that last one but I think you get the drift. . .
Many, many moons ago I did read some of the earlier books in this series. Zinnia and Amaryllis I think they were called, and gave up in frustration and utter disappointment. They were well reviewed and supposed to be outstanding paranormal/futuristic novels but to me they were repetitive, silly and utterly boring. And this was before I was a burned out grouch! Castle's other-world was basically earth peopled with earthlings who had some paranormal talents and used words like coff-tea. Sadly I am not making this up.
This book, Ghost Hunter, is set in the same world only it's part of the sub-series referred to as "Dust Bunnies" by fans. It took me awhile to figure out why the book was dedicated to the "dust bunnies of the world". I figured the author was giving all of us poor shlubs who can't afford a housekeeper (because we're too busy buying books) a little nudge but it turns out dust bunnies are characters. This one features a critter named Rose who, if you ask me, has more personality than the heroine which isn't saying much considering Rose doesn't speak.
The story begins when a young lady named Elly gets ticked off at her fiance whom she believes has been courting her only to improve his own station in life. She has high connections via her daddy to some important society and he's a ghost hunter who could move on up in the world with those family ties. She's all hot and bothered because he's really hot and never even kissed her or anything and doesn't think he likes her, if you know what I mean. It's a bit junior high-ish. Then there's some talk about a duel that makes her really mad (sorry my mind was drifting a lot here) and Elly breaks off the engagement. Ghost-hunting dude (GHD for short) just sits there like a lovely lump and doesn't say a word to defend himself. She leaves town in a huff and several months later realizes she needs GHD's help to search for a friend who has gone missing. And, oh the luck, he just happens to be in town. GHD agrees to help her because, wow, she looks super hot in her short skirt and he's been holding out hope that she'll change her mind about the marriage. Awww, gorgeous, desperate, sweet and dumb as a rock. Where are these guys in real life?
Honestly, I would've given up on this long ago if I weren't listening to it on audio. It's boring and it’s reminding me why I've disliked Krentz novels in the past. I liked the dustbunnies but everything else about this romance was blah and forgettable. And if I heard Castle's word of the week, "Rez", one more time I thought I'd lose what's left of my mind! Examples: he rezzed the lock, he rezzed a ghost, his erection was rezzed and ready to go -- okay so I might have made up that last one but I think you get the drift. . .
September 11, 2024
Dust bunnies rule!
An easy popcorn read that mildly entertains one for a few hours.
An easy popcorn read that mildly entertains one for a few hours.
August 7, 2015
While enjoyable enough, I didn't like this one quite as much as the second in the series. I liked that we have new protagonists rather than trying to stretch Lydia and Emmett out into more books. I suppose that cements this series as more romance than sci-fi or suspense. Just as well, really, as that's the part that draws me personally.
The reason I didn't connect as strongly is the main protagonists. They both seemed, well, bland, I suppose. Well-enough for the story, and nice enough that I cared about their romance, but neither stood out terribly. At least not for me. Their main problem seemed to be learning to communicate. Happily, Castle does a great job showing them learning to overcome that problem. Doing so was rather linear, though, so it wasn't as engaging as it might have been.
Anyway, this was a solid 3.5 but Castle initiated usage of one of my pet peeves for this one and that sucked it back from any thought of rounding up. It's a suspense genre trope to insert viewpoint sections from the bad guys. Which is why I generally prefer mysteries when I get a chance. This book had a couple sections from the bad guys and I found it as dissatisfying as I ever do. I particularly dislike it when they try to disguise the identity of the bad guy. That just feels so artificial because it flies in the face of the narrative goal of being in the viewpoint character's head and you can't do that if you're disguising who they are.
So yeah, good enough to continue the series. I hope the next has stronger protagonists, though.
A note about Steamy: Mid level, I think. I don't remember how many scenes, exactly, but not more than three. This is another area where the book felt rather bland.
The reason I didn't connect as strongly is the main protagonists. They both seemed, well, bland, I suppose. Well-enough for the story, and nice enough that I cared about their romance, but neither stood out terribly. At least not for me. Their main problem seemed to be learning to communicate. Happily, Castle does a great job showing them learning to overcome that problem. Doing so was rather linear, though, so it wasn't as engaging as it might have been.
Anyway, this was a solid 3.5 but Castle initiated usage of one of my pet peeves for this one and that sucked it back from any thought of rounding up. It's a suspense genre trope to insert viewpoint sections from the bad guys. Which is why I generally prefer mysteries when I get a chance. This book had a couple sections from the bad guys and I found it as dissatisfying as I ever do. I particularly dislike it when they try to disguise the identity of the bad guy. That just feels so artificial because it flies in the face of the narrative goal of being in the viewpoint character's head and you can't do that if you're disguising who they are.
So yeah, good enough to continue the series. I hope the next has stronger protagonists, though.
A note about Steamy: Mid level, I think. I don't remember how many scenes, exactly, but not more than three. This is another area where the book felt rather bland.
August 18, 2010
Fun. I want some amber!
November 15, 2023
One of my favorites of this series
When college botany instructor, Elly St. Claire, first met Cooper Boone two months before, she thought he was a research librarian working for the local ghost hunter guild. She had already fallen in love with him and become engaged to Cooper before she discovered that he is a powerful ghost hunter like her father and brothers, when he was elected by the guild council to be their new guild boss. During the past several years, two other, powerful ghost hunters had eyed Elly as a potential, ideal guild-boss bride, including the previous guild boss, who recently died, and an extremely scary ghost hunter, who was a wannabe guild boss. When Elly learns what she considers to be damning information about Cooper's intentions toward her, combined with the fact that Cooper has not made a single attempt to get her into bed, it convinces her that Cooper does not love her, but like the other two ambitious ghost hunters, is merely using her for a marriage of convenience due to her family connections. She gives him back his engagement ring, quits her teaching job, and leaves the small town of Aurora Springs for the exciting metropolis, Cadence City.
For six long months, while she establishes a small business as an herbalist and makes a lot of quirky friends in her new neighborhood, Elly has been hoping that Cooper would come after her. She is just about to give up on him for good, when he finally shows up in Cadence. But, frustratingly, he says he is here on personal business, and makes no attempt to beg her to come back to him.
I have greatly enjoyed every book in this wonderful, futuristic series, but this novel is one of my all-time favorites. I love the relationship between Elly and Cooper. They are both highly intelligent and extremely brave, and each has exceptional paranormal abilities that make for a thrilling, action-adventure portion of this story. As always in this series, there is an adorable dust bunny, in this case, named Rose. We also re-encounter Lydia and Emmett and their dust bunny from the first two books in this series.
I have owned this book in paperback, when it was first released in 2006, and since then repurchased it in Kindle and audiobook format. The last few times I have reread it has been in the form of listening to the audiobook, which has an excellent narrator.
When college botany instructor, Elly St. Claire, first met Cooper Boone two months before, she thought he was a research librarian working for the local ghost hunter guild. She had already fallen in love with him and become engaged to Cooper before she discovered that he is a powerful ghost hunter like her father and brothers, when he was elected by the guild council to be their new guild boss. During the past several years, two other, powerful ghost hunters had eyed Elly as a potential, ideal guild-boss bride, including the previous guild boss, who recently died, and an extremely scary ghost hunter, who was a wannabe guild boss. When Elly learns what she considers to be damning information about Cooper's intentions toward her, combined with the fact that Cooper has not made a single attempt to get her into bed, it convinces her that Cooper does not love her, but like the other two ambitious ghost hunters, is merely using her for a marriage of convenience due to her family connections. She gives him back his engagement ring, quits her teaching job, and leaves the small town of Aurora Springs for the exciting metropolis, Cadence City.
For six long months, while she establishes a small business as an herbalist and makes a lot of quirky friends in her new neighborhood, Elly has been hoping that Cooper would come after her. She is just about to give up on him for good, when he finally shows up in Cadence. But, frustratingly, he says he is here on personal business, and makes no attempt to beg her to come back to him.
I have greatly enjoyed every book in this wonderful, futuristic series, but this novel is one of my all-time favorites. I love the relationship between Elly and Cooper. They are both highly intelligent and extremely brave, and each has exceptional paranormal abilities that make for a thrilling, action-adventure portion of this story. As always in this series, there is an adorable dust bunny, in this case, named Rose. We also re-encounter Lydia and Emmett and their dust bunny from the first two books in this series.
I have owned this book in paperback, when it was first released in 2006, and since then repurchased it in Kindle and audiobook format. The last few times I have reread it has been in the form of listening to the audiobook, which has an excellent narrator.
March 29, 2021
Ghost Hunter
3 Stars
Aurora Springs Guild Boss arrives in Cadence City to win back his former fianceé, Elly St. Clair, but the pair soon find themselves embroiled in a mysterious case involving blue ghosts, a deadly drug and a malicious killer.
This installment in the series starts out slow but picks up pace toward the end.
Cooper and Elly's romance is on the weaker side mainly due to the fact that they have very little chemistry and their breakup was caused by a serious lack of communication.
The investigation is also rather run-of-the-mill, but the tension and suspense ratchet up in the last few chapters and the resolution is satisfying.
In sum, an OK read but the author's Quick and Krentz books are better.
3 Stars
Aurora Springs Guild Boss arrives in Cadence City to win back his former fianceé, Elly St. Clair, but the pair soon find themselves embroiled in a mysterious case involving blue ghosts, a deadly drug and a malicious killer.
This installment in the series starts out slow but picks up pace toward the end.
Cooper and Elly's romance is on the weaker side mainly due to the fact that they have very little chemistry and their breakup was caused by a serious lack of communication.
The investigation is also rather run-of-the-mill, but the tension and suspense ratchet up in the last few chapters and the resolution is satisfying.
In sum, an OK read but the author's Quick and Krentz books are better.
December 30, 2020
Totally on me. She's her usual self, but I couldn't connect in any way with the main couple: bland, boring as characters and I never felt that love. I was told it was there, but I've never seen it. Yes, some of it was communication, I doubt it was all...
March 10, 2018
I enjoyed this 2nd chance romance a lot, but I'm still getting a bit lost in the terminology. The narrator lady was good, but she needs to work a bit on her male voices. As in the other books I've read in the series, the dust bunnies stole the show.
November 22, 2018
Still really enjoy the dust bunnies.
October 28, 2017
This is number three in the Harmony series. Harmony is a earth colony which was cut off from contact with Earth. In the two centuries following, the humans developed psychic powers which were triggered off by the extensive alien ruins which give off psychic energy. In this book, a different viewpoint is taken from the previous two, as we switch to a different couple, although Emmett London and Lydia Smith, since married, do make a cameo appearance.
Unlike Lydia, Elly St. Clair doesn't have a grudge against the ghost hunter Guilds which act like a cross between a milita, the mob and a union for anyone - men mostly - who can resonate with the green energy clouds that manifest around the alien ruins and especially in the extensive catacombs under them. Ghost hunters provide protection for anyone who excavates legally in the ruins, to search for alien relics. The trade in these relics forms a major part of the economy on Harmony. Elly doesn't have ghost hunter powers herself, but instead has a psychic affinity with plants which only her family knows about - mainly because there are only two recognised major psychic talents, ghost hunting and tangling - the ability to resonate with and defuse illusion traps which are also a major hazard of underground exploration - and anyone claiming to have different abilities is viewed as mentally unstable.
In the prologue, Elly calls off her engagement to Cooper Boone, head of her local town Guild, when she discovers he fought a duel over her with another hunter apparently due to Guild politics. Six months later as the story proper begins, she has moved to a city and started a herbal business, utilising her hidden ability to determine psychically which herbs will suit her customers. Then a friend called Bertha, a prospector under the ruins, goes missing, and she calls on Cooper's help, having been told by her mother that he has come to the city. Bertha has been attacked in the catacombs, and it eventually becomes clear that the person responsible is a sociopath who will murder anyone in his way.
As with the other books we have a mystery, a couple who are obviously made for each other but won't admit it or can't communicate - Cooper actually loves Elly, but finds it difficult to show his emotions, and Elly is angry and upset that his dream career from childhood was to be a Guild boss when she wants him to love her as she loves him - and a cute native animal called a dust bunny who is the heroine's companion. This time the dust bunny, Rose, has a penchant for wearing Elly's bracelets.
The author has obviously decided, from this book onwards, where both main characters have powers a bit 'different' from usual - Cooper is a ghost hunter with a difference - that her original set-up was a bit restrictive, so is starting to make this more like her other series set on another colony planet where the humans develop psychic powers (Amaryllis, Zinnia, Orchid). In that series, the psychic abilities were very varied. Having begun to read the book after this one, it's clear that is now the way this series is going to go. Plus a whole new environment has been introduced which I won't explain to avoid spoilers.
A fairly decent read though I actually liked Bertha more than the protagonists who came over as a bit bland, and would have liked to have seen more of her. Again, a 3-star rating.
Unlike Lydia, Elly St. Clair doesn't have a grudge against the ghost hunter Guilds which act like a cross between a milita, the mob and a union for anyone - men mostly - who can resonate with the green energy clouds that manifest around the alien ruins and especially in the extensive catacombs under them. Ghost hunters provide protection for anyone who excavates legally in the ruins, to search for alien relics. The trade in these relics forms a major part of the economy on Harmony. Elly doesn't have ghost hunter powers herself, but instead has a psychic affinity with plants which only her family knows about - mainly because there are only two recognised major psychic talents, ghost hunting and tangling - the ability to resonate with and defuse illusion traps which are also a major hazard of underground exploration - and anyone claiming to have different abilities is viewed as mentally unstable.
In the prologue, Elly calls off her engagement to Cooper Boone, head of her local town Guild, when she discovers he fought a duel over her with another hunter apparently due to Guild politics. Six months later as the story proper begins, she has moved to a city and started a herbal business, utilising her hidden ability to determine psychically which herbs will suit her customers. Then a friend called Bertha, a prospector under the ruins, goes missing, and she calls on Cooper's help, having been told by her mother that he has come to the city. Bertha has been attacked in the catacombs, and it eventually becomes clear that the person responsible is a sociopath who will murder anyone in his way.
As with the other books we have a mystery, a couple who are obviously made for each other but won't admit it or can't communicate - Cooper actually loves Elly, but finds it difficult to show his emotions, and Elly is angry and upset that his dream career from childhood was to be a Guild boss when she wants him to love her as she loves him - and a cute native animal called a dust bunny who is the heroine's companion. This time the dust bunny, Rose, has a penchant for wearing Elly's bracelets.
The author has obviously decided, from this book onwards, where both main characters have powers a bit 'different' from usual - Cooper is a ghost hunter with a difference - that her original set-up was a bit restrictive, so is starting to make this more like her other series set on another colony planet where the humans develop psychic powers (Amaryllis, Zinnia, Orchid). In that series, the psychic abilities were very varied. Having begun to read the book after this one, it's clear that is now the way this series is going to go. Plus a whole new environment has been introduced which I won't explain to avoid spoilers.
A fairly decent read though I actually liked Bertha more than the protagonists who came over as a bit bland, and would have liked to have seen more of her. Again, a 3-star rating.
July 16, 2013
Don't be fooled by the title. You will not find people sitting in old houses trying to make contact with the dead.
Ghost Hunter is kind of like a sci-fi mystery romance. I loved the concept--after colonists were stranded on another planet, they had to rebuild society on their own, and 200 years later, they're back up to 21-century level civilization. The people read newspapers and have coffee and eggs for breakfast. The characters have "normal"-sounding names. But there are some cool alien ruins and stuff, and cute alien pets called dust bunnies. (I think I want one.)
This was a very light read. My one complaint with the writing itself is that characters have conversations in which they tell each other things that they both already know, presumably for the reader's benefit. That would be like my husband and I sitting down for dinner and saying, "Yes, Obama is our current president. And Bush was the president before him. He was president for two terms." The information revealed in the dialogue should have been revealed in the narration.
Ghost Hunter is kind of like a sci-fi mystery romance. I loved the concept--after colonists were stranded on another planet, they had to rebuild society on their own, and 200 years later, they're back up to 21-century level civilization. The people read newspapers and have coffee and eggs for breakfast. The characters have "normal"-sounding names. But there are some cool alien ruins and stuff, and cute alien pets called dust bunnies. (I think I want one.)
This was a very light read. My one complaint with the writing itself is that characters have conversations in which they tell each other things that they both already know, presumably for the reader's benefit. That would be like my husband and I sitting down for dinner and saying, "Yes, Obama is our current president. And Bush was the president before him. He was president for two terms." The information revealed in the dialogue should have been revealed in the narration.
March 3, 2022
There seems to be some question about the best order to read these books. I started with the first in the series, then tried the second but it didn't appeal to me so I skipped to this one. What I've found is, the order doesn't matter much. lol I really enjoy this story, it's a nice balance of characters, plot, mystery, and a little humor thrown in.
August 4, 2016
Cute story. The heroine broke off her engagement because she believed it was "just business." The hero has to figure this out when he comes to find her later, and they wind up having an adventure to go with it.
August 18, 2020
More a 3.5
There were interesting elements, I did manage to remember most things from the previous book in the series, although I had read it years ago.
There's nothing really wrong with this enjoyable story... it's just not amazing.
There were interesting elements, I did manage to remember most things from the previous book in the series, although I had read it years ago.
There's nothing really wrong with this enjoyable story... it's just not amazing.
February 4, 2011
This book should be one of my favorite from this series so far.
January 7, 2021
I have the weirdest relationship with Jayne Castle/JAK/Amanda Quick. Most of the time her books disappoint me, and I know this, yet I still pick them up thinking this will be different (Amanda Quick had more hits in the beginning than JAK's other two incarnations, but kinda like with my love/hate relationship with Kristen Ashley, once I figured out the formula, the same-ness of the books started to get to me).
I checked this one out because the first two books in the series were... okay... and I liked the blurb. I'm a sucker for a second chance romance where the woman has no idea that the man has no intention of letting her go.
But the thing is, I put this thing down over a week ago and have no idea why. That's how blah this was for me. I do kind of recall that I kept spacing out while the story was happening, which is never a good sign.
I checked this one out because the first two books in the series were... okay... and I liked the blurb. I'm a sucker for a second chance romance where the woman has no idea that the man has no intention of letting her go.
But the thing is, I put this thing down over a week ago and have no idea why. That's how blah this was for me. I do kind of recall that I kept spacing out while the story was happening, which is never a good sign.
March 22, 2015
Author: Jayne Ann Krentz writing as Jayne Castle
First published: 2006
Length: 327 pages
Setting: Around 200 years in the future on the planet Harmony, cut off from Earth. In Cadence City.
Sex: Very explicit, infrequent
Hero: Librarian and Head of Ghost Hunters' Guild. Hunter.
Heroine: Has an affinity for plant-psi.
Includes: Excerpt from Second Sight by Amanda Quick.
Cooper Boone is....
The Librarian!
Jayne Castle's Harmony series is really lite.
Fantasy-lite. Transplanted contemporary characters with just a touch of fantasy/sf in the world development.
Romance-lite. Heavy on plot, the relationship between MCs is allowed to develop but is never as nuanced or HEA as a good Romance.
Paranormal-lite. The paranormal is an add-on allowing a little character angst as they come into their powers as well as obscure intuitive leaps to propel the plot.
Suspense/mystery-lite. No nail biting. Easy to pick the Mastermind. And we know it'll come up trumps.
None of this makes for a Bad book. It's just filler. These aren't books that will add quality or mark a turning point in any genre. They exist as enjoyable fluff, well written, sexy, just different enough to not be genre cookie cutters and they do appeal to me. I like them. They're fun to read. But they aren't Awesome.
Harmony:
"Although the first few Harmony titles make no direct mention of Arcane, paranormal ability is evident on Harmony and references to the ancient Society are made in SILVER MASTER and DARK LIGHT. Harmony has now officially joined the Arcane series. In OBSIDIAN PREY (August 25, 2009) you will meet the Sweetwater family, descendants of the mysterious Sweetwaters who first appear in RUNNING HOT. The Sweetwaters are a family of professional assassins who occasionally work for Jones & Jones. Some things still haven’t changed…" Krentz @ Harmony faq http://jayneannkrentz.com/f-a-q/
Book 0.5 Bridal Jitters - Virginia Burch and Sam Gage
Book 1 After Dark - Lydia Smith (Ghost Hunters #1)
Book 2 After Glow - Lydia Smith (Ghost Hunters #2)
Book 3 Ghost Hunter - Cooper Boone and Elly St. Clair (Ghost Hunters #3)
Book 4 Silver Master - Celinda Ingram and Davis Oakes (Ghost Hunters #4)
Book 5 Dark Light - Sierra McIntyre and John Fontana (Ghost Hunters #5)
Book 6 Obsidian Prey - Lyra Dore and Cruz Sweetwater
Book 7 Midnight Crystal - Adam Winters and Marlowe Jones (Arcane #9, Dreamlight Trilogy #3)
Book 8 Canyons of Night - Charlotte Enright and Slade Attridge (Rainshadow #.5, Looking Glass Trilogy #3, Arcane #12)
Book 9 The Lost Night - Rachel Bonner and Harry Sebastian (Rainshadow #1)
Book 10 Deception Cove - Alice North and Drake Sebastian (Rainshadow #2)
Book 11 The Hot Zone - Sedona Snow and Cyrus Jones (Rainshadow #3)
Book 12 Siren's Call - Rafe Coppersmith and Ella Morgan (Rainshadow #4)
References:
Author's website: http://jayneannkrentz.com/ghost-hunter/
(ISBN 978-0-515-14140-5)
-CR-
First published: 2006
Length: 327 pages
Setting: Around 200 years in the future on the planet Harmony, cut off from Earth. In Cadence City.
Sex: Very explicit, infrequent
Hero: Librarian and Head of Ghost Hunters' Guild. Hunter.
Heroine: Has an affinity for plant-psi.
Includes: Excerpt from Second Sight by Amanda Quick.
Cooper Boone is....
The Librarian!
Jayne Castle's Harmony series is really lite.
Fantasy-lite. Transplanted contemporary characters with just a touch of fantasy/sf in the world development.
Romance-lite. Heavy on plot, the relationship between MCs is allowed to develop but is never as nuanced or HEA as a good Romance.
Paranormal-lite. The paranormal is an add-on allowing a little character angst as they come into their powers as well as obscure intuitive leaps to propel the plot.
Suspense/mystery-lite. No nail biting. Easy to pick the Mastermind. And we know it'll come up trumps.
None of this makes for a Bad book. It's just filler. These aren't books that will add quality or mark a turning point in any genre. They exist as enjoyable fluff, well written, sexy, just different enough to not be genre cookie cutters and they do appeal to me. I like them. They're fun to read. But they aren't Awesome.
Harmony:
"Although the first few Harmony titles make no direct mention of Arcane, paranormal ability is evident on Harmony and references to the ancient Society are made in SILVER MASTER and DARK LIGHT. Harmony has now officially joined the Arcane series. In OBSIDIAN PREY (August 25, 2009) you will meet the Sweetwater family, descendants of the mysterious Sweetwaters who first appear in RUNNING HOT. The Sweetwaters are a family of professional assassins who occasionally work for Jones & Jones. Some things still haven’t changed…" Krentz @ Harmony faq http://jayneannkrentz.com/f-a-q/
Book 0.5 Bridal Jitters - Virginia Burch and Sam Gage
Book 1 After Dark - Lydia Smith (Ghost Hunters #1)
Book 2 After Glow - Lydia Smith (Ghost Hunters #2)
Book 3 Ghost Hunter - Cooper Boone and Elly St. Clair (Ghost Hunters #3)
Book 4 Silver Master - Celinda Ingram and Davis Oakes (Ghost Hunters #4)
Book 5 Dark Light - Sierra McIntyre and John Fontana (Ghost Hunters #5)
Book 6 Obsidian Prey - Lyra Dore and Cruz Sweetwater
Book 7 Midnight Crystal - Adam Winters and Marlowe Jones (Arcane #9, Dreamlight Trilogy #3)
Book 8 Canyons of Night - Charlotte Enright and Slade Attridge (Rainshadow #.5, Looking Glass Trilogy #3, Arcane #12)
Book 9 The Lost Night - Rachel Bonner and Harry Sebastian (Rainshadow #1)
Book 10 Deception Cove - Alice North and Drake Sebastian (Rainshadow #2)
Book 11 The Hot Zone - Sedona Snow and Cyrus Jones (Rainshadow #3)
Book 12 Siren's Call - Rafe Coppersmith and Ella Morgan (Rainshadow #4)
References:
Author's website: http://jayneannkrentz.com/ghost-hunter/
(ISBN 978-0-515-14140-5)
-CR-
July 5, 2016
Actual Rating: 3.5 Stars
To be honest, it's a little strange, but despite how readily I got into this book, and how much I enjoyed it, I don't really remember all that much about it, which is why it get's a half a star less than when I first finished reading it and thought: "Ooh, that was fun!"
Because, yes, the reading experience was fun:
I liked the book well enough and even though certain events were pretty predictable, it was still an entertaining read. Elly and Cooper were pretty cute together, even with all their misunderstandings and communication problems. Cooper is a very likable main character if only because he's so socially awkward, despite being the broody, alpha, muscular and sexy Mr. Guild Boss that he is. And he's a librarian and a historian!
The highlight of this book would probably be the romance, honestly--it was, indeed, quite a sweet one, even if kind of strange. Cooper and Elly were engaged to be married, but due to their own problems communicating with each other, Elly calls off their wedding and runs away to the larger city of Cadence. I love that when we see Cooper again, he's got his mind set on "The Plan" to get Elly back, because everyone around him has assured him that Elly wouldn't last long in a big city away from home. "Give her a while to adjust and she'll realize she belongs back in Aurora Springs," was pretty much what everyone--Elly's parents included--were saying. But when he arrives in Cadence and sees the new life that Elly has set up for herself, and notes how much more carefree and relaxed she seems to be, his entire well-laid plan just kind of crumbles and he realizes that he needs an alternative plan if he's going to convince Elly to come back to him.
But being a bit socially awkward, he seems to fumble a lot of things, least of which happens to be his own confessions of affection for Elly. They guy obviously loves her, but he can't manage to say it the right way, which just keeps pissing Elly off. Instead of telling her that he has feelings for her, or that he loves her, or that he cares about her, he randomly inserts a lot of "For the greater good of the Guild" bullshit that just manages to infuriate Elly even more.
Anyway...
Murder, mayhem, danger, suspense, etc... The world of Harmony created by Jayne Castle becomes slightly more evolved as we read this book, and I'm having fun learning all the new possibilities. As I'd already stated, the murder mystery and the crime aspects are rather predictable, but that doesn't deter me from enjoying the book.
The characters are all colorful and full of background and life. I don't say much about Elly, but she was a resourceful, great heroine to follow. Nothing out of the ordinary from the typical Mary Sue heroine, but at least she wasn't a hundred percent damsel or anything of the like.
And then there's Rose. The dust bunny. Dust bunnies in this world are just so much adorbs, it's not even funny! I wish I could find a decent dust bunny picture. Again, I'd totally make dust bunnies from Harmony my mascot. Although I might have to fight some copyright issues first, I suppose.
***
2016 Reading Challenges:
• Goodreads Reading Challenge
• BookLikes Reading Challenge
To be honest, it's a little strange, but despite how readily I got into this book, and how much I enjoyed it, I don't really remember all that much about it, which is why it get's a half a star less than when I first finished reading it and thought: "Ooh, that was fun!"
Because, yes, the reading experience was fun:
I liked the book well enough and even though certain events were pretty predictable, it was still an entertaining read. Elly and Cooper were pretty cute together, even with all their misunderstandings and communication problems. Cooper is a very likable main character if only because he's so socially awkward, despite being the broody, alpha, muscular and sexy Mr. Guild Boss that he is. And he's a librarian and a historian!
The highlight of this book would probably be the romance, honestly--it was, indeed, quite a sweet one, even if kind of strange. Cooper and Elly were engaged to be married, but due to their own problems communicating with each other, Elly calls off their wedding and runs away to the larger city of Cadence. I love that when we see Cooper again, he's got his mind set on "The Plan" to get Elly back, because everyone around him has assured him that Elly wouldn't last long in a big city away from home. "Give her a while to adjust and she'll realize she belongs back in Aurora Springs," was pretty much what everyone--Elly's parents included--were saying. But when he arrives in Cadence and sees the new life that Elly has set up for herself, and notes how much more carefree and relaxed she seems to be, his entire well-laid plan just kind of crumbles and he realizes that he needs an alternative plan if he's going to convince Elly to come back to him.
But being a bit socially awkward, he seems to fumble a lot of things, least of which happens to be his own confessions of affection for Elly. They guy obviously loves her, but he can't manage to say it the right way, which just keeps pissing Elly off. Instead of telling her that he has feelings for her, or that he loves her, or that he cares about her, he randomly inserts a lot of "For the greater good of the Guild" bullshit that just manages to infuriate Elly even more.
Anyway...
Murder, mayhem, danger, suspense, etc... The world of Harmony created by Jayne Castle becomes slightly more evolved as we read this book, and I'm having fun learning all the new possibilities. As I'd already stated, the murder mystery and the crime aspects are rather predictable, but that doesn't deter me from enjoying the book.
The characters are all colorful and full of background and life. I don't say much about Elly, but she was a resourceful, great heroine to follow. Nothing out of the ordinary from the typical Mary Sue heroine, but at least she wasn't a hundred percent damsel or anything of the like.
And then there's Rose. The dust bunny. Dust bunnies in this world are just so much adorbs, it's not even funny! I wish I could find a decent dust bunny picture. Again, I'd totally make dust bunnies from Harmony my mascot. Although I might have to fight some copyright issues first, I suppose.
***
2016 Reading Challenges:
• Goodreads Reading Challenge
• BookLikes Reading Challenge
November 12, 2013
Ellie St Clair, a psy-botanist, living on Harmony has moved to Cadence City to escape her broken engagement to Cooper Boone, Guild Boss of Aurora Springs. This is no small thing as Ellie has grown up in one of the top Guild families of Aurora Springs and has always had to do the right thing.
The reason she broke her engagement was because Cooper was not putting her first, he is a workaholic plus he had a few problems to solve when he took over the Guild. But everyone told him that Ellie was a sheltered little girl so he didn't tell her anything of what was going on. Needless our Hero underestimated our heroine, and as all the villans in JAKs novels always do too.
One villan in particular has followed Ellie to Cadence, Palmer Frazier, ex Council member of the Guild, and he has plans to use Ellie to take over Aurora Springs.
Both Cooper and Palmer are 'blue ghost freaks' and that is another secret Cooper has kept from Ellie.
Meanwhile Ellie has settled down in Cadence, made friends, opened her own business and been adopted by her own dust bunny, Rose.
Various adventures, dead bodies, drugs and an incompetent dectective later we have our HEA.
Love the dust bunnies and world building in these Harmony novels.
The reason she broke her engagement was because Cooper was not putting her first, he is a workaholic plus he had a few problems to solve when he took over the Guild. But everyone told him that Ellie was a sheltered little girl so he didn't tell her anything of what was going on. Needless our Hero underestimated our heroine, and as all the villans in JAKs novels always do too.
One villan in particular has followed Ellie to Cadence, Palmer Frazier, ex Council member of the Guild, and he has plans to use Ellie to take over Aurora Springs.
Both Cooper and Palmer are 'blue ghost freaks' and that is another secret Cooper has kept from Ellie.
Meanwhile Ellie has settled down in Cadence, made friends, opened her own business and been adopted by her own dust bunny, Rose.
Various adventures, dead bodies, drugs and an incompetent dectective later we have our HEA.
Love the dust bunnies and world building in these Harmony novels.
June 10, 2017
I have already read two other books in this series Silver Master and Obsidian Prey, so I knew the main idea of the world. Still, I really pretty liked this one.
Elly breaks up with her fiancé Cooper and leaves her hometown Aurora Springs for Cadence City. But when one of her new friends disappear, she asks Cooper for help. And Cooper who is still into her agrees to help her.
The characters are quite likeable and the plot is interesting. The romance part is not really developed but Elly and Cooper used to be engaged and they are already in love with each other at the beginning of the story, so that is not a problem. Cooper is definitely a strong hero but he is not dominating over Elly, which is good.
Elly breaks up with her fiancé Cooper and leaves her hometown Aurora Springs for Cadence City. But when one of her new friends disappear, she asks Cooper for help. And Cooper who is still into her agrees to help her.
The characters are quite likeable and the plot is interesting. The romance part is not really developed but Elly and Cooper used to be engaged and they are already in love with each other at the beginning of the story, so that is not a problem. Cooper is definitely a strong hero but he is not dominating over Elly, which is good.
January 24, 2018
Well. Not only did I not realize that this was the third in a series I did not start when I picked it up, but I also did not realize that it was a romance. Which, eh, whatever, not my favorite genre but I suppose it wasn't bad as far as romance novels go. The overall story about being on another planet and the ghost energy in the catacombs does have potential though I really feel like it needs to be developed more, which maybe it does become more developed through the series. I just don't think I'm that interested to read the whole series. I do find it rather laughable that this ghost energy and amber found in these catacombs ends up leaving men sex-crazed, but I suppose that's romance novels for you.
February 6, 2012
Another winner. Tight plot, great tension, explosive attraction, gripping mystery, rather cuckoo villain, hot sex, man-of-my-dreams hero...JAK/AQ/JC knows what she's doing.
The only hiccup (as always) was the heroine. I don't know why they always get on my nerves. Maybe it's because I want their counterpart for my own and am simply green with envy. ;) And maybe it's just I can't stand their reaction, reasoning, and stubbornness when they're clearly in over their head...And their utter blindness when it comes to the hero, their motives, and their feelings.
Anyway, loved it. Cooper (the hero) more than compensated for Elly (the heroine). Loved it from beginning to end. More please.
The only hiccup (as always) was the heroine. I don't know why they always get on my nerves. Maybe it's because I want their counterpart for my own and am simply green with envy. ;) And maybe it's just I can't stand their reaction, reasoning, and stubbornness when they're clearly in over their head...And their utter blindness when it comes to the hero, their motives, and their feelings.
Anyway, loved it. Cooper (the hero) more than compensated for Elly (the heroine). Loved it from beginning to end. More please.
November 6, 2017
I liked it. I will probably read the next in the series. I think I liked Elly and Cooper better than the couple in the first two books (although tbh I literally just finished reading this book and had to go back and look up the main characters names, so I feel like that doesn't bode well for me feeling attached to them or really remembering this book). I loved the Arcane series and only read these at first because there are some crossovers later on. But since I finished Arcane I figured I would work my way through this series. I never seem to like the characters as much as I did in Arcane or connect to the story as much, but I like them enough that I will soldier on, so to speak.
December 20, 2023
Third in the Harmony series, this book continues with the ghost hunter tradition, this time throwing in new abilities - to create a blue ghost (Cooper Boone) and to resonate with plant life (Elly St. Clair) as well as a new city, Aurora Springs. Although most of the book takes place in Cadence and Lydia and Emmett London make an appearance (from the first two books in the series), it reads well in its own right. Good plot, good characters, good dialogue - good Krentz.
January 21, 2019
3.50 / 4 ☆s
This one has a second chance romance between Ellie and Cooper. There is also a rival out to set up Cooper for a crime he hasn't committed. While in the catacombs Ellie and her friend discover something that was only thought of as a myth.
This one has a second chance romance between Ellie and Cooper. There is also a rival out to set up Cooper for a crime he hasn't committed. While in the catacombs Ellie and her friend discover something that was only thought of as a myth.
Read
May 14, 2017I would have read this book for Rose the dust bunny alone, but the hero, a combination librarian-enforcer and the heroine, who discovers her inner sass, are also wonderful! -Lynn H.
January 20, 2014
Love Rose :)
January 31, 2015
This series is cute! The epilogue was a bit eye rolly but I liked the characters and the story was fun!
June 7, 2019
Another winner. Futuristic romantic suspense with memorable characters and an interesting (and twisty) plot. Plus dust bunnies.
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