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Krewe of Hunters #1
Phantom Evil
A secret government unit, a group of renegade paranormal investigators... and a murder no one else can crack.
Though haunted by the recent deaths of two teammates, Jackson Crow knows that the living commit the most heinous crimes.
A police officer utilizing her paranormal intuition, Angela Hawkins already has her hands full of mystery and bloodshed.
But one assignment calls to them too strongly to resist. In a historic mansion in New Orleans's French Quarter, a senator's wife falls to her death. Most think she jumped; some say she was pushed. And yet others believe she was beckoned by the ghostly spirits inhabiting the house — once the site of a serial killer's grisly work.
In this seemingly unsolvable case, only one thing is certain: whether supernatural or all too human, crimes of passion will cast Jackson and Angela into danger of losing their lives... and their immortal souls.
Though haunted by the recent deaths of two teammates, Jackson Crow knows that the living commit the most heinous crimes.
A police officer utilizing her paranormal intuition, Angela Hawkins already has her hands full of mystery and bloodshed.
But one assignment calls to them too strongly to resist. In a historic mansion in New Orleans's French Quarter, a senator's wife falls to her death. Most think she jumped; some say she was pushed. And yet others believe she was beckoned by the ghostly spirits inhabiting the house — once the site of a serial killer's grisly work.
In this seemingly unsolvable case, only one thing is certain: whether supernatural or all too human, crimes of passion will cast Jackson and Angela into danger of losing their lives... and their immortal souls.
363 pages, Hardcover
First published March 27, 2011
1310 people are currently reading
9942 people want to read
About the author
Heather Graham
584 books6,923 followersAlso published as Heather Graham Pozzessere and Shannon Drake.
New York Times and USA Today best-selling author Heather Graham majored in theater arts at the University of South Florida. After a stint of several years in dinner theater, back-up vocals, and bartending, she stayed home after the birth of her third child and began to write, working on short horror stories and romances. After some trial and error, she sold her first book, WHEN NEXT WE LOVE, in 1982 and since then, she has written over one hundred novels and novellas including category, romantic suspense, historical romance, vampire fiction, time travel, occult, and Christmas holiday fare. She wrote the launch books for the Dell's Ecstasy Supreme line, Silhouette's Shadows, and for Harlequin's mainstream fiction imprint, Mira Books.
Heather was a founding member of the Florida Romance Writers chapter of RWA and, since 1999, has hosted the Romantic Times Vampire Ball, with all revenues going directly to children's charity.
She is pleased to have been published in approximately twenty languages, and to have been honored with awards frorn Waldenbooks. B. Dalton, Georgia Romance Writers, Affaire de Coeur, Romantic Times, and more. She has had books selected for the Doubleday Book Club and the Literary Guild, and has been quoted, interviewed, or featured in such publications as The Nation, Redbook, People, and USA Today and appeared on many newscasts including local television and Entertainment Tonight.
Heather loves travel and anything have to do with the water, and is a certitified scuba diver. Married since high school graduation and the mother of five, her greatest love in life remains her family, but she also believes her career has been an incredible gift, and she is grateful every day to be doing something that she loves so very much for a living.
New York Times and USA Today best-selling author Heather Graham majored in theater arts at the University of South Florida. After a stint of several years in dinner theater, back-up vocals, and bartending, she stayed home after the birth of her third child and began to write, working on short horror stories and romances. After some trial and error, she sold her first book, WHEN NEXT WE LOVE, in 1982 and since then, she has written over one hundred novels and novellas including category, romantic suspense, historical romance, vampire fiction, time travel, occult, and Christmas holiday fare. She wrote the launch books for the Dell's Ecstasy Supreme line, Silhouette's Shadows, and for Harlequin's mainstream fiction imprint, Mira Books.
Heather was a founding member of the Florida Romance Writers chapter of RWA and, since 1999, has hosted the Romantic Times Vampire Ball, with all revenues going directly to children's charity.
She is pleased to have been published in approximately twenty languages, and to have been honored with awards frorn Waldenbooks. B. Dalton, Georgia Romance Writers, Affaire de Coeur, Romantic Times, and more. She has had books selected for the Doubleday Book Club and the Literary Guild, and has been quoted, interviewed, or featured in such publications as The Nation, Redbook, People, and USA Today and appeared on many newscasts including local television and Entertainment Tonight.
Heather loves travel and anything have to do with the water, and is a certitified scuba diver. Married since high school graduation and the mother of five, her greatest love in life remains her family, but she also believes her career has been an incredible gift, and she is grateful every day to be doing something that she loves so very much for a living.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,040 reviews
January 9, 2016
What I was after was a lighthearted fun paranormal book, an easy book to read when you are in need of something frivolous after some heavy dark books. What I got was a book that lacked any depth whatsoever. Characters that are not memorable, two main characters that at first doesn't seem to really go along, but end up in bed after a day or two. And, then they have some more sex during the book just because why the hell not. I mean they are working, trying to figure out if a woman was murdered or not, but nevermind that.
I'm so completely sick and tired of books that make the main characters sleep with each other almost right after they meet. Of course, they must have a pretend we are a couple moment before that's not so pretending.
In short, this is a stupid book. It lacks charm and it lacks an interesting story. It's also painfully slow to get through, and I read it is Swedish and I was skimming a hell of a lot of it and still I suffered.
I have read a book in this series before and that one was better than this one and since then have I been curious about reading more. Now I don't have to be curious anymore. I'm also pleased that the book didn't cost me a dime.
Will I read more? I do own an eBook in this series, but I will not read it anytime soon!
I'm so completely sick and tired of books that make the main characters sleep with each other almost right after they meet. Of course, they must have a pretend we are a couple moment before that's not so pretending.
In short, this is a stupid book. It lacks charm and it lacks an interesting story. It's also painfully slow to get through, and I read it is Swedish and I was skimming a hell of a lot of it and still I suffered.
I have read a book in this series before and that one was better than this one and since then have I been curious about reading more. Now I don't have to be curious anymore. I'm also pleased that the book didn't cost me a dime.
Will I read more? I do own an eBook in this series, but I will not read it anytime soon!
May 9, 2018
4 Stars... I enjoyed this introduction into the “Krewe Hunter Series”; it read somewhat as if I should be familiar with some of the background to the storyline which makes me wonder if it is a spinoff of another Heather Graham Series??... However, I found myself intrigued by the storyline and the characters as they navigate this cross between the paranormal and real world evils... The author provides an arresting backdrop for the story in New Orleans with such historical significance and turmoil that adds to the overall building of mystery and suspense... I would definitely say there are some creepy moments in the story versus outright scary, which certainly worked for me and my interests... I will absolutely continue with the series and look forward to seeing how these characters and the overall story continue to evolve:)
November 25, 2011
This is primarily a romance novel. When the two main characters fall into bed within 48 hours of meeting and there are two explicit sex scenes it is easy to see what the focus is on. I wish I had realized Mira is an imprint of Harlequin before I bought it.
I picked this book up for the paranormal mystery that the blurb promises, in post Katrina New Orleans no less. There is upfront an emphasis on the Senator's wife being in a locked and security alarmed house when she supposedly jumps from her balcony committing suicide. This newly formed team with varying expertise are assembled and it becomes clear she was pushed, but the security system shows nobody came and disabled the system so it must be the ghosts that haunt the place drove this woman over the balcony. Much is made of the security system. Yet, when the confrontation with the killer occurs - no explanation at all of how the security system was gotten around without some record - it is just dropped.
This book seems quickly written. I felt like the team lead would say, "in the morning your assignment is..." but then in the next paragraph say "before you go to bed you'll do that..." There were a few instances of that lack of continuity. The paranormal is there along side human manipulation. The biggest question is, how much did the Senator know was going on? The paranormal had some tense moments and a few good chills. But to be honest, I think the story would have been better served to just have romantic tension between the two lead characters and focused on the murder mystery.
The team idea has some real potential, but the focus is so on the two leads slipping off for a roll in the hay that the rest of the team doesn't get developed much. This team has a lot of potential but I felt the characterization was lacking, even with the two main leads. Overall some good paranormal chills, otherwise a lot of missed potential. I doubt I will read any more in the series.
Mysteries and My Musings Blog.
I picked this book up for the paranormal mystery that the blurb promises, in post Katrina New Orleans no less. There is upfront an emphasis on the Senator's wife being in a locked and security alarmed house when she supposedly jumps from her balcony committing suicide. This newly formed team with varying expertise are assembled and it becomes clear she was pushed, but the security system shows nobody came and disabled the system so it must be the ghosts that haunt the place drove this woman over the balcony. Much is made of the security system. Yet, when the confrontation with the killer occurs - no explanation at all of how the security system was gotten around without some record - it is just dropped.
This book seems quickly written. I felt like the team lead would say, "in the morning your assignment is..." but then in the next paragraph say "before you go to bed you'll do that..." There were a few instances of that lack of continuity. The paranormal is there along side human manipulation. The biggest question is, how much did the Senator know was going on? The paranormal had some tense moments and a few good chills. But to be honest, I think the story would have been better served to just have romantic tension between the two lead characters and focused on the murder mystery.
The team idea has some real potential, but the focus is so on the two leads slipping off for a roll in the hay that the rest of the team doesn't get developed much. This team has a lot of potential but I felt the characterization was lacking, even with the two main leads. Overall some good paranormal chills, otherwise a lot of missed potential. I doubt I will read any more in the series.
Mysteries and My Musings Blog.
February 6, 2017
Bourbon Street sign - note the Mardi Gras beads!
★★★½☆ (This is a review of the audiobook.) I like Jeff Cummings’s narration of this one. I’ve heard him before and have had no major complaints; however, I don't think he is quite as creative with the voices this time and his Southern accent is just adequate. *shrugs* He has nice pacing and inflection, but I found myself wondering if he doesn’t switch the voices/accents of the characters a time or two. Being a man with a deep voice, he doesn’t do a fabulous job on the female characters, but at least they aren’t falsetto.
I haven't read a HG book in decades and I quite enjoyed this start to the series. So much so, I am tempted to jump right into the next in the series... There were times I almost gave it five stars, but I believe it needs a bit of tweaking in a few spots, and a bit more character development (there are some inconsistances), especially of the secondary characters, to get it that high a rating.
I can’t say there was “insta-lust” in this one, because Jackson and Angela’s first encounter with each other was anything but romantic! It is so horrible, appalling, scary, and funny, all of which makes it very memorable. I can certainly picture it in my mind’s eye. LOL! But the lust comes relatively soon afterwards. And, lucky for us, there is certainly chemistry here between the hero & heroine.
The ambiance and charm of New Orleans’s French Quarter - with its ghostly, historic mansions - in contrast with Bourbon Street’s rowdiness at night, is very nicely done. There is a lot of mystery, a hint of voodoo, plenty of phantoms, and a plethora of suspects in Phantom Evil. Though Jackson wouldn't like the label, his fledgling team are pretty much “ghostbusters,” AKA paranormal investigators. I don’t want to spoiler things for other readers, but
February 20, 2015
I wanted to like this book, I truly did. It has some great potential: a crew of ghost hunters! Set in New Orleans! But somehow, the author's matter-of-fact rendering of NOLA makes you feel as though you may as well be reading about Peoria, Illinois. Descriptions of scenery and local color are sterile, rather than evocative. The story goes too fast to build up an effective feeling of suspense. And two of the main characters hop into bed pretty quick, when frankly there was very little believable chemistry. How about some Scully-and-Mulder angst, plz!
Just, simply, the epitome of "meh."
Oh! I will say this. One of the characters evoked shades of Remy LeBeau. Almost like he served as a model! I found myself looking forward to him at first. But then he got annoying.
Just, simply, the epitome of "meh."
Oh! I will say this. One of the characters evoked shades of Remy LeBeau. Almost like he served as a model! I found myself looking forward to him at first. But then he got annoying.
February 3, 2016
I knew if I kept giving HG enough changes that eventually I would find one of her books that I liked. She writes paranormal with romance and that is a winning combination for me. Unfortunately in the past it didn't always work out. Really liked Krewe of Hunters and thought Jackson was a good fit. He came off as arrogant sometimes, but for an alpha male that isn't all bad. I think him and Angela jumped into bed a little quick, but I thought this Krewe was going to span several books, but it looks like that isn't quite how it works. The romance part of the book was ok. I wasn't really looking for that in here, so I didn't expect much and in fact was pleasantly surprised by what was there. There was one part I was reading about the ghosts and my phone went off in my pocket and I almost fell out of chair when I jumped. Then I had to laugh at myself. The mystery was good and I didn't have all of it figured out and was kind of surprised that it played out like that in the end. I will for sure be up for the next book in the series.
April 12, 2020
Too much personal stuff and a boring romance and not enough ghosts.
February 24, 2018
I really tried to like this book. But I just couldn't get into it! Basically it's like a very long, slow and boring episode of SCOOBY DOO, without the humor and the Scooby Snacks.
The Nicest Ghostbusters in the World go to New Orleans, where there's a house full of Evil. The head ghost is named Melvin C. Neutron, or Milton B. Marshmallow, or something. He murdered a bunch of little kids with an axe back in the 1870's. And over the years, dozens of people have wandered into the house, slipped on banana peels, and died mysteriously. Recently a beautiful Senator's wife, grieving for her child who died fielding a line drive in a heated Wiffle Ball game, met a similar tragic fate. (Slipped on a banana peel, fell of the balcony, and accidentally impaled herself on her son's Wiffle Ball bat.) So the Nice Ghostbusters are on the case!
The main couple in this case are the boss man Ghostbuster, Jackson Crow, and a pretty lady named Angela. He's a hunky Native American (is there any other kind in these books?) and she's a blue-eyed lady cop with the face of an angel. They like each other sooooo much that there's zero tension as to whether they'll get together. Even the dumbest Harlequin Presents works better than this. You know, she's a super model, and he's a billionaire. He thinks she's stuck up and spoiled. She thinks he's ruthless and heartless. The story always sizzles because the internal conflicts heat up the sexual tension. But Angela and Jackson just sort of . . . like each other.
The "tension" in this story, such as it is, comes from the scheming and semi-supernatural antics of a ridiculous random grab-bag of villains . . . living, dead, and in-between. Talk about the usual suspects! We've got them all. Sinister religious cult full of nubile runaway girls serving as sex slaves? Check. Mean redneck church filled with neo-Nazi leg-breakers? Check. Sleazy politicians? Beefy dimwit chauffeurs? Delusional skank in high heels killing for her horny boss?
Overall, I'd say this novel misses big on a number of levels. If you're looking for real Stephen King style horror, tons of blood and guts, hair-raising chills, you won't find it. If you want a steaming hot love story with tension and sexual fireworks, you won't get that either. But if you want to hang out with some really nice ghost busters who know lots of cool night spots in New Orleans, and share great recipes for Jambalaya and Hurricanes, then this might be the book for you!
The Nicest Ghostbusters in the World go to New Orleans, where there's a house full of Evil. The head ghost is named Melvin C. Neutron, or Milton B. Marshmallow, or something. He murdered a bunch of little kids with an axe back in the 1870's. And over the years, dozens of people have wandered into the house, slipped on banana peels, and died mysteriously. Recently a beautiful Senator's wife, grieving for her child who died fielding a line drive in a heated Wiffle Ball game, met a similar tragic fate. (Slipped on a banana peel, fell of the balcony, and accidentally impaled herself on her son's Wiffle Ball bat.) So the Nice Ghostbusters are on the case!
The main couple in this case are the boss man Ghostbuster, Jackson Crow, and a pretty lady named Angela. He's a hunky Native American (is there any other kind in these books?) and she's a blue-eyed lady cop with the face of an angel. They like each other sooooo much that there's zero tension as to whether they'll get together. Even the dumbest Harlequin Presents works better than this. You know, she's a super model, and he's a billionaire. He thinks she's stuck up and spoiled. She thinks he's ruthless and heartless. The story always sizzles because the internal conflicts heat up the sexual tension. But Angela and Jackson just sort of . . . like each other.
The "tension" in this story, such as it is, comes from the scheming and semi-supernatural antics of a ridiculous random grab-bag of villains . . . living, dead, and in-between. Talk about the usual suspects! We've got them all. Sinister religious cult full of nubile runaway girls serving as sex slaves? Check. Mean redneck church filled with neo-Nazi leg-breakers? Check. Sleazy politicians? Beefy dimwit chauffeurs? Delusional skank in high heels killing for her horny boss?
Overall, I'd say this novel misses big on a number of levels. If you're looking for real Stephen King style horror, tons of blood and guts, hair-raising chills, you won't find it. If you want a steaming hot love story with tension and sexual fireworks, you won't get that either. But if you want to hang out with some really nice ghost busters who know lots of cool night spots in New Orleans, and share great recipes for Jambalaya and Hurricanes, then this might be the book for you!
December 22, 2015
2.5
Adam Harrison, an investigator who worked for "the government where the government could not act officially", gathered a group of special individuals and formed a team whose task would be to investigate strange cases.
Angela Hawkins, Whitney Tremont, Jake Mallory, Jenna Duffy and Will Chan are part of that team and he called Jackson Crow to lead them. Crow doesn't refuse to believe in supernatural, but he would rather carefully check everything else first. Adam knows that Jackson Crow won't rush into accusing the supernatural elements right away only because that would be easier. So, the team:
Their first case is the death of a senator's wife. The pair had lost a child earlier and most people think Regina Halloway had killed herself. Since the house has tragic history, there is a lot of talk about ghosts. It used to be the killing ground of a Victorian-era serial killer who was later hanged. The senator pulled some strings and Adam Harrison formed the team to investigate. It is actually a great story full of twists.
Romance is definitely not the focus of the story and I hope the rest of these books will follow the lead.
Adam Harrison, an investigator who worked for "the government where the government could not act officially", gathered a group of special individuals and formed a team whose task would be to investigate strange cases.
Angela Hawkins, Whitney Tremont, Jake Mallory, Jenna Duffy and Will Chan are part of that team and he called Jackson Crow to lead them. Crow doesn't refuse to believe in supernatural, but he would rather carefully check everything else first. Adam knows that Jackson Crow won't rush into accusing the supernatural elements right away only because that would be easier. So, the team:
"The first woman, at least, was coming from a Virginia police force. Whitney Tremont had started out life in the French Quarter; she had a Creole background and had recently done the camera work for a paranormal cable-television show. Jake Mallory—musician, but a man who had been heavily involved in searches after the summer of storms, and been called in as well during kidnapping cases and disappearances. Then there was Jenna Duffy. A registered nurse from Ireland. Well, they’d be covered in case of any poltergeist attacks. And Will Chan—the man had worked in theater, and as a magician."
You don't get a lot of info about most of these people except that even with the first book feel to it. Most of the attention is on Jackson and Angela, their lives before this case and supernatural things they have experienced.Their first case is the death of a senator's wife. The pair had lost a child earlier and most people think Regina Halloway had killed herself. Since the house has tragic history, there is a lot of talk about ghosts. It used to be the killing ground of a Victorian-era serial killer who was later hanged. The senator pulled some strings and Adam Harrison formed the team to investigate. It is actually a great story full of twists.
Romance is definitely not the focus of the story and I hope the rest of these books will follow the lead.
January 25, 2012
Pheeble!*
The Heather Graham who writes bestsellers may be "The Original Heather Graham," but I am willing to bet that Heather Graham the actress could toast generic white bread with more style and engagement than this sorry excuse for a thriller.
Graham has churned out an average of five novels every years for the past thirty years. How much originality is left? Imagine a high school junior staggering down Bourbon Street. "Gee whiz, I shouldn't have drank those six hand gernades. And all those shots! And that Cajun food was so, so spicy... it's churning arouund like I'm going to be sick!" Yep, Phantom Evil is as cliched, common and perdictable as that- and about as much fun if you stick around to watch if this little story will turn out like you think.
The writing is bland, repetitive, implausible, predictable, repetitive and about as scary as a DVD box set of Touched by an Angel Season Three that has never even been taken out of its shrink wrap. Mystery fans, romance fans, paranormal fans- take it from me. Skim the cooking instructions on a box of red beans and rice. That'll deliver equal flavor, satisfaction and information as Phantom Evil, and will save you countless hours of wasted time.
*Alternate review title: Peeville.
The Heather Graham who writes bestsellers may be "The Original Heather Graham," but I am willing to bet that Heather Graham the actress could toast generic white bread with more style and engagement than this sorry excuse for a thriller.
Graham has churned out an average of five novels every years for the past thirty years. How much originality is left? Imagine a high school junior staggering down Bourbon Street. "Gee whiz, I shouldn't have drank those six hand gernades. And all those shots! And that Cajun food was so, so spicy... it's churning arouund like I'm going to be sick!" Yep, Phantom Evil is as cliched, common and perdictable as that- and about as much fun if you stick around to watch if this little story will turn out like you think.
The writing is bland, repetitive, implausible, predictable, repetitive and about as scary as a DVD box set of Touched by an Angel Season Three that has never even been taken out of its shrink wrap. Mystery fans, romance fans, paranormal fans- take it from me. Skim the cooking instructions on a box of red beans and rice. That'll deliver equal flavor, satisfaction and information as Phantom Evil, and will save you countless hours of wasted time.
*Alternate review title: Peeville.
May 10, 2011
So I saw this in the library under the "Hot Picks/New for May!" banner. And I picked it up. Man am I sorry I did!
Ok, so the prologue really creeped me out. Like that was just plain SCARY! And I am not one for the horror genre at all!
This kind of reminded me a little of The Shining and The Haunting, you know that moviewith Catherine Zeta-Jones? Yeah, totally cheesy, right?
So what actually drew me in was the fact that the federal government sets up this investigation team, like an advanced tech-savy modern day ghost busters to investigate the New Orleans Senator's wife killing/suicide. The Senator swears up and down that it's not possible for the wife to have killed herself even though she lost their son just recently and could not get over the death of their child.
So I read the prologue while inthe library and was hooked! And then it became so cheesy and it kind of felt like a high schooler's imagination and writing style, with exclamation points at the end of every sentence or conversation. Also, the whole romance was just kind of thrown in there for the readers. I don't know who Graham was trying to appeal to, but it didn't work for me.
There was a bit of a twist at the end, but after awhile I was getting tired of the characters. And to be honest, I was grateful that she kept identifying the characters as Blake, the bodyguard, because I was not connecting with them in ANY WAY! I would have forgotten that Blake was the bodyguard and not the chauffer. And also, the dual narrative drove me INSANE! It was fine when there were breaks in the middle of the chapters, which were monotonously and unremittingly long, whne you can actually tell the difference of whose head we were looking out of, but in the middle of paragraphs and conversations, floating back and forth between the two, Angela or Jackson? Not cool.
I do have to say that I am kind of creeped out with the ghost story though. That Mad C. Whatever did freak me out and I'm wanting to watch like cartoons right now, because you know those suction cup shelves you can place in your shower to hold all your soaps and shampoos and whatever? Yeah mine just totally fell after I walked by the bathroom after I finished this book and yelled "man this sucked!" Yeah, now I'm officially creeped out by ghosts and all their stories, especially now that my cat, who is BLACK by the way, it just staring at the corner in my den where I am.
I am spooked so I have to give her credit for that, and I was interested in what happened and how Regina ended up being dead. But overall I was more curious about the beginning of the house and how Mad C. Whatever came to be. I wanted to know more about those killings and missing people than what was actually going on with the politics and that crazy cult church and Aryans. Uh...random! I am no way interested in what happens with the team or Jackson and Angela from here on out so I will NOT be picking up the next one in the series, let alone any other book written by Heather Graham.
Whatever. Done with the book and now onto much better, better things!
Ok, so the prologue really creeped me out. Like that was just plain SCARY! And I am not one for the horror genre at all!
This kind of reminded me a little of The Shining and The Haunting, you know that moviewith Catherine Zeta-Jones? Yeah, totally cheesy, right?
So what actually drew me in was the fact that the federal government sets up this investigation team, like an advanced tech-savy modern day ghost busters to investigate the New Orleans Senator's wife killing/suicide. The Senator swears up and down that it's not possible for the wife to have killed herself even though she lost their son just recently and could not get over the death of their child.
So I read the prologue while inthe library and was hooked! And then it became so cheesy and it kind of felt like a high schooler's imagination and writing style, with exclamation points at the end of every sentence or conversation. Also, the whole romance was just kind of thrown in there for the readers. I don't know who Graham was trying to appeal to, but it didn't work for me.
There was a bit of a twist at the end, but after awhile I was getting tired of the characters. And to be honest, I was grateful that she kept identifying the characters as Blake, the bodyguard, because I was not connecting with them in ANY WAY! I would have forgotten that Blake was the bodyguard and not the chauffer. And also, the dual narrative drove me INSANE! It was fine when there were breaks in the middle of the chapters, which were monotonously and unremittingly long, whne you can actually tell the difference of whose head we were looking out of, but in the middle of paragraphs and conversations, floating back and forth between the two, Angela or Jackson? Not cool.
I do have to say that I am kind of creeped out with the ghost story though. That Mad C. Whatever did freak me out and I'm wanting to watch like cartoons right now, because you know those suction cup shelves you can place in your shower to hold all your soaps and shampoos and whatever? Yeah mine just totally fell after I walked by the bathroom after I finished this book and yelled "man this sucked!" Yeah, now I'm officially creeped out by ghosts and all their stories, especially now that my cat, who is BLACK by the way, it just staring at the corner in my den where I am.
I am spooked so I have to give her credit for that, and I was interested in what happened and how Regina ended up being dead. But overall I was more curious about the beginning of the house and how Mad C. Whatever came to be. I wanted to know more about those killings and missing people than what was actually going on with the politics and that crazy cult church and Aryans. Uh...random! I am no way interested in what happens with the team or Jackson and Angela from here on out so I will NOT be picking up the next one in the series, let alone any other book written by Heather Graham.
Whatever. Done with the book and now onto much better, better things!
November 16, 2015
A good story, but certainly not one of Heather's best. I'll keep with the series, though, since I really like Heather Graham.
Part of my antipathy with this book is that it was set in New Orleans. No offense to New Orleans, but I really don't think the town is a tenth of what people say it is. And, I get really tired of books set in New Orleans that read like part of it is written by the NO Tourist Board.
That being said, I really like the characters in this book. She is very good at mixing supernatural themes with mystery and romantic suspense without going overboard.
Part of my antipathy with this book is that it was set in New Orleans. No offense to New Orleans, but I really don't think the town is a tenth of what people say it is. And, I get really tired of books set in New Orleans that read like part of it is written by the NO Tourist Board.
That being said, I really like the characters in this book. She is very good at mixing supernatural themes with mystery and romantic suspense without going overboard.
October 1, 2021
This Paranormal Romance has a touch of mystery. I feel the mystery is equally as strong as the romance plot. As a reader, I feel the protagonists as well as the secondary characters played an equal part in the novel. At times it felt as if the line between primary and secondary characters blurred. The paranormal element felt real and fit in nicely with the mystery. I didn't particularly like how the heroine, Angela Hawkins, had to prove herself when the other characters did not have to. Jackson Crow, the hero and the team leader, was quite the skeptic when it came to believing in ghosts. It seemed after two days Jackson and Angela were in insta-love and in bed together. The attraction between them grew, but there was no resolution. It seemed more like an intensed affair. Still, I found the plot intriguing and the mystery kept me turning the pages. This novel is a good start to the Krewe of Hunters series.
July 22, 2015
Goodness, why have I waited so long to start this series! I have wanted to read it for a long time but just kept putting it off. I am trying to read more of my own books and so I grabbed this one up and I am so glad that I did.
I was already a fan of Heather Graham before as I have read some of her other books and I am now an official Krewe of Hunters lover. :) I went out and bought the next one on ebook same day I finished this one..lol. I heard they were good on audio so I added narration to give it a try!
Krewe of Hunters is a group of investigators that are a little different from your average group. They are a special group headed up by Jackson Crow and they deal with investigations that have a bit of a paranormal hint to them. Jackson’s first assignment is the death of a Senator’s wife in the French quarters of New Orleans. The police think it was suicide but the senator doesn’t believe it. The house they were in was suppose to be haunted and he thinks something scared her.
Jackson meets his crew as they start coming into the house. He first meets Angela actually in the basement with a pick ax cause the thinks there is a body there. Angela is very sensitive to spirits and she gets a lot of visits by the ghost of the house, but there is something more sinister than just ghost there.
When they start investigating they find out a lot of interesting things about those work for the senator and even the senator himself. Nobody is exempt from their investigation.
A romance starts building up between Jackson and Angela and I think they make a cute couple as he is a bit of a skeptic even though he has seen things and she is like a ghost magnet. I really like Jackson, I think he will be a great team leader, he has had a lot of hardships and things happen to him with his other team that to me makes him stronger. Angela is really cool, I thought it was awesome how she read a book on the house and just knew to look for a body and went for it. She is not real afraid of ghost and allows them to lead her where she needs to go.
I can’t wait to get to know more about the team as the series progresses. One thing about being so behind I don’t have to worry about waiting so much between books. I would recommend this series to anyone who loves paranormal romances with a bit of mystery.
I was already a fan of Heather Graham before as I have read some of her other books and I am now an official Krewe of Hunters lover. :) I went out and bought the next one on ebook same day I finished this one..lol. I heard they were good on audio so I added narration to give it a try!
Krewe of Hunters is a group of investigators that are a little different from your average group. They are a special group headed up by Jackson Crow and they deal with investigations that have a bit of a paranormal hint to them. Jackson’s first assignment is the death of a Senator’s wife in the French quarters of New Orleans. The police think it was suicide but the senator doesn’t believe it. The house they were in was suppose to be haunted and he thinks something scared her.
Jackson meets his crew as they start coming into the house. He first meets Angela actually in the basement with a pick ax cause the thinks there is a body there. Angela is very sensitive to spirits and she gets a lot of visits by the ghost of the house, but there is something more sinister than just ghost there.
When they start investigating they find out a lot of interesting things about those work for the senator and even the senator himself. Nobody is exempt from their investigation.
A romance starts building up between Jackson and Angela and I think they make a cute couple as he is a bit of a skeptic even though he has seen things and she is like a ghost magnet. I really like Jackson, I think he will be a great team leader, he has had a lot of hardships and things happen to him with his other team that to me makes him stronger. Angela is really cool, I thought it was awesome how she read a book on the house and just knew to look for a body and went for it. She is not real afraid of ghost and allows them to lead her where she needs to go.
I can’t wait to get to know more about the team as the series progresses. One thing about being so behind I don’t have to worry about waiting so much between books. I would recommend this series to anyone who loves paranormal romances with a bit of mystery.
August 7, 2019
I couldn't put this down, honestly. I spent a whole evening after work sitting and reading with very little regard for any other adulting I should've been doing. I was pulled in by the mystery, the human and ghostly aspects of it. I also am weak for stories about strangers with very specific skills who come together to form a team/found family. I liked what I got to see of all of the team members.
My hang-ups: the exposition and character introductions at the beginning were super clunky. Then, we kept flip flopping on who believed in ghosts or not? It felt like we were going over and over the same information, but with not enough attention to continuity. I enjoyed all the different aspects of the mystery, but in the end, the resolution wasn't clean enough for my tastes. It felt clunky at the end, too.
The romance was fine! There wasn't anything super special about it, but it was another aspect that kept this moving quickly and extra binge-y.
There are only *checks* 27 more books in the series...
February 6, 2017
I was surprised to find I had a copy of this book when I saw that one of my groups was going to do a group read on it, so I hurriedly squeezed it into my schedule. While I am not much of a Paranormal Romance reader these days, there was enough of a suspense angle to keep me interested in it.
However, I did find some of the book unbelievable. The group meshed together too quickly for me to easily believe it, and likewise Angela and Jackson's relationship moved forward too quickly to be believed. There was also conflicting actions that served to confuse me even more. For example, the group meshes quickly, and yet they're always wanting to cut Jackson out of things, even though he's the de facto leader of the group.
While I didn't care much for the characterization in the book, I did really enjoy the mystery/suspense angles of it! A bit of it reminded me of an episode of Castle and I was left guessing on some aspects of the mystery right up until the end. However, the ending came about very abruptly, and we're not really privy to what brought it all about, just a bunch of hunches and circumstantial evidence. That part of the book was a bit of a let down!
All things considered, I'm interested enough to continue the series for now. Here's hoping things only improve from here!
However, I did find some of the book unbelievable. The group meshed together too quickly for me to easily believe it, and likewise Angela and Jackson's relationship moved forward too quickly to be believed. There was also conflicting actions that served to confuse me even more. For example, the group meshes quickly, and yet they're always wanting to cut Jackson out of things, even though he's the de facto leader of the group.
While I didn't care much for the characterization in the book, I did really enjoy the mystery/suspense angles of it! A bit of it reminded me of an episode of Castle and I was left guessing on some aspects of the mystery right up until the end. However, the ending came about very abruptly, and we're not really privy to what brought it all about, just a bunch of hunches and circumstantial evidence. That part of the book was a bit of a let down!
All things considered, I'm interested enough to continue the series for now. Here's hoping things only improve from here!
August 11, 2016
When I got this home from the library, I noticed that it's published by a division of Harlequin. Oh dear... I read the blurb and was all "Huh. Secret government agency hunting ghosts. Could be interesting." The minute I saw who the publisher was, my estimations went downhill.
But it wasn't as bad as I expected. Sure, there was the obligatory "I've only known you 24 hours but I feel like we're soulmates, let's boff" side to it, which did very little to advance the plot. Also, there's not enough money on the entire planet to convince me to stay in a house where a serial killer lived and killed a whole lot of his victims. So, you know, kudos to the characters for staying in a bad juju house...
At the end of the day, it was a crime novel - complete with cult-y church and white supremacists - with some ghost-y stuff thrown in for good measure, even though it had nothing to do with the murder that was supposedly caused by ghosts. Oh well. It kept me entertained for a day, what more can you ask for?!
But it wasn't as bad as I expected. Sure, there was the obligatory "I've only known you 24 hours but I feel like we're soulmates, let's boff" side to it, which did very little to advance the plot. Also, there's not enough money on the entire planet to convince me to stay in a house where a serial killer lived and killed a whole lot of his victims. So, you know, kudos to the characters for staying in a bad juju house...
At the end of the day, it was a crime novel - complete with cult-y church and white supremacists - with some ghost-y stuff thrown in for good measure, even though it had nothing to do with the murder that was supposedly caused by ghosts. Oh well. It kept me entertained for a day, what more can you ask for?!
April 6, 2023
Surprisingly good:
I love it when a book pleasantly surprises and this book did it. I enjoyed all the characters in the team of Krewe Hunters and also enjoyed the mystery and how the author brought it all together in the end. I wasn’t sure what to expect from this one and I am glad the author focused on both the paranormal and human side of the world are team gets involved in.
The mystery is great and had plenty twists along the way to keep the listener wondering just how convoluted and tied together all the characters are. I loved the diversity of the team members and they each brought something special into the story.
My one complaint was I wanted to learn my about each member of the team and this book was mainly focused on Jackson and Angela. I am hoping to learn more about each team member as the series continues.
The narrator was really good and I was excited to get back to the story each time. Look forward to the next book in the series.
I love it when a book pleasantly surprises and this book did it. I enjoyed all the characters in the team of Krewe Hunters and also enjoyed the mystery and how the author brought it all together in the end. I wasn’t sure what to expect from this one and I am glad the author focused on both the paranormal and human side of the world are team gets involved in.
The mystery is great and had plenty twists along the way to keep the listener wondering just how convoluted and tied together all the characters are. I loved the diversity of the team members and they each brought something special into the story.
My one complaint was I wanted to learn my about each member of the team and this book was mainly focused on Jackson and Angela. I am hoping to learn more about each team member as the series continues.
The narrator was really good and I was excited to get back to the story each time. Look forward to the next book in the series.
February 4, 2017
3.5 Stars rounded up...
I enjoyed this first book in the Krewe of Hunters Series. I did think the first part of the book which introduced the team and the current case was a bit slow and plodding and at first I had my doubts if I would enjoyed it.
It picked up steam more around the half way point and I started to get pulled into the plot and the characters. The team itself looks to be a good set of characters although the only ones you really get to know are the team leader, Jackson and Angela who he develops an insta-relationship with. On this team it's OK for team members to mix business and pleasure which I'm not overly thrilled with.
The plot of how the senator's wive died was a good one introducing both a paranormal aspect and real live suspects. It has a nice mix of real criminals and the ghost paranormal element.
I will continue to read more books in this series.
I enjoyed this first book in the Krewe of Hunters Series. I did think the first part of the book which introduced the team and the current case was a bit slow and plodding and at first I had my doubts if I would enjoyed it.
It picked up steam more around the half way point and I started to get pulled into the plot and the characters. The team itself looks to be a good set of characters although the only ones you really get to know are the team leader, Jackson and Angela who he develops an insta-relationship with. On this team it's OK for team members to mix business and pleasure which I'm not overly thrilled with.
The plot of how the senator's wive died was a good one introducing both a paranormal aspect and real live suspects. It has a nice mix of real criminals and the ghost paranormal element.
I will continue to read more books in this series.
January 18, 2012
I hate to not like a piece of art, whether it be a book, a painting, or music. But sometimes, the art just doesn't touch me. Or worse, the piece will feel contrived, or mundane, or even feel like the artist didn't put a lot of effort into it.
I'm not going to blame Heather Graham of not putting effort into this book, but I will say that it didn't really ever grab me. From the start we get some interesting characters, but sadly, the more we learn about them the less interesting they become.
We have our main protagonists Jackson Crow who's part Scottish and part Native American (Cheyenne), which struck me as a great combo for a paranormal stories main character, the other is our heroine psychic Angela Hawkins, who has a painful and traumatic past, not due to one awful event, but two!
Then, she throws in an interesting murder mystery and a handful of secondary characters who are also interesting.
Unfortunately, that's about where my interest pittered out. The characters are just original coverings on stereotypes, and the ones who seem to not be stereotypes aren't explored very much.
The story switches tunes quickly from paranormal investigation into romance with a side of murder and politics. The paranormal is almost an afterthought. Or at least that's how I felt.
The ghosts aren't ever explained and the story could have gotten to its conclusion just fine without them.
Jackson and Angela's relationship is the forefront of the story, and it too seems like dimestore harlequin quality (again, in my humble opinion.)
In closing, I think I disliked this book because I was expecting something much different. But I think if I'd known what to expect I wouldn't have read it either.
If you want a paranormal murder romance, I'd go ahead and say this book is probably what you're looking for. Though it could have been a little more original, it wasn't too bad.
I'm not going to blame Heather Graham of not putting effort into this book, but I will say that it didn't really ever grab me. From the start we get some interesting characters, but sadly, the more we learn about them the less interesting they become.
We have our main protagonists Jackson Crow who's part Scottish and part Native American (Cheyenne), which struck me as a great combo for a paranormal stories main character, the other is our heroine psychic Angela Hawkins, who has a painful and traumatic past, not due to one awful event, but two!
Then, she throws in an interesting murder mystery and a handful of secondary characters who are also interesting.
Unfortunately, that's about where my interest pittered out. The characters are just original coverings on stereotypes, and the ones who seem to not be stereotypes aren't explored very much.
The story switches tunes quickly from paranormal investigation into romance with a side of murder and politics. The paranormal is almost an afterthought. Or at least that's how I felt.
The ghosts aren't ever explained and the story could have gotten to its conclusion just fine without them.
Jackson and Angela's relationship is the forefront of the story, and it too seems like dimestore harlequin quality (again, in my humble opinion.)
In closing, I think I disliked this book because I was expecting something much different. But I think if I'd known what to expect I wouldn't have read it either.
If you want a paranormal murder romance, I'd go ahead and say this book is probably what you're looking for. Though it could have been a little more original, it wasn't too bad.
November 2, 2011
I read this book but because I had previously read Heather Graham's "Flynn Brothers Triolgy" A series that I truly enjoyed. (Until the very end of the last book. Where it appeared to me that Ms. Graham smoked a fat one and wrote the ending. Not a true story... just a theory.) That part aside, it was fun to read.
Te plot was not interesting at all. The characters are constantly over explaining everything. And the ending was just really terrible.
When I was reading this book, I swear with my right hand to the gods, I was waiting for one of the main characters to adopt a dog that said "SCOOBIE-DOOBIE-DOO!!!"
No really, it was a book version of the Cartoon. Instead of being "The Scoobies", they are "THE-KREW-OF-HUNTERS". P-P-P-Please! I don't know what was worse, the lame plot, the non scary g-g-g-ghosts or the fact I was waiting for someone to say "ZIONKS" when something bad happened!
So, now I have committed myself to this series, I am hoping that it flies by. Somehow, I don't think I am going to be that lucky though.
Maybe in the second book the main characters get the mystery van. Does anyone know?
Te plot was not interesting at all. The characters are constantly over explaining everything. And the ending was just really terrible.
When I was reading this book, I swear with my right hand to the gods, I was waiting for one of the main characters to adopt a dog that said "SCOOBIE-DOOBIE-DOO!!!"
No really, it was a book version of the Cartoon. Instead of being "The Scoobies", they are "THE-KREW-OF-HUNTERS". P-P-P-Please! I don't know what was worse, the lame plot, the non scary g-g-g-ghosts or the fact I was waiting for someone to say "ZIONKS" when something bad happened!
So, now I have committed myself to this series, I am hoping that it flies by. Somehow, I don't think I am going to be that lucky though.
Maybe in the second book the main characters get the mystery van. Does anyone know?
January 2, 2019
I got this one through the Audible Romance package. It's one of the reasons I wanted to do the trial. I bought several of these on CD when audiobooks.com sold a bunch at $3-6, earlier this year. I decided I wanted to read this series. Risky when I hadn't listened to any before buying.
But most of the later ones are Luke Daniels narrating so that was a big plus. This was a different narrator who was ok. His female voices were a bit strange. He did do better with the NOLA accents.
But most of the later ones are Luke Daniels narrating so that was a big plus. This was a different narrator who was ok. His female voices were a bit strange. He did do better with the NOLA accents.
January 31, 2022
Enjoyable! I liked the characters and thought the mystery was interesting. I was not a big fan of the narrator though. His attempts at female voices and accents really threw me off and it just sounded weird.
December 1, 2022
2.5 , It was good! I knocked off stars just cause of the story just being slow and their were aspects of the book that i wish were more elaborated on. and the six main characters names were jackson, jake, will, whitney, jenna, angela, what a boring set of names, jackson and jake were too close of names that i couldn’t differentiate them sometimes but also i might just be stupid. and two of the main characters were in bed with eachother after knowing eachother for less that 48 hours and were fully convinced they were in love with eachother by the end of the book. also took an extra star off cause the word “buttock” was mentioned. 2011 🫥🫥🫥🫥
February 2, 2017
This was an interesting paranormal romance/murder mystery about the unsolved murder of a Senator's wife. I've always found New Orleans a fabulous setting for mysteries and especially stories containing supernatural elements. Unfortunately, I found the execution of Phantom Evil to be rather sloppy and difficult to follow.
There were certain aspects of the book that I enjoyed, such as Angela's ability to speak with the ghosts and their willingness to aide her in the investigation. I just felt like the plot was rushed and that I didn't really get to know the characters as well as I wanted to know them. The ending was very exciting, but an epilogue might have done wonders for cleaning up some of the plot holes and overall rushed feeling of the story.
It is worth the time to read (otherwise it would be in my 2 star territory) and I do plan to move on with the series. I've found that many amazing series start off with a book that doesn't exactly reach out and grab my attention. Perhaps Heart of Evil will be more to my liking!
There were certain aspects of the book that I enjoyed, such as Angela's ability to speak with the ghosts and their willingness to aide her in the investigation. I just felt like the plot was rushed and that I didn't really get to know the characters as well as I wanted to know them. The ending was very exciting, but an epilogue might have done wonders for cleaning up some of the plot holes and overall rushed feeling of the story.
It is worth the time to read (otherwise it would be in my 2 star territory) and I do plan to move on with the series. I've found that many amazing series start off with a book that doesn't exactly reach out and grab my attention. Perhaps Heart of Evil will be more to my liking!
October 10, 2025
Phantom Evil by Heather Graham is the first book in the Krewe of Hunters series. FBI agent Jackson Crow is assigned to lead a team of assorted experts to investigate paranormal related crimes and their first assignment is to investigate the death of a senator's wife in a fall from a balcony in an allegedly haunted mansion in New Orleans. An interesting mystery blending the supernatural with manmade exploitation. I enjoyed getting to know this quirky team all with different talents, and it was interesting learning a little about voodoo and the paranormal. A fascinating and spooky mystery.
October 21, 2018
This is the 3rd book I read by this author. While it was not a bad read, the romance in all three takes too much of a backseat to everything else. I like the romance to be at least equal to the suspense storyline, and that doesn't happen in her books. The two main characters barely even spend any page time together.
I tried three different books because this author is so popular, but she's just not for me.
I tried three different books because this author is so popular, but she's just not for me.
March 7, 2017
3.5**
A little romance, a little mystery, a lot of plot twist. I like it...
A little romance, a little mystery, a lot of plot twist. I like it...
April 5, 2017
3.5 stars
It could have been much better it was just messy. It needed a lot of editing!
It could have been much better it was just messy. It needed a lot of editing!
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