lyssmaurer 's review for:

Restless Spirits by Jordan L. Hawk

4.0

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I'd give this book about a 3.5. I really had high hopes for it starting out because I was looking for something similar to the Magpie Lord trilogy, and this definitely delivered in terms of paranormal elements (less magic, more ghosts) and a historical setting. I loved the setting most of all in this book. The house was very eerie and contributed to a feeling of entrapment by the malevolent spirits within. Hawk also used the weather to enhance the setting and that feeling of entrapment. The storyline incorporating the ghosts was more interesting to me than the romance, and I found myself genuinely scared a good few times. The descriptions and such were also very well-done, and I loved the characterization. I also loved the chemistry between the two romantic leads...up until the first full-fledged sex scene. This fell flat for me. I generally think in terms of Dom/sub or Top/bottom, so I usually expect a certain character to top or take charge, at least most of the time, and I expect it to make sense when taking into account the flirtations up to the that point. I wasn't buying the choice of positions for these two, and the chemistry just about died for me after that. I'll avoid saying anything too spoilery about it though. As a result, I probably won't pick up the sequel.