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5 stars, angels, Book Review, humor, Katherine Gilbert, magic, paranormal, romance, series, vampires, werewolves, witches
Review of Shadows from Another Life
Teena Jones can see other people’s past lives. Not that she wants to. Teena herself is living a reincarnation. However, because of her skill, the Magical Council wants her to look into their latest case. She has a team of Irregulars to help her, made up of several other supernaturally gifted folks, including William, the ghostly love of her life, who looks really great in a bowler hat.
The case involves a murderer, Nicholas Brown, who is targeting those who he feels wronged him in a previous life and Teena is probably on that list. Actually, it seems like he is the one who wronged Teena, but who can reason with a crazy power-hungry man?
The case takes the team to several interesting locations, including a ride on the Orient Express. It seems they are chasing a man, who in his previous life, had ties to the Nazi’s. And now, Brown wants to try again, bringing back the Nazis take over the world. Are you kidding me?! How did we get to this?
“….for the last decade or so, the masks were off, and any irrational hatred or prejudice was not only acceptable again. It was often valorized and cheered. There were too many attitudes which were similar to those during the rise of the Third Reich lately….” (From Shadows from Another Life by Katherine Gilbert)
If this is not a comment on certain aspects of the world today, I don’t know what is. This is the second book that I have read from this author, and in both, Ms. Gilbert has presented socio-political views that are deftly woven into the story. The story may appear to be a paranormal romp through multiple locations involving a veritable smorgasbord of supernatural beings, but there is a point to all this.
This book is a follow up to Postcards from Another World, with the heroine and hero (Gillian and Nasser) of that story in charge of this investigation. Both Teena and William seem to be unassuming people, content to stay in the background, except when they feel it is important not to be. Most of the team is similar, with very little real leadership needed. The play to their individual strengths and do whatever it takes to complete the task. They exemplify teamwork.
While part of the More in Heaven and Earth series, Shadows from Another Life stands on its own. I liked this book as much as I liked Postcards. The story is mapped out in a similar way. The plot is simple, but takes the reader on many side streets before getting to the final destination and ultimate confrontation. The characters are diverse, including a talking dog, vampire, sorcerer, angel and werewolf. And the romance between Teena and William is sweet! Reader’s who enjoy a good paranormal adventure will appreciate this story and probably the entire series.
Through StoryOrigin, the author provided a copy of this book. My review is my honest opinion.
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About Shadows from Another Life by Katherine Gilbert
Teena Jones has always known about being murdered in her past life. That’s no biggie. But when she falls in love with a revenant, things get complicated. Still, can’t a girl break up with the undead man she loves for reasons even she doesn’t understand without the Magical Council sticking their noses in? If only.
The Hon. William Ambrose Deighton was the younger son of a minor baron a century or so ago, and nothing in that lifetime prepared him for the afterlife he’s living. Or for Teena, who–despite the fact that they’re perfect for each other–won’t let him love her.
But suddenly the Council comes calling. It seems Teena’s murderer has been reincarnated and is leaving behind bodies again–including Teena’s, if she doesn’t look out. Together with the Council’s Outer Banks Irregulars–which include a psychic, a sorcerer, a dog-shaped magical parolee, a revenant who dreams of the circus, and a drag queen vampire–they need to figure out why, and how to stop him.
Still, as they race across Europe, through stately homes, stone cairns, Parisian cemeteries, and ancient Venice–not to mention a ride on the Orient Express–the case becomes much more complex. It seems this killer has accomplices from his former life, and, this time, the changes they plot will drag the world into a cruel and heartless past from which it might never escape. Can the paranormal world’s weirdest (and occasionally entirely unprepared) detectives find a way to stop them?
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