A touch psychic determined to find the truth.
Welcome!
I’m a pretty big fan of the ‘psychic’ trope.
Ghosts, visions, all kinds of delightfully spooky creepy crawlies? I love it.
This is what drew me to Message in the Bones and, while it wasn’t a happy dance kind of read, it wasn’t half bad either.
A tragic past.
A gift from God.
A brother and sister at odds.
If you’re looking for a quick, character driven mystery that can easily be devoured.. this may be just what you’re looking for.
Enjoy!
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Message in the Bones by Dawn Merriman
Publication date: October 1, 2019
Pages: 237
Genre: Suspense, Murder Mystery, Thriller
Book 1 of 7: Messages of Murder
First line: Freak is a nasty word.
Characters: Believable. Flawed.
Storyline: Interesting but not absorbing.
Pace: Steady.
Writing: Intelligent. Well done.
Cover: 3.5/5
POVs
Gabby, Dustin, Lucas, The Killer
Three and a Half Stars ⭐⭐⭐½
Since the night her father was killed, and she herself almost died, Gabby has had a gift. When she touches things, and people, she gets visions. Bullied, judged, and avoided because of it, Gabby’s led a lonely life.
Then Dustin, her older brother and the head detective of the local police, stumbles upon the skeletal remains of a murdered woman and Dustin’s partner, Lucas, calls on her for assistance.. But what she sees is darker than anyone expected, and now Gabby’s made herself a target to the one person who would believe her—the killer.
“What’s the point in being crazy if you can’t act crazy once in a while?”
I feel very little is actually suspenseful or compelling about this book. It seemed flat. Not boring.. but I wasn’t able to get absorbed in the story. Fortunately, it’s a quick enough read.
The relationship dynamics between characters, mostly Gabby and her brother, are interesting enough. A lot of drama there. Dustin comes off as an ass (Wth is his problem anyway?) and Gabby is, understandably, all hurt feelings. Lucas, Dustin’s partner and best friend, is kind and protective of Gabby but they dance around their feelings for one another. And Grandma Dot is just awesome, she reminds me of my own gran.
Even the psychic bit is intriguing.. Gabby considers her visions to be messages from God and relies on Him to guide her.
I found her faith refreshing, especially since we so rarely see it these days, it added a somewhat unique twist on the typical ‘died and came back with psychic powers’ bit.
There is a little bit of romance but it’s subtle and doesn’t interfere with the story—just how I like it.
Overall.. I feel like the storyline and characters had so much more to give, which is probably due to it being the first in a series, but I’m not sure I’m all that interested in pursuing this series further.
It wasn’t bad, it just wasn’t for me.
Fair warning: There’s a total cliffhanger ending.. likely intended to send you running for book two so, yeah, enjoy!
Well, that’s all for now.
Thank you for stopping by and checking out this review, I hope it was helpful!
Do you believe in the paranormal?
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I do read paranormal fiction, but this book doesn’t appeal to me as much as some others.
I don’t blame you, I could list a couple dozen that are far more exciting, I just needed a quick read in between adulting and this sounded like it had promise.
Hopefully you’re having better luck. 😅
Sounds like a good read, Sheri, and I like that it’s light on the romance. A cliff-hanger ending is tricky though. Thanks for sharing your thoughts! 🙂
It wasn’t bad. I was just expecting more.. everything. 😅
At least you don’t have to wait for the next book in the series to come out.. that’s when the cliffhangers really get you.
And thank you! How are you doing?
Doing fine, Sheri. Just busy as always. I just finished a fantasy book “Tuyo.” It was amazing and I had the worst book hangover I’ve had in a long time. I was off kilter for the whole weekend and didn’t know why. Then I realized that it was because I finished the book. As it turns out, it’s a series, but I have other reading I need to do first. If you ever need a recommendation, there it is. 🙂
Glad to hear it.
I did check the book out and it sounds like a great read.. more so because you’re recommending it. I’ll have to see if I can squeeze it in somewhere.. somewhen. 😋😊