Review: THE GHOST AND THE GRAVEYARD by Genevieve Jack

Left destitute by an unscrupulous ex-boyfriend, Grateful Knight takes her father up on his offer to live rent-free in a house he hasn't been able to sell. Desperate to make a new start, Grateful tries to overlook the property’s less desirable features, like the graveyard that stretches to her back door. On the bright side, the unbelievably gorgeous cemetery caretaker, Rick, is dead set on helping her feel at home. She vows to take things slow, considering her recent disastrous relationship, but is baffled when she literally can’t keep her hands off of him.

When things in Grateful’s house start moving on their own, another man enters her life—a sexy ghost with a dark secret. Magical forces are at work in the tiny town of Red Grove and they're converging on Grateful. Solving this ghostly mystery won’t be easy and with the caretaker becoming increasingly jealous of her spectral relationship, Grateful will be forced to choose between the ghost and the graveyard.

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This review was originally posted at Novel Reflections as part of a book tour.

When Grateful Knight's ex-boyfriend steals all her money, her father allows her to live cheaply in an empty house he's having trouble selling. Unfortunately, the house is located in Red Grove, where the number of headstones in the cemetery far outnumber the people living in the tiny town. And, that cemetery happens to be in the backyard of Grateful's new rental. 

Maybe it's the view of the graveyard that's keeping the house from selling? Or the sexy ghost living in the attic? Or the swoon-worthy cemetery caretaker harboring some deep, dark secrets? Whatever it is, Grateful is certain that her ending up in Red Grove when it's on the verge of a magical meltdown is no coincidence.  

It's been a while since I've read a paranormal romance, and I'd forgotten how steamy they can be. THE GHOST AND THE GRAVEYARD was very steamy! Whew. We have Grateful, a Buffy the Vampire Slayer-in-training heroine, caught in a lusty love triangle with Rick the caretaker and Logan the ghost.

I don't think the plot of this book was very strong, because it was mainly the development of the love triangle at the same time Grateful was realizing her magical connection to Red Grove. I would have liked to see more character and story development before the insta-lust started.

However, this is the first book in The Monk's Hill Witch series, and I do think it laid a good foundation for future books. Readers learn the history of the cemetery and what exactly Rick is protecting behinds its iron gates. We get a taste of Grateful's new powers and the challenges she will face in the days ahead. I also enjoyed the surprising little twist at the end.

Something I really liked about the book was the heroine's witty voice! She had many clever quips that had me snickering. In addition to being a kick-butt heroine, she was also very likable. 

THE GHOST AND THE GRAVEYARD is a promising start to this new paranormal romance series. 3-stars!