Reviewed by Sarina
TITLE: A Frost of Cares
AUTHOR: Amy Rae Durreson
PUBLISHER: Dreamspinner Press
LENGTH: 138 pages
RELEASE DATE: January 27, 2016
BLURB:
Military historian Luke Alcott leaps at the chance to live in the seventeenth-century country mansion of Eelmoor Hall, home of the Royal Military School of Medicine, after being offered a job cataloging the school’s archives. Luke believes he chose the perfect place to start a new life and put his broken past behind him. But soon after settling into the old house, he hears strange noises—like footsteps—and he begins to suffer from terrible nightmares.
The only person Luke can turn to for help is the taciturn caretaker, Jay, a veteran of the Afghanistan war who carries an old battle wound. Together they try to understand Eelmoor Hall’s history and decipher what could be causing the haunting. As the weather grows colder and snow dusts the countryside, a child goes missing. Luke needs to deal with his own demons and learn to trust in love again if he hopes to face down the angry spirit and find the missing girl.
REVIEW:
Ten years after his partner walked out and disappeared, Luke Alcott makes the decision to finally move forward with his life. Putting his loft up for sale and taking a job cataloging and packing the library at Eelmoor Hall both seem like steps in the right direction; the attractive caretaker, Jay, is just a bonus. When Luke begins hearing things, however, he thinks its only his imagination but when he wakes up from nightmares injured, he begins to suspect something more. Something isn’t right at Eelmoor Hall and Luke and Jay will need to figure out how to fix it before the Mistletoe Bride isn’t the only ghost walking the halls.
I loved this; I loved this so much I stayed up past when I was originally determined to go to bed just to finish it and I don’t regret it at all. The entire story is told from Luke’s point of view as he recounts the events from his stay at Eelmoor Hall. This actually worked really well and besides getting to know him and Jay through the overall storyline, you get extra tidbits from where Luke goes off on a tangent while attempting to write it all down. Both main characters lived through events that left them scarred in different ways but you get to see how they help each other heal over the course of the book. Jay had such a strength to him but he was also hurt so when he began letting Luke in a bit more at a time, it was really nice to see.
The heart of the book revolves around Eelmoor Hall and something that happened there hundreds of years ago. This is what made me love the book so much. Some books dealing with ghosts go over the top with the paranormal activity but this had just the right amount of spooky and malevolence to keep me engaged and wanting more. I wavered between feeling pity and anger at the ghost, who really was almost a main character in her own right, overlaid with horror at the thought of anyone dying the way she did. At first this seemed like a kind of straight forward book but ended up being more complex by the end of it and I enjoyed every bit of it. This is officially the first book on my best of 2016 list and I highly recommend it!
RATING:
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Thanks for the great review! This book is getting lots of praise. I look forward to reading it.
It really was a great read. 🙂 I’m going to read it again sooner rather than later since I’m still thinking about it.