This is the second novel that I read from Simone St. James, and much like The Sundown Motel, this novel was a winner. This novel involves a true crime blogger interviewing a woman acquitted of serial murder forty years ago. The novel bounces back between present day and flashbacking to the events from forty years earlier in a really gripping manner. Despite the blogger being a true crime devote, the supernatural figures very heavily in this novel with the presence of ghosts in the accused’s house.

Writing one good novel could be a fluke, but this novel showed that St. James is talented at the craft of writing. The suspense builds throughout the novel. The tension is high throughout. It’s hard to diagnose why a novel works because it’s often hard to pinpoint why a novel is enjoyable, but the characters, the flow and pace, and the quality of the writing are all quite good. Constructing an enjoyable novel is kind of like a chef mixing various ingredients, and cooking them for a certain time and temperature and coming out with an enjoyable meal at the end. Clearly St. James has this process down quite well. The ending was quite explosive and delivered a satisfying ending. Although I didn’t quite enjoy this one as much as The Sundown Motel, I would recommend reading this.