Naomi has had a bit of a rough time in life, starting when her sister died at the tender age of 13. Now, Naomi is married to Jason Sanders and the couple have moved to Pacific Cove, a ranch just outside of the town of West Haven. Naomi feels like her life is finally beginning to settle in and happiness is going to be hers. Strange visions of ghosts only she sees are making the happiness impossible and Naomi is going to find hidden secrets of the past have a direct influence on the present. I enjoyed this short story and think the author has a great writing style. I would love to read a longer tale and see what this author has to share.
J.E. Grace's Haunted Visions paints a vivid setting that makes you want to go Pacific Cove. The setting of the book is majestic and beautiful. There was a sense of place in this story that I really enjoyed. Naomi is struggling and the reader joins her in her struggles and gets drawn into the plot when the visions start.
This story reminded me of classic stories like Rebecca, The Uninvited, and The Ghost and Mrs. Muir where the setting plays an integral role. The environment draws you in and you empathize with the character who is inspired by the setting because Naomi is a painter, but also the setting haunts her.
The personal story of Naomi and her ghostly visions wraps up well. The haunting themselves are genuinely creepy. I recommend this book for people who want some elements of suspense mixed with a personal drama in a beautiful setting.
I enjoyed this short story very much. Naomi is a sweet, kind, likable character. Her husband, Jason, maybe is a little less developed but serves his purpose as a supportive presence in Naomi’s life. Their ranch neighbors add a nice, wider range of characters to the story. The setting of the ranch and the little town is beautifully described, and it all had a very homey feel.
Most of the story focuses on Naomi’s internal struggles with death, loss, and coping. I thought the author had a very honest approach to the topic, especially with Naomi openly needing to take medication, and it felt very realistic. How the author represented Naomi’s struggle made you really hope Naomi was going to be okay.
Then there is the ghost story element to the story. It added a different spin to an otherwise western-romance-feeling book. The parts where the ominous ghost confronted Naomi were suspenseful without being overly horrific. The parts with the other ghost trying to get Naomi’s attention were equally suspenseful and added some mystery to the story. (Not to give too much away.) I liked how the author used all this to push Naomi to the edge but then showed her inner strength as she bravely tried to figure it all out.
Overall, this book was very nice. It would be fine for a younger audience, but there’s enough here to keep an adult’s attention for the short time it takes to read it. The writing felt like it could have been crafted a little bit better (a LOT of sentences started with “She”) with more variety in sentence structure to make a more pleasurable read, but the descriptions and dialogue were quite nice.
A well written novel of loss, healing, spirits and love.
Loved the surprise ending.
