Stevie‘s review of Necromantia by Sheri Lewis Wohl
Lesbian Paranormal Romance published by Bold Strokes Books 12 Apr 16
I recently read and enjoyed the sequel to this book, in spite of my reservations about one particular storytelling device it employed. Keen to see more of the setting and scenery, I went out and bought myself a copy of this one, hoping that we’d get less of the antagonist’s point of view and at least as much, if not more, of the work of the K9 search and rescue team and their handlers than was described in the first book. In some respects my hunch paid off, but not as well as I might have hoped. The book delivered two complex and fascinating heroines, along with their various friends and families, not to mention an adorable search dog, but we also got a really annoying villain, whose point-of-view chapters began to grate on me very quickly.
And it’s the antagonist we meet first in the prologue, which also disappointed me. However, we’re soon into the first chapter, in which we meet dog handler Circe Latham and her canine companion Zelda. Zelda is a Human Remains Detector dog, and Circe has been called out with her to search for a possible victim of violence. Not long into the search, the ghost of the dead woman appears to Circe, and Zelda also quickly finds the scent of the body. The pair find two more – potentially victims of the same killer – before the search is over, and it’s then that we meet our second heroine.
Detective Diana Erni and her best cop buddy are assigned the case of the three dead women, and the attraction between the two women is pretty instantaneous, helped along by the fact that Zelda also likes Diana. And Diana has the perfect excuse to visit Circe at home soon after, to interview her in relation to the case. With her cop buddy, of course, but there’s a love interest for him too in the form of Circe’’s housemate. It’s just a shame that his ex-girlfriend seems to be stalking him in ever more bizarre ways.
Soon more victims of the same killer are appearing to Circe, and not just following tip-offs from the police or public, and Diana is there at every case, trying to piece together just what sort of serial killer they have on their doorstep. We know some of what the killer is thinking, of course, and there are hints that they may be involved in some of the other odd goings on in the area – those not due to the stalker ex, anyway.
As the bodies mount up, it becomes apparent that someone has it in for both Diana and Circe, and they are forced to hole up together. Circe has to decide whether there’s potential for a relationship with Diana, and, if so, whether she will trust her new companion with her big secret.
There were some parts of this book I really liked, mostly around the search dogs and the team’s procedures. On the other hand, we once again got too much information from the antagonist’s point of view and I was able to work out their big secret quite early in the book. There was also a little too much focus on the secondary heterosexual relationship and not quite enough about our two central protagonists and the development of their relationship. All in all, rather disappointing.
Grade: C
Summary:
Circe Latham’s secret has always set her apart from everyone, but these days she uses it to bring home those whose lives are stolen too soon. Alongside her search dog, Zelda, she is able to make a difference, and the chance to work a case with Deputy Sheriff Diana Erni is an exciting challenge. Until the case takes a deadly turn and her own life hangs in the balance. In order to save herself, Circe must do the one thing she swore never to do again: share her secret. Will her trust in Diana be strong enough to save her life or will she too fall victim to a killer?
Read an excerpt.
Other books in this series:
