Review of The Ghost Hunter's Daughter by Caroline Flarity

Welcome to the review tour for The Ghost Hunter's Daughter by Caroline Flarity! Please check out an excerpt and my review and then follow the tour for even more! Leave comments and questions for the author, too, as you enter the giveaway.

The Ghost Hunter's Daughter

Sixteen-year-old Anna sees things from another world, the spiritual world, a skill that isn’t exactly useful in high school. It’s bad enough that her mother, possessed by a demon, took her own life when Anna was a child, a loss she remains tortured by. Now her father makes his living “clearing” haunted objects, and Anna’s job as his assistant makes her a social misfit. Most kids in her suburban New Jersey town refer to her just as “Goblin Girl.”

Only Freddy and Dor remain loyal friends. But Anna’s so focused on her own problems, she’s missed that her connection with Freddy is moving beyond the friend zone.

As junior year approaches, a rare solar storm lights up the night skies and the citizens of Bloomtown begin to act strangely: Anna’s teachers lash out, her best friends withdraw, and the school bullies go from mean to murderous. When Anna realizes she can harness this evil power, she sets out to save Bloomtown and the only family she has left.

But to do so, she must keep her own increasingly dark urges at bay.

Read an excerpt:

“Want a new nick name?” Sydney asked. “How ‘bout Frankenskank?”

Damn. Anna had spent so much time on her eye makeup that morning that she forgot to cover her scar. Her fists clenched. She was microseconds away from smacking Sydney right in her perfect face. Her palm actually tingled in anticipation of the after-slap burn.

“All dressed up and no place to go,” Lyric sneered, indicating the cleavage exposed by Anna’s scoop neck.

“Except maybe a whorehouse!” Sydney yelled, attracting the attention of everyone in the commons who wasn’t already watching.

One Mississippi, two Mississippi, three Mississippi. Breathe. Anna restrained herself, knowing that in her current state of mind one slap wouldn’t be enough. In fact, while the river raged, she might also decide to go ahead and slam Sydney’s head into one of the metal lockers, perhaps several times. Nausea rolled in Anna’s gut. She was disgusted by the burst of pleasure the violent fantasy brought her. She took her eyes off of Sydney’s smug face and scanned the commons. Was there a portal here, too? There must be, but Bloomtown High wasn’t on Saul’s list.

Anna forced herself to walk away from Sydney and Lyric, ignoring their parting sneers. Was she being paranoid or was everyone in the hallway gawking at her? Anna picked up her pace, her heart dropping into her churning stomach as she passed a blur of scornful faces. Everyone was looking at her, and the worst part—she thought about Craig’s snub that morning—was that she might know why.

Available on Amazon

**My thoughts**

This book definitely dealt with some important YA issues, such as bullying, distorted self image, teen friendships, battles with parents, dealing with high school in general. But the supernatural aspect of the story was definitely much more mature than I am used to seeing in the YA genre. And this is not a bad thing. I actually enjoyed the dark nature of the story and know that I would have loved reading it back in my teen years as well. I'm curious as to whether these characters will return in future stories, armed with the knowledge and maturity that they gained in dealing with the dark forces and demons in this story. Anna especially grew a lot and finally found something worthwhile in herself. I think she is destined to do great things within the family field.

I received a complimentary copy of this book and was not obligated to give a positive review. All opinions are my own.

About Caroline Flarity

Caroline Flarity is a web content producer living in NYC. Her fascination with fringe topics and love of scary movies led her to begin her writing journey penning creepy screenplays. Her debut novel THE GHOST HUNTER'S DAUGHTER started life as a feature script, placing in the finals of the StoryPros Awards and as a semifinalist in Slamdance Film Festival's writing competition. She enjoys pitting her characters against both supernatural and cultural evils.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/CarolineCooney

Author website: www.CarolineFlarity.com

Caroline Flarity will be awarding a $50 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

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