Ghost of You by Kelly Moran

It's no secret amongst the Phantoms crew that lead investigator Sammy Hanesworth pretty much hates psychologist Cain McClutchen. The tension between them is taut with dislike...and unexpected attraction. Cain knows full well that something about him rubs Sammy the wrong way. But now they're on a terrifying case—with orders from the network to get along or else.

 

Filled with past horrors, the Nebraskan site is more than creepy. And Sammy knows it all too well. It's her hometown and near the place where her mother was killed. As the sinister presence makes itself known, Sammy finds herself turning to the last person she ever expected—Cain. Even as darkness surrounds them, tensions gives way to something bright and unexpectedly intimate. But nothing will prepare them for the evil they are about to face...

 

Title: Ghost of You | Series: Phantoms #3 | Author: Kelly Moran | Publisher: Covet an imprint of Entangled| Release Date: September 21, 2015 | Genre: Paranormal Romance | Source: Publisher | Rating: 3.5

Wow! So, this was a creepy little book.

 

Cain and Sammy work together on Phantoms, a ghost hunting reality television show. They haven’t been playing nice together and even though Cain feels an attraction to Sammy, for some reason Sammy seems to hate the very ground he walks on. Although when their new case, which happens to be in Sammy’s hometown, threatens Sammy, she finds herself growing closer to Cain. Yet if they want to build a relationship, they will need to overcome more than just an evil spirit.

 

First, let me start by saying that this is the third book in this series but it works perfect as a standalone.

 

I liked Cain. He’s been through a lot, lost his parents at a young age, and he’s basically just trying to find a place where he belongs. The poor guy is attracted to Sammy, even though she treats him like crap. A part of me was really wanting him to walk away from her and not look back.

 

Sammy was really hard to like. Like Cain, she’s been through a lot when she was younger but rather than letting people in, she built up a wall to keep them out. Even though Cain was doing everything in his power to look out for her and protect her, she did everything to push him away and ultimately came off as annoying.

 

The chemistry was a bit odd between them. It was there, but Sammy put up such a fight that it fizzled out throughout the first half of the book, spiked in the middle, then went a little flat at the end. If you’re looking for conflict, it abounds in this novel and came from just about every place you could think of. There was inner conflict with the characters, conflict between Sammy and Cain because of his profession, conflict with the ghosties and ghoulies. I mean, I like strong conflict, but this left me a bit frazzled.

 

What I did like was the wicked witty banter between Cain and Sammy. They always had amazing comebacks.

 

Sammy kept her gaze focused ahead when she spoke to Cain. “How do you comb your hair so the horns don’t show?”

 

Antonio tsked. “Sammy.”

 

Cain shook his head. “Don’t mind her. A house just fell on her sister.”

 

The suspense, mystery, and paranormal aspects of this book really had me on the edge of my seat as I pieced together who was haunting the church. Honestly, it was this aspect that kept me reading the book. Although once the who and why became prevalent, it felt a little trite. So the suspense of it was definitely better than the discovery.

 

I did really enjoy the creepiness of it. If you like creepy little ghost stories, I think you’d like the creep factor in this one. Also, if you like the whole ghost hunting thing, you’d probably enjoy this one as the book shows a lot of what goes into a ghost hunt.

 

Overall, this one had potential to be a great read but fell a bit flat. Sammy’s urge to push Cain away was a little too strong, if the author would have toned it down it would have worked out great. I had a great time following the mystery, just wished the conclusion of it would have been a bit different.

 

It was still an enjoyable read but not one of my favorites. Although it did pique my curiosity about the two books that came before this one.