Phantom Evil by Heather Graham

A secret government unit, a group of renegade paranormal investigators... and a murder no one else can crack.

Though haunted by the recent deaths of two teammates, Jackson Crow knows that the living commit the most heinous crimes.

A police officer utilizing her paranormal intuition, Angela Hawkins already has her hands full of mystery and bloodshed.

But one assignment calls to them too strongly to resist. In a historic mansion in New Orleans's French Quarter, a senator's wife falls to her death. Most think she jumped; some say she was pushed. And yet others believe she was beckoned by the ghostly spirits inhabiting the house — once the site of a serial killer's grisly work.

In this seemingly unsolvable case, only one thing is certain: whether supernatural or all too human, crimes of passion will cast Jackson and Angela into danger of losing their lives... and their immortal souls.

Series: Krewe of Hunters #1 | Publisher: Mira |  Genre: Paranormal Romantic Suspense | Source: Purchased  | Rating: 3

I’m going to be honest, I cheated. I started somewhere in the middle of the series then I went back and read the first book and I’m glad that I did. Let me tell you a bit about the book then I’ll explain why I’m glad I didn’t start the series from the beginning.

When the Senator’s wife dies, it’s apparent from the look of terror in her eyes that there was more to it than an accidental fall. Given the mansion’s gruesome past, some are left questioning whether or not a ghost is to blame. Enter Jackson Crow and Angela Hawkins, members of the newly formed Krewe of Hunters, a special unit of the FBI that deals with paranormal situations. As they work the case, it becomes apparent there’s more going on than what they first thought.

This one was a quick read but, at times, I felt as though the book dragged a bit as the Krewe of Hunters unit was being introduced, which is to be expected when it’s the first book in a new series and I didn’t mind that. The mystery and paranormal aspects of the book were fantastic. There’s also a darker aspect to this book.

What drew me out of this book after loving the others were the characters, which completely surprised me as Jackson and Angela are some of my favorite characters in the series. Jackson spent the majority of the plot fighting/avoiding his ability to see and communicate with ghosts while Angela was comfortable in her ability and it made the plot feel bumpy. Jackson also came off as arrogant at times, which is something he’s not in later books.

While this is a romance, the romance does take a backseat to the case and paranormal aspects. It developed quickly and, at times, I found myself searching for the chemistry between Jackson and Angela that’s there in the later books.

I ended up switching back and forth from book to audio trying to find which format I vibed with and I ended up sticking with the physical book. While I do enjoy Jeffrey Cummings, his narration didn’t work for this book.

Overall, this one had a few issues but I do recommend the book and the series does get better as it goes along.