Friday 14 February 2014

A Reason to Believe by Diana Copland

From the blurb:

Detective Matthew Bennett doesn't believe in ghosts. So when the spirit of a murdered child leads him to her body, he's shaken to the core--and taken off the case. Unable to explain his vision, or to let go of the investigation, Matthew turns to renowned medium Kiernan Fitzpatrick. Though he has doubts about Kiernan's claims to communicate with the dead, Matt is nevertheless drawn to the handsome psychic, who awakens feelings he thought were long-buried.

Haunted by the lingering spirit of the little girl, Kiernan is compelled to aid in the search for her killer. The chance to get closer to the enigmatic Matt is an unexpected bonus. Although Kiernan's been betrayed by people who turned out to be more interested in his fame than in himself, with Matt he's willing to risk his heart. As the two men grow closer, Kiernan helps Matt rediscover that life offers no guarantees--but love offers a reason to believe...

Review:

From the opening chapters, I was hooked.  I downloaded the audiobook for just before going to bed.  The scenes with the ghost of the little girl were absolutely chilling.  You've been warned.

Matt Bennett considers himself a rational man who doesn't believe in ghosts.  So when a chilling vision of the dead child leads him to find her body, he is thrown for a loop.  He admits to his less than welcoming superior what he saw.  His superior is a homophobic arsehat and uses what Matt saw as an excuse to put Matt on leave.  

Matt's sister in law and best friend Sheila takes him to see a psychic medium - Kiernan Fitzpatrick.  Matt is highly dubious about the whole thing.  However, it soon becomes clear that Kiernan Fitzpatrick is far from a hack, he does actually speak to and see the dead.

Kiernan is not what you would expect a psychic medium to be.  He is impish, childish, and funny.  In fact, he is so decidedly not the stereotype that it catches Matt entirely off guard.  The novel tracks their attempts to uncover who murdered the little girl.  Along the way, they explore what's going on between them.

I felt Matt's character could have been a little more interesting.  But Kiernan definitely balances out some of Matt's bland, stoic nature.

The romance didn't feel forced, it was paced really well despite the novel only taking place over a short time - about a week.

The female characters are also fab.  At first I didn't think I would like Sheila, but she soon grew on me and I ended up liking her very much.  Kiernan's sister Aiden is also really cool.

I read a lot of romance books that are predominately white, but this one felt especially so.  A bit more diversity in the characters would have been welcome.

Overall, A Reason to Believe is a great paranormal mystery with a solid m/m romance.  

More Information:

Title: A Reason to Believe
Author: Diana Copland
Genre: Paranormal/Romance
Length: Novel (80k)
Publisher: Carina Press
Publishing Date: 22 Oct. 2012
Type: m/m

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