Reviewed by Kristin
Just last month I reviewed Displeasure Island by Alice Bell, being totally unaware that it was the second in the series. I
did enjoy it enough to go look to see what else Bell had written, and there it
was: Grave Expectations, the book that introduced Claire, her ghostly
BFF Sophie, and their new pals Alex and Basher. Well, they weren’t exactly
friends at the beginning, but after many misunderstandings and suspicions of
murder (going almost every direction) they finally get to the place where they
might vacation together, such as taking a trip to Displeasure Island….
Claire has been invited to her college friend Figgy’s family
estate to be dinner entertainment. Being a medium who can see ghosts (really!)
isn’t always fun, but at least it’s a way to earn a living. Of course, a family
member turns up dead.
No, not actually at
the séance. (Whew!) But the newly deceased family member contacts Claire before
they fully leave this plane of existence to give her a heads up that there is another relatively fresh ghost hovering
around the library, and it appears that a member of the family had something to
do with that death.
Basher was recently but is no longer a police detective, and
uncle to the newly adult Alex, who is a total delight both in their charity
shop outfits and the fresh outlook they have on the world. Alex and Basher live
away from the ancestral home, to the disappointment of parents and siblings
alike. Basher is a little more hesitant to believe that Sophie even exists and
that Claire can see ghosts, but Alex is enthusiastically on board.
With this being the first in the series, Claire and Sophie’s
characters are developed a little more fully, and I had a few “aha!” moments.
In this debut novel, Claire’s formative ghostly experiences are explored more
in depth, and her crime solving proclivities explained by her obsession with
the television show Murder Profile.
Overall, I really enjoyed both books in the series, and look forward to more
from Alice Bell.
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