In the small town of Carolville, Louisiana, no one knows that Adira Collins inherited mystic powers from her great grandmother. All they know is that she’s beautiful, poised, graceful, and ruthless—especially when it comes to love. And no one knows that more than Leena Williams, who was all set to marry the man of her dreams until Adira swooped into town and stole the man’s heart.
Being left at the altar is bad enough, but Leena and her ex share custody of their son, so she has to see the new Mrs. Collins on a regular basis.
And it burns every time she does.
But soon, Leena starts to suspect that there is more to Adira Collins than meets the eye. And it’s not because she owns some kinky lingerie shop or allegedly insulted the pastor’s wife—it’s the strange way she can make a door close without touching it, or take one look at something and make it drop dead at her feet.
Leena starts digging for answers and soon discovers that, unlike her public persona, Adira’s true nature is somewhere on the other side of grace. She also learns, a little too late, that some secrets are better left buried.
Sometimes you read a blurb for a book and immediately are motivated to immediately read the book. That’s how it was for me and this book. Luckily, the author sent me a copy in exchange for a honest and fair review.
It’s Leena’s wedding day to the love of her life, and father of her son, Johnny. It’s going to be her dream wedding, complete with all her friends, family and a beautiful dress. There’s just one problem and it’s a pretty big one. Johnny isn’t coming, and he’s not coming because he has another girlfriend he would rather be with. Just like that, Leena’s life completely goes off kilter. Of course she doesn’t believe it, but it’s all too true, and when she sees the other woman, she realizes that she could never compete with Adira. She’s beyond beautiful, but there’s something not right about her. Because Leena has Johnny’s son, she has to stay in the new couple’s life-not exactly fun for anyone.
I hesitate to tell any more of the actual story because it might ruin it for the reader. I will say that the Adira was a piece of work, and that work is evil personified. Cruel would be another word I would use. Leena, on the other hand was a good main character, and you feel for her throughout the book. Johnny, I just wanted to hit upside the head for most of the book. Of course there are other good characters and most were all important to the story.
The premise of the story that drew me in was the paranormal aspect, but that aspect only involved one person, and the havoc she brings to Leena’s world. Adira is human, but she is so much more, and in this case that isn’t a good thing. The story takes place in the south, and from what I can tell most of the characters are African American. The reader gets pulled into the southern dialect, culture, and all the characters, both the fun ones, and the not so much fun ones. It took me awhile to get into the book, but when I did I could not put it down. And it didn’t take me that long to get into it, to be honest.
I read so many series that it was refreshing to read a stand alone book for a change. I found it to be well written, true to southern life in a small town, and with a really different paranormal element. That was also very refreshing for a change. The ending however, I am still wondering about, and I wish it had been a bit better explained. This did not hurt the read for me. Well, maybe a little bit.
I would recommend it to adult readers of paranormal books.
The review copy of this title was received from the author in exchange for a fair and honest review.