When ghost hunters discover the body of a murdered teen inside an abandoned haunted house, Deputy Tempe Crabtree is sent in to investigate. Tempe finds herself drawn into a whirlwind of restless spirits, good and evil, intertwined with the past and the present, and demons and angels at war.
Wow! This may be the best Tempe Crabtree mystery yet.
Lorna Collins brings a group of ghost hunters into the abandoned Wilkinson House and stumbles upon the body of a murdered teen. The body is finally identified as Tucker Philips, a boy whose family recently moved to the area and who was estranged from his best friend, Roland Garcia.
Detective Morrison asks Tempe to investigate Tucker's death, but she is soon caught up in the history of the Wilkinson House, and what role, if any, that may have played in the boy's death. Tempe's mystical connection to the spirit world has always concerned her husband, Pastor Hutch; and now, more than ever before, he finds himself concerned for Tempe's soul.
The Native American elements of this story combined with the restless spirits of the Wilkinson house, and the blending of past and present, make Spirit Shapes an engaging read. While in many ways this is a typical Tempe Crabtree novel, Meredith manages to keep this book fresh and exciting because this story is told in a slightly different way. Usually Tempe is called in to investigate and her focus is on finding the murderer. In Spirit Shapes, the focus is also on the history of the Wilkinson House, so while Tempe is actively talking to Tucker's friends and family, she's also trying to get to the bottom of what might have occurred at the house and whether or not that played a role in Tucker's death. Tempe meets a local historian and she talks to Nick Two John (still one of my favorites) about the house, as she's also spending time at the high school to see how Tucker was getting along before his untimely death.
While the clues led me to believe what was at play here, the book has a phenomenal ending I didn't see coming.
If you enjoy murder mysteries and books with spiritual elements, you'll want to pick up a copy of Spirit Shapes by Marilyn Meredith. Highly recommended.
Paperback: 176 pages
Publisher: Mundania Press LLC (September 24, 2013)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 160659396X
ISBN-13: 978-1606593967
The author sent me a PDF version of this book. This review contains my honest opinions, which I have not been compensated for in any way.
This post first appeared at The Book Connection.
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