Monday, January 5, 2015

A Barricade in Hell~Jaime Lee Moyer | Review

Title: A Barricade in Hell (Delia Martin #2)
Author: Jaime Lee Moyer
Genre: Historical/Paranormal
Length: 331 Pages
Publication: June 2014
My Rating: 4/5 Stars












Synopsis
Delia is living a happy life with her husband police Captain Gabriel Ryan. Delia and Gabe have known their share of heartache in their lives and their short marriage has had its share of ups and downs. When two murder investigations set Gabe and his partner Jack on edge they call in Isadora and Delia. The two women can communicate with spirits and it looks like they might be their best chance of catching the murderer before it's too late. Then more bodies begin washing up at a local plant on the coast and everything seems connected. When the ghost of a young girl starts haunting Gabe, Delia is sure it's all connected. And the spirits of two of the dead men have gone missing. These weren't just murders, but ritualistic sacrifices.

Review
It's been a while since I read the first Delia Martin novel, but I was able to catch up on everything pretty quickly. I can't say which of the novels I enjoy most, since I haven't read the first one in over a year. I did find this one very interesting. 

The paranormal aspect of these novels is always an interesting touch. Delia's connection with ghosts paired with Gabe's position as a police Captain always has an interesting story. In this novel Delia is working more closely with Dora (Isadora) as her apprentice in the spirit realms and their friendship is always nice to see. 

The novel is set in the early 1900s, around 1917 in San Francisco. The historic aspect, paired with the paranormal portions makes for a very interesting read.

One of the things I love most about these novels is the relationships. Delia and Gabe have a beautiful, solid love that is depicted so marvelously. Their love is not overdone and I never feel that the story surrounding their relationship takes away from the mystery in any way. It was really nice to see the progression of their love from the first novel to this one. 

Delia and Gabe's friendships are also beautiful. Their lasting connection with Jack, Sadie, and Dora are wonderful. All of the young police officers that show up throughout the story are great as well. It's just nice to see a series where the friends work together and not against each other. I feel like so many novels I've read recently have love stories that are riddled with insecurities and miscommunication, so this one is beautiful in it's simplistic devotion to shared loyalties. 

The novel is spit between Delia and Gabe. Delia's portions are told in first person and Gabe's are told in third person. I find the difference to be a nice touch overall. The novel is well written and the characters well developed. It can be slow at times, but I never found myself bored by the story. I will definitely be reading the next novel in the series. 

If you enjoy historical or paranormal novels, give this one a try. I would love to know what you think of the story so let me know if you have read or plan to read this novel. 

Until next time, Friends.

Courtney 

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