Hey all! It’s been a while. I was going through a rough time, so I decided to just read for reading’s sake and not worry about reviews. That worked a bit, but of course didn’t fix everything, but I had to come back! Why? Well, because I want you all to commiserate with me.
What the heck did I just read?
The Apparition in the Attic, by Courtney McFarlin is the first book in the Soul Seeker series, a series of cozy mysteries so devoid of any details that I can’t tell you what state it’s in, what part of the US, what time of year it is, or what the main character’s favorite pizza topping is, even though she eats pizza two or three times in this short book.
The concept of the book is simple enough: a woman (I think she’s 33 years old, judging by how she’s had her cat for 30 years, ever since she was 3 years old) can see ghosts. She’s also a stager, which is someone who sets up houses like they’re being lived in so they’re easier to sell. And oftentimes she’s brought in to fix a problem at a house that won’t sell: and that problem is that the house is haunted.
Cool, cool. I’m all for a cozy mystery with a paranormal twist.
But.
It’s like the author thought up her plot, the paces, and wrote a first draft and never fleshed anything out. The thing I love most about cozy mysteries isn’t the mystery. It’s how I can fall into Small Town, USA, be with a person who is quirky or owns a yarn shop or bakes fantastic pies or is the town gossip, and then a mystery falls into their lap and shenanigans ensue.
But the MC, whose name I have already forgotten, has absolutely no personality beyond, “I can see ghosts. Also, I make snap judgments about hot guys based on absolutely nothing but I’m not in the wrong (even according to the guy), he is.” And as far as quirks? She can eat pizza, Mexican food, and burgers and not get sick or be anything larger than a size two. But I don’t even know anything about the burger. What makes it great? Are there sesame seeds on the bun? Does she take off the uncooked onions? C’mon!
Oh, and she has a cat that is older than any cat has a right to be, serves as either a MacGuffin, a Deus Ex Machina, or a super convenient plot device, and is totally a familiar and MC is completely clueless about that. If any detecting needs to be done, Cat Familiar just automatically goes to hidden doorway or misfiled box and meows and growls until the MC takes the a hint. Oh, and at the end, she learns he can talk. At least in the In Between or whatever.
And the love interest? Ugh! Ok he has as much personality as a washing board (and abs to match, I guess). MC is annoyed and misunderstands him and he saves her and hugs her and I guess they’re a thing at the end.
But surely her friends are well-written? Excuse me, what friends? All the people we meet are her parents’ friends, but her parents have moved to Arizona (because it’s warmer, I guess, so that means the novel takes place northward). And each asks her, “How’s your mom? How’s your dad?” And her reply is, “Fine, I guess. Enjoying Arizona.” But her parents are in Arizona! That’s character background! Check that checkbox for fleshing out a character!
But surely I learned something about staging a house? Surely we spent some time there? Well…I know she visited an antiques shop, had a goal to make the place homey, and picked teal curtains.
Yup. That’s it.
But what about the mystery?
What mystery? The real mystery is how there was so little mystery to be solved and so few ghostly encounters to be experienced.
Well, I guess the biggest mystery is how so many reviewers thought this was the best thing ever. I went online after I finished to see if I was alone in my feelings, and yes. I was. Everyone else Loved it with a capital- L.
At least this book helped me fall asleep.
No, I will not be reading the sequels.
Ellie Reads ~ a lot 