I stumbled across THE HAUNTING OF RACHEL HARROWAY: THE BEGINNINGS on Amazon Kindle for Free and decided it sounded like an interesting ghost story. Rachel Harroway discovers she is gifted with the sight when she and her husband unknowingly buy an old Queen Anne manse where a gruesome murder took place. Twists, ghostly entities, and mystery had me devouring all three books on a lazy Saturday.
by J.S. Donovan
Series: The Haunting of Rachel Harroway #0
Genres: Paranormal
Source: Purchase
Purchase*: Amazon *affiliate
In 1983, a family of four was murdered in their nineteenth century Queen Anne manse. There were no witnesses, no real investigation, and no survivors.
Over thirty years later, the house is suddenly back on the market. Ready to settle down, a young married couple moves from New York City to their dream home in the quiet town of Highlands, North Carolina. However, as past secrets come to light and unpredictable strangers violate their privacy, the couple’s hope for a fresh start twists into the fuel for their darkest nightmares
In this first story, Rachel and her husband Brett purchase an old Queen Anne manse in the Highlands, North Carolina. Strange things begin to occur, from doors opening to moving objects. We learn about Rachel’s mother who is institutionalized and watch Rachel come unraveled as something in the house wants her attention. Donovan does an excellent job of building suspense and setting up events that will ultimately change Rachel’s life. Dark, suspenseful the beginnings delivered from the murder-mystery to the paranormal woo-woo. The tale wraps up nicely as Rachel solves the case. We are given a firm direction for the overall theme of the series. This book is Perma-free on Amazon and available from audible.
In book one of THE HAUNTING OF RACHEL HARROWAY, Rachel has embraced her gift and now works for the local police department as a detective. Together with Jenson Peak, her partner they have a proven track record for solving cases. All thanks in part to Rachel’s gift. Jenson is an atheist but has learned to trust Rachel and her insight. Donovan’s world-building, particularly about Rachel’s gift was well developed and hooked me. Rachel experiences different levels of her gift from being marked to suffering the victim’s final moments. It was chilling and felt surreal.
We have a forty-year-old case involving multiple teenage girls who went missing and are discovered by a hiker. I found myself completely caught up from the “orphans” to the suspects. The pacing increased as we moved to a suspenseful climax. Things aren’t completely resolved. Donovan leaves us in such a way, that’ll you will want to dive into book two. Available on KU, eBook, and Audio.
We dive right back in and soon learn that the case from the first book isn’t completely over. To make matters worse, the “orphaned” are making demands, and some are deadly. As Rachel and Jenson investigate, new murders and victims develop. Donovan once again pulled me in as I worried about the ghostly threat against Rachel.
I thought the case was smart, and the story offered plenty of twists and turns. I did figure out a few things early on, but still fretted over how it would all work out. The tension built as a clear suspect developed thanks in part to Rachel’s gift. A threat forces her into an uncomfortable situation, and I loved that her partner backed her up.
The story wrapped up nicely and the paranormal woo-woo satisfied my paranormal fix. Currently, this is the last book, but I am hoping we see more of Rachel Fans of Supernatural, X-Files and Cozy Paranormal mysteries will enjoy this series. This book is available on KU, eBook, and audio.
THE HAUNTING OF RACHEL HARROWAY was a suspenseful, well-paced series and one I would revisit. Donovan’s writing is solid, and she quickly engrosses the reader. My only complaint is that the books were not professional edited and the story contains numerous errors. Not enough to ultimately detract from the tale, but they did give me pause as I read.
I could not find a bio, website, or any social media for the author. Which to me is creepy. LOL
The Haunting of Rachel Harroway delivered a heart-pounding case & paranormal woo-woo Share on X
About Kimberly
Kimberly is a coffee loving book addict who reads and listens to fictional stories in all genres. Whovian, Ravenclaw, Howler and proud Nonna. She owns and manages Caffeinated PR. The coffee is always on and she is ready to chat. BlueSky | Facebook | Instagram
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Melanie Simmons
These sounds amazing. I’ll have to add them to my TBR. I also loved your comment at the bottom about the author bio. LOL 🙂
kimbacaffeinate
Hehe…it just added to the freakiness.
Debbie Haupt
Holy scary read Kim. I would have to be in the right mood for this one Yikes
kimbacaffeinate
LOL, this had scary aspects, but not true horror.
Darlene
The first one isn’t free any more 🙁 Oh, well. I’m adding it to my list anyways! It sounds like a perfect series to dive into at this time of the year.
kimbacaffeinate
Well, shoot. I guess it was some sort of sale.
Jessica
WOW, these sound incredible and I really need to check them out ASAP. It’s the perfect time of year for this.
kimbacaffeinate
Enjoy Jessica. Tis the season 🙂
Jessica
Do you wanna know how tired I am? Ridiculously so that I started trying to think up a holiday jingle… for the autumn… YIKES.
kimbacaffeinate
Aww, sorry.
RO
Glad you enjoyed these mysteries, and even better that you got them for FREE! Hugs…RO
kimbacaffeinate
Oh no, book one was a freebie. I bought 2-3.
Laura Thomas
Sounds creepy enough for me, Kim. I wonder about the author. Makes me want to read these even more.
kimbacaffeinate
Hahaha…we all love a good mystery.
A Belle's Tales
No author bio or info IS creepy! Wow! These sound good — thank you for putting them on my radar. Have a great weekend, my friend 🙂
kimbacaffeinate
Right. Usually, they create a fake profile but I found nothing.
Nadene
This looks like something I would enjoy. Thanks for bringing it to my attention.
kimbacaffeinate
Happy to share Nadene.
sherry fundin
You sure can pick ’em and these look perfect for me.
kimbacaffeinate
Not sure about that. I have been lucky. Maybe it’s a paranormal ability or I am a tad psychic…
Geybie's Book Blog
I’m always blown away by how many books you manage to read in a week. Three books in a row is awesome. Fantastic reviews!! ❤️
kimbacaffeinate
These weren’t too bad, book one was a novella and the others bot quite 300 pages.
Heidi
No bio or info on the author? Weird. It is nice though that you took a chance on an indie author and despite some editing issues, you got a good read.
kimbacaffeinate
I try to dabble in them and explore.
Sarah @ A Weebish Book Blog
I love when a impulse freebie turns into a fun new series/author to fall in love with! Sounds like a fun, spooky read perfect for Halloween 😀
kimbacaffeinate
Me too Sarah.
kindlemom1
Okay I don’t think I can resist this series Kim, I had to grab the first book! Hope I like it as much as you did!
kimbacaffeinate
The development of the heroine will hook you.
Stormi Johnson
Sounds like a great creepy series! 🙂
kimbacaffeinate
It was and a quick one too.
Vanessa
Wow. Sounds like a perfect reads this Halloween season Kim 🙂
kimbacaffeinate
Yup, nothing spells fall like haunting *winks*
Bookworm Brandee
This does sound like a fun, if creepy, series and I love the gift of sight being used as part of the paranormal element. 🙂 It is a little extra creepy that the author doesn’t seem to exist though…
kimbacaffeinate
It was cool, and I like that it began as a supernatural haunting and moved to her ability.
Tyler H Jolley
No bio or pics? That adds a even deeper layer of creep! But seriously, I have a friend who had a contract with one of the big five. She was fed up with her treatment, but didn’t want to be in breech of contract. So now she writes under a pen name and has no pics, bio, cons or book signings. I wonder if it’s the same sort of situation?
kimbacaffeinate
Right. Such a mystery!
Lisa Bateman
Tyler, I know right?! I was wondering same thing about no bio. It drives me insane when I can’t find out anything about an author. You would think they would want to sell more books and have one. I can’t even find him/her on fb! Must be a pen name. I didn’t think of that. I was really interested in them because the book is set in Highlands, NC, an hour from where I live. This is the middle of nowhere so I’m thinking the author must live close by. No one comes here, of course, they do have a lot of rich people around and golf courses for the rich. But it’s mainly deserted mountains. Not that I’m going to stalk them. My hubby is a magistrate and won’t let me ☹️
Kimberly
Yes, it must be a pen name, but give us a fictional bio or something..LOL
Silvia
It sounds like the perfect combo for Halloween! So glad you had such a great time with all of them, I’ll check them and see if they have the same effect on me *fingers crossed* 🙂
kimbacaffeinate
Have fun, Silvia. They are quick reads. Enjoy your weekend.