Ghosts of the
Falls by Sarah Gilman is a sweet and highly
enjoyable romantic paranormal novella.
Set in Maine, the United
States, the novella begins by introducing the reader to exorcist Jade Clarence,
who has been given a final opportunity to prove herself capable of working in
the family business of exorcism, which deals with earth-bound ghosts not with
demonic possessions as seen in movies.
Jade Clarence
goes to Maine to exorcise a ghost, and meets Dutch. Jade is different; she
knows that exorcisms are painful for the ghosts, whom she does not feel should
always suffer. Some are innocent and do not deserve the torment that accompanies
an exorcism. So she is a kind of noble exorcist. She tells Dutch “For years, I’ve been researching, trying to write an
incantation that would send spirits on to the next world without hurting them,
to heaven or hell or wherever they’re supposed to go.”
Jade has a
Tinker Bell figurine in her car and likes to compare herself to Tinker Bell whom
she says is a "feisty girl who puts up with
a bunch of boys," which rings true.
Throughout the seven-chapter
novella, Jade explains to Dutch how exorcism works, and reflects on her most
recent experience, that of a troubled teenage spirit.
Ghosts of the
Falls is
a novella in which a ghost finds life in death and where an exorcist finds love
and warmth in the ghost.
The language of
Ghosts of the Falls is simple with lots of dialogue and short
paragraphs, all which add to the quick pace of the novella. The dialogues
provide information, interaction between characters and bits of comic relief
and romance mixed with comic relief.
The novella has
a slight fairy-tale feel to it, but with a remarkable twist in the end.
The book also
contains two excerpts from Gilman’s other works, namely Deep in Crimson
and Wings in Redemption.
I couldn’t put Ghosts
of the Falls down and I am excited to read more by Sarah Gilman. Every girl/woman
will want her own ‘Dutch’ after reading Ghosts of the Falls.
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