Laurel's Gift Review Tour

Blurb:

The plaintive singing of a ghostly child in the night sets off a chain of events that lead to Laurel learning the dark secrets that dwell in her Great Aunt Maggie’s house in a Melbourne suburb. When Eli comes into Laurel’s life, instead of instantly uncovering the secrets that have been buried in this house for many years, their joint efforts lead them to discover even greater mysteries.

Eli’s past is tied up with the ghost of the child who haunts the house, and there are many hurdles to cross before he discovers just why he also sensed strange vibes in the old house as soon as he entered.

In their search for the answers to an extraordinary mystery they uncover a passionate love affair shared by the people dear to them or those who dwelt in the house at one time of another. Despite their shared psychic abilities can the couple also find such a love?

Excerpt:

The phone rang while she was deciding which clothes to wear. Laurel sat on the side of the bed and picked up the extension.

“Good morning. How did you sleep?” Eli asked. He possessed a really nice voice, she had to admit.

“Not the best.” Wasn’t that the truth? Laurel ran a hand over her head. She really should have called Ben first thing. Too many things were happening in her life too suddenly and her brain was beginning to feel like mush.

“No interruptions?”

“No.” Presumably he meant the child.

My Review:
3 stars

This was an okay read for me. I liked the twists and turns of new secrets being revealed throughout the book. They kept me on my toes and guessing, which made this a quick read for me. I also liked seeing Laurel and Eli interact with each other, as I felt they had good chemistry. However, I wish there had been more focus on the paranormal side of the story. I thought with the ghost child and Laurel and Eli’s abilities, this would have been a much bigger part of the story than it ended up being. And even the resolution of this was underwhelming for me, especially after the suspenseful mysteries throughout the rest of the story.

I also liked the characters, especially the pets. Laurel was an interesting woman who I connected with. However, I didn’t connect with Eli, and spent part of the book not liking him because he just came off as standoffish to me. I still am “meh” about him, partially I feel because there weren’t as many details about him. Yes, his background was supposed to be part of the mystery. But the mystery of who Eli is, his personality as a character, still hadn’t been solved at the end of the book, hence the “meh.”

Overall, this was a good book with some weak points. If you are okay with a more contemporary focus vs. paranormal and if you like mysterious men, then this book is for you.

*I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.*

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Don’t forget to visit the other stops on the tour.

Author Bio and Links:

Award winning author Tricia McGill was born in London, England, and moved to Australia many years ago, settling near Melbourne. The youngest in a large, loving family she was never lonely or alone. Surrounded by avid readers, who encouraged her to read from an early age, is it any wonder she became a writer? The local library was a treasure trove and magical world of discovery through her childhood and growing years. Although her published works cross sub-genres, romance is always at their heart.

Tricia’s love of animals has always shown up in her books. Tricia devotes as much time and money as she can spare to supporting worldwide conservation groups and is passionate about supporting those who do all they can to preserve our wildlife for future generations, especially elephants and orangutans who seem to be getting the raw end of the deal even in this enlightened age. She also volunteers for a local community group that helps disabled adults and children to connect to the internet with provided computer equipment. When people ask what she does in her spare time she is heard to ask, “Spare time, what is that?”

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Buy Links:
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