"You have only two homicides from last night? There were three."First in a series of thirteen, but definitely stands alone. Charley Davidson is a private investigator with a unique gift: she's a -- in fact, the -- grim reaper, helping souls to cross to the 'other side'. The ability to see, and speak with, ghosts is immensely useful in her line of work. But she's not the only supernatural entity around: there's something stalking her, something that's known her since the day she was born. Charley refers to it as 'Bad', and it's capable of killing anyone who threatens her.
Garrett went still, probably wondering what I was up to, how I could know any such thing since I couldn't possibly see dead people, so dead people couldn't possibly tell me they were dead. It just wasn't possible. [loc. 382]
This was great fun: competently written (if occasionally a little repetitive), with good characterisation not only of Charley but of the supporting cast, especially her friend Cookie, her Uncle Bob (a homicide detective), and Angel, a teenage criminal who happens to be dead. Charley does seem to be more than humanly resilient -- this is highlighted when she sprains an ankle due to unsuitable footwear, having survived a fall from a roof, an attempted murder and being beaten up by a hacked-off, drunken bloke who objects to Charley helping his wife leave him. Charley is also relentlessly sarcastic, which makes the occasional moments of softness and emotion all the more effective.
Very enjoyable, I shall likely read more in the series.
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