I received this book for free from the Author in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
The Crawling Darkness by JL BryanSeries: Ellie Jordan, Ghost Trapper #3
on February 5, 2013
Genres: Adult, Horror, Mystery, Paranormal, Urban Fantasy
Pages: 209
Source: Author
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Ghost removal specialist Ellie Jordan must face a dangerous, shape-shifting entity that she and Calvin have encountered once before, with tragic results. The spirit has the power to reach into the minds of living and feed on their fears, taking the shape of their worst nightmares, and it has awoken in search of new victims.
Now Ellie must try to succeed where she and her mentor failed before, and try to defeat the twisted and powerful old ghost before it can claim another soul for its collection.
I’ve really enjoyed the Ellie Jordan, Ghost Trapper urban fantasy series so far. There’s the spooky atmosphere of haunted Atlanta, evil ghosts and poltergeist, and a cast of characters with many layers so you can really dig into the story and fully enjoy each and every person that appears within the pages. Plus, each book can be read as a stand alone, so you’re not really lost if you were to happen to jump in out of turn. Book three, The Crawling Darkness, has all of this plus so much more than I could hope for!
The baddie is so evil in this one, I wasn’t sure it could be beat. And it takes the form of your worst fears!
Ellie, lead ghost trapper, and Stacey, the tech manager, have faced malevolent ghosts and even a powerful poltergeist, but they’re facing the monster in your closet in this third installment. It preys mainly on children, so Ellie knows that time is of the essence in getting to the bottom of this haunting. But as Ellie and Stacey dig to find the source, using their friend at the historical society (who I totally want to witness a haunting first hand–why isn’t that place haunted?), they find that several children have gone missing on that block over the last century. But the more Ellie sees from the ghost, the more she recognizes the entity as the one from a house that is behind this one, and she realizes that it could be the same one that put her boss Calvin in a wheelchair 14 months earlier.
Oh, the character development abounds!
Ellie has been very focused on the job and that’s it throughout the first books, but Stacey has finally wormed her way into her personal bubble and started to pry into her life. Since the boogeyman entity in this book gets into your head and manifests as your worst nightmare, we get an intimate look at what Ellie, Jacob, Stacey, and Jacob fear the most. Throughout the book, Ellie’s armor around her personal life finally starts to crack, and I loved to finally see why she’s so closed off to other people. We also learned what happened in Stacey’s past to make her want to take up ghost hunting.
Stellar side characters kicking it up a notch!
Psychic Jacob is there from the start, and I really liked that he was brought in right at the beginning. Even though Stacey and Jacob have started to date, and I had thought that Ellie and he might have a thing, he proves himself as a valuable investigative asset over and over again. The boss man Calvin is around from the get go as well, and we finally learn a lot about him–especially all about how he wound up in a wheelchair. The fireman who lives in the haunted apartment house is another character that stood out–both in his perfect fit for Ellie and his few weird quirks that made him stand out. I really hope to see more of the hot fireman in the future!
I give The Crawling Darkness a five out of five.
This series just keeps getting better and better–with creepier and more dangerous ghosts, and a fresh take on hauntings and ghost hunting equipment with each book. The haunting in this book was a bit twisted and unexpected, which made it that much more enjoyable since I totally didn’t guess who the ghost was. The character development was stellar in this installment for the three main characters, but I really can’t wait to see more of psychic Jacob’s back story. I enjoy the investigative side of the story where Ellie and Stacey meet with the man from the historical society, and I hope to see a bigger role for him in future books. This was my favorite of the three books, and I look forward to the book four, due to release in May 2015.
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Were you afraid of the Boogeyman or the closet monster when you were a kid? Do you think you’d be able to face your worst fear like Ellie, Stacey, and Jacob had to in this book in order to beat the entity?
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Great review, I enjoy ghost stories but it isn’t always one can find something good to read. I am a fan of character driven stories and it sounds like this series has it all. Thanks for sharing it. One more to add to the never ending reading pile.
Maggie @ ReadingDiva’s blog recently posted..OFF THE PRESS: Lover’s Promise by J.C. Reed
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I’m glad to bring the Ellie Jordan, Ghost Trapper series to your attention, Maggie! All of JL Bryan’s book are great, and this new series is no exception.
Heather recently posted..Seeker by Arwen Elys Dayton – Blog Tour with an Interview & Giveaway
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I’m not a fan of ghost stories, but this one looks interesting! The last ghost story I read and enjoyed was Meg Cabot/Jenny Carroll’s series. It might be time to read another book….
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Definitely check out this new series by JL Bryan, Chapreet! The Ellie Jordan, Ghost Trapper series is fantastic, and you only have to wait about 3 or 4 months in between books.
Heather recently posted..Seeker by Arwen Elys Dayton – Blog Tour with an Interview & Giveaway
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