Sunday, August 18, 2013

Mystery and Ghosts in Old San Francisco

DELIA'S SHADOW
Jamie Lee Moyer
MacMillan Tor/Forge
September 17, 2013


Delia's Shadow is a combination of a ghost and detective story with a little romance thrown in for good measure. Set in San Francisco in the years following The Great Quake and prior to World War I, I thoroughly enjoyed  the blending of both period detail and mystery. Delia Martin lost her parents in the Quake and was taken in by the family of her best friend, Sadie. On top of the loss of her parents, Delia can see the ghosts of the disaster's victims- some of whom seem to be haunting her particularly. After several years of this Delia flees to New York and is free of the ghosts for several years. However, one ghost appears in New York, that of a young woman that Delia calls "Shadow". Shadow follows her everywhere and Delia knows instinctively that she will never be free of Shadow unless she finds out why the ghost is haunting her. When word comes of Sadie's engagement and the ill health of Sadie's mother, Esther, Delia knows the time has come to return to San Francisco.

Sadie's fiancé, Jack, is on the SFPD detective squad and along with his partner, Gabriel Ryan, is investigating a series of particularly nasty murders which emulate killings investigated by Gabe's father thirty years before. Gabe is even receiving taunting letters from the killer, just as his father did. Gabe also has his own sorrow, the loss of his wife and unborn child in the fire after the Quake. How Jack, Gabe, Delia, Sadie and the killer are all bound together make up the mystery of Delia's Shadow.

Jamie Lee Moyer has done an excellent of job of tying the various elements of the story together. The four main characters are both likable and believable and the supporting characters well-rounded. There are some very scary and unsettling moments in the book, especially when the killer appears. Delia's Shadow kept me turning pages late into the night. My only quibble was that the solution to the killer's identity seemed a little too easy after stumping everyone for thirty years and the ending felt a little rushed. I am giving Delia's Shadow 3.5 stars and rounding up to 4.

Thanks to netgalley.com and MacMillan for an advance digital copy in return for an honest review.

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