A New Lease on Death

Supernatural Mysteries

By Olivia Blacke         

ISBN: 9781250336675

Website: OliviaBlacke.com

Brought to you by OBS reviewer Andra                   

Summary:

In this darkly funny supernatural mystery about an unlikely crime-solving duo that launches a commercial, unique, and genre-blending series, death is only the beginning.

Ruby Young’s new Boston apartment comes with all the usual perks. Windows facing the brick wall of the next-door building. Heat that barely works. A malfunctioning buzzer. Noisy neighbors. A dead body on the sidewalk outside. And of course, a ghost.

Since Cordelia Graves died in her apartment a few months ago, she’s kept up her residency, despite being bored out of her (non-tangible) skull and frustrated by her new roommate. When her across-the-hall neighbor, Jake Macintyre, is shot and killed in an apparent mugging gone wrong outside their building, Cordelia is convinced there’s more to it and is determined to bring his killer to justice.

Unfortunately, Cordelia, being dead herself, can’t solve the mystery alone. She has to enlist the help of the obnoxiously perky, living tenant of her apartment. Ruby is twenty, annoying, and has never met a houseplant she couldn’t kill. But she also can do everything Cordelia can’t, from interviewing suspects to researching Jake on the library computers that go up in a puff of smoke if Cordelia gets too close. The roommates form an unlikely friendship as they get closer to the truth about Jake’s death…and maybe other dangerous secrets as well. (Goodreads)

Review:

What an auspicious beginning to the new “Supernatural Mysteries” series by Olivia Blacke. I truly enjoyed A New Lease on Death. It far exceeded any expectations I might have had for a new series and a new author to me in that I was captivated from the start and it ended way too soon. I think it had a lot to do with the writing of the author, the story and of course – the quirky characters!

Ruby Young was fortunate enough to find an apartment in Boston. It has everything a person could hope for – a view (okay – maybe not a great view since it looks out over a brick wall of the next door building), interesting and noisy neighbours and even a story about the previous tenant. Oh, and did I mention – a ghost! And not just any ghost – but the ghost of the prior resident who was found dead in the bathtub, Cordelia Graves!

As Ruby was getting used to life in her new apartment, she was also becoming acquainted with her “roommate” – the ghost of Cordelia Graves. Well – at least once Ruby truly believes there is a ghost. Almost immediately, Ruby is faced with the fact that her new neighbour, Jake Macintyre, has been killed on the front lawn of the apartment building. As any good neighbour would do (?), Ruby along with Cordelia try to uncover the motive and ‘whodunit’ of Jake’s demise. As they navigate the unravelling of Jake’s story – there are a number of mishaps as well as truly chuckle worthy moments.

I must say – some of the situations that Ruby and Cordelia got into were interesting and a wee bit funny. And the way they got themselves out of troubling situations was creative.

The duo was able to solve the mystery behind Jakes murder, which is always a plus in a ‘whodunit’ mystery read. But the reader will need to wait and read in the next book in the Supernatural Mysteries series to have other questions answered.

The characters were colourful, interesting and kept my interest in wanting to learn more about them during the course of the story telling. Their antics kept me giggling. I shall wait patiently to read the next in the series. I shall also seek out other writings by Olivia Blacke.