I’m a reader with two moods: one for romance and one for things that make me leave the light on at night. As a fan of Jen DeLuca, I was excited when she announced Haunted Ever After, a story that combines people falling in love with ghosts. It was posed to be the best of both worlds for me, and it is.
Cassie’s attempts to communicate with ghosts are what I tell myself I would do, but I’d actually just move. I love how she tries to figure out the best way to understand what the ghost is trying to tell her, and how that plays into issues regarding historical documentation and women’s rights. I wasn’t expecting the historical aspect, but after finishing the book, I don’t think you could tell the story without it. It added an important dynamic, especially as the truth behind the ghost’s life comes to light, and without it, it just becomes another “bump in the night” tale.
I commend the author for writing a scene that would typically be the culmination of all the horror in a haunted house movie and making it more about the emotional impact it would have on the main characters. As an avid horror movie fan, I’m used to repeatedly watching these scenes, and they are all about the same. They play up the jump scares and strange noises, all for a sudden rush of energy as the group accomplishes their goal. Instead, we stay with the individual experiencing it and what they are going through, rather than how everyone else is reacting to it. It reinforced the characterization of the main characters and their growth as people, and it’s an angle I’d love to see in more haunted house films.
Cassie is a great main character to experience. She takes a chance, and rather than allow a small setback like a ghost take that from her, she embraces it. Like anyone, she’s skeptical at first, she still remains open-minded, especially as it becomes harder to deny that something is in her house. Watching her not only stand up for herself where her friend group is concerned, but for someone she can’t physically see just shows the kind of person she is in the best way.