Official Synopsis: It's been months since horror author Penelope Skinner threw a book at Neil Storm. But he was so infuriating, with his sparkling green eyes and his bestselling horror novels that claimed to break Native stereotypes. And now she’s a publishing pariah and hasn’t been able to write a word since. So when her friend invites her on a too-good-to-be-true writers retreat in a supposedly haunted Scottish castle, she seizes the opportunity. Of course, some things really are too good to be true.
Neil wants nothing less than to be trapped in a castle with the frustratingly adorable woman who threw a book at him. She drew blood! Worse still, she unleashed a serious case of self-doubt! Neil is terrified to write another bestselling “book without a soul,” as Pen called it. All Neil wants is to find inspiration, while completely avoiding her.
But as the retreat begins, Pen and Neil are stunned to find themselves trapped in a real-life ghost story. Even more horrifying, they’re stuck together and a truly shocking (extremely hot) almost-kiss has left them rethinking their feelings, and… maybe they shouldn’t have been enemies at all? But if they can’t stop the ghosts pursuing them, they may never have the chance to find out.
This book is a wild ride! Part mystery and thriller with a lot of spicy romance scenes as the characters start to understand each other more! Definitely a book that is meant for adults with how some of the scenes are written. I enjoyed that the characters truly went from 'enemies' to lovers, in that sense that one misunderstanding sort of put a wedge in between them. This also definitely fully falls into the 'he falls first' trope, which I loved.
The spooky elements of this book are really well written and definitely are spooky. They are in a haunted castle in Scotland, and the ghosts only appear to a few people, leaving the other two in the castle confused at what is happening.
Another thing I really enjoyed about the book was the Native representation, and how it is shown two different ways. You have Pen, who doesn't 'look' like she is Native American, and has no way of proving it, who is struggling to find a place within the community of Native American Authors. Neil looks the part, but he lets his publisher push him around, almost making it so his books are white-washed. This is what causes them to fight and after a while realize that they both may have been wrong at times. When they start to understand each other more is when they start to realize their feelings of 'hate' might be something else entirely.
The two other characters in the castle were also really entertaining and I enjoyed their remarks throughout the book. They also had a running bet on if/when Pen and Neil would either make out and fight and were constantly exchanging money throughout their writer's retreat.
This book is definitely perfect for those who enjoy something spooky, but want that romance aspect that doesn't reach into 'dark' romance. The scenes are spicy (and I read them from the middle seat on a plane oops) and the rest of the plot fits the story well.
I rated this book 5 out of 5 stars!
If I Stop Haunting You is scheduled for release October 15, 2024!
Σχόλια