About the Book:
A psychic on the verge of stardom who isn’t sure she believes in herself and a cynical journalist with one last chance at redemption are brought together by secrets from the past that also threaten to tear them apart.
Psychic-medium Sylvie Young starts every show with her origin story, telling the audience how she discovered her abilities. But she leaves out a lot—the plane crash that killed her parents, an estranged adoptive family who tend orchards in rainy Oregon, panic attacks, and the fact that her agent insists she research some clients to ensure success.
After a catastrophic reporting error, Thomas Holmes’s next story at the L.A. Times may be his last, but he’s got a great personal pitch. “Grief vampires” like Sylvie who prey upon the loved ones of the deceased have bankrupted his mother. He’s dead set on using his last-chance article to expose Sylvie as a conniving fraud and resurrect his career.
When Sylvie and Thomas collide, a game of cat and mouse ensues, but the secrets they’re keeping from each other are nothing compared to the mysteries and lies they unearth about Sylvie’s past. Searching for the truth might destroy them both—but it’s the only way to find out what’s real.
My Review:
What a completely original and engrossing story!! It’s difficult to categorize this book into one specific genre but I could not put it down.
A compelling story of a psychic-medium filled with self-doubt, this book also delves into a mystery with lots of dysfunctional family drama along the way. There’s also a bittersweet romance but it’s all done beautifully.
The story is told in separate points of view from Thomas and Sylvie’s perspectives. Both have more in common than they first think. Thomas is looking for a career-saving piece of investigative journalism, by exposing Sylvie as a fraud. Although Sylvie seemed like the real deal to me (I do believe in psychics and intuition), she herself is filled with doubts.
”Is Thomas right that I’m rationalizing fraud? My reflection in the mirror blurs, like I’m losing definition, beginning to disappear. My heart doubles its beat. No. I’m the real deal and help people.”
Both are masters of manipulation and gamesmanship and I loved the cat-and-mouse lasted of the story. Sylvie takes a big gamble allowing Thomas to meet her family but the encounter pays off for Sylvie: Thomas finally sees the dysfunction that has shaped her.
Whether or not you believe in mediums or psychics, this book offers a fascinating glimpse into the “business” side of things. Will Thomas ever fully trust Sylvie or believe in her gifts? And do they have enough trust to love each other unconditionally?
Burying my face in her hair, I whisper, “I don’t want to hurt you.”
“You will,” she replies. “It’s the human condition.”
There’s also so much more to this magical book: the foster care system, mental health, repairing family relationships, as well as the beautiful bond Sylvie and Thomas both have with their pets Moose and Christopher Robins. This book really defies genres and I hope it gets the wide audience it deserves. Part thriller, part romance and a tiny bit paranormal, Sylvie and Thomas truly came alive as characters in this very original, touching and gripping story. I read a lot of books, but this inventive plot really stands out. Highly recommend!!
(Special thanks to the publisher for providing a review copy via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.)
