All of Violet Willoughby's life, she's been a part of her
mother's charade as a spiritual medium. Celeste Willoughby
is nothing but a fraud, but an excellent one, so she's
managed to eke out a living doing "readings" for those in
high society. Violet has been trained to set up the props
that Celeste uses ahead of time to make sure that her
séances come off as appearing genuine. When Violet was still
very young, her mother picked up a boy off the streets of
London and took him in. He was also trained to help in
setting up props.
Colin and Violet grew up together, doing everything needed
to make Celeste's readings grand as well as picking pockets
when needed. As they grew older, there was a definite
attraction that started to develop between them. Now, at 16,
Violet is being thrust into the limelight a bit by her
mother so that she can possibly snag a young man from a rich
family of high social standing. To this end, they're
attending a social week at the prominent estate of
well-known Spiritualist Lord Jasper.
In between readings, dinners, and dances, Violet suddenly
receives a vision of a girl that's been dead for a year. It
becomes very clear quite quickly that the girl was murdered
and that she expects Violet to help expose the murderer and
bring him, or her, to justice. The problem is that Violet
has never believed in ghosts because of the life she's led with
her mother, yet, apparently, that word hasn't reached the
spirit world because there's a ghost appearing to her in
full array.
On top of this little problem, Violet has to deal with the
attentions of a handsome, rich young man that seems to want
to marry her. Her mother is all atwitter with this
development, of course. But the problem is that Violet and
Colin have realized that they do share a very mutual
attraction to each other. Then, there's the other matter of
someone wanting her dead because she's started to seriously
look into this poor ghost's death. And isn't it just a touch
of irony that the daughter of a fake medium turns out to be
true medium?
With so many different things going on, there's little
wonder that this book is impossible to put down. There are
twists and turns that never seem to stop along with all
sorts of secrets that people seem to be keeping. It's hard
to know what's going to happen next. Suspense, humor,
spookiness, and just the right portion of romance make
HAUNTING VIOLET a book that keeps the reader riveted until
the final page.
Violet Willoughby doesn't believe in ghosts. But they
believe in her. After spending years participating in her
mother's elaborate ruse as a fraudulent medium, Violet is
about as skeptical as they come in all matters
supernatural. Now that she is being visited by a very
persistent ghost, one who suffered a violent death, Violet
can no longer ignore her unique ability. She must figure
out what this ghost is trying to communicate, and quickly
because the killer is still on the loose.Afraid of ruining
her chance to escape her mother's scheming through an
advantageous marriage, Violet must keep her ability secret.
The only person who can help her is Colin, a friend she's
known since childhood, and whom she has grown to love. He
understands the true Violet, but helping her on this path
means they might never be together. Can Violet find a way
to help this ghost without ruining her own chance at a
future free of lies?