Ghostly Game (GhostWalkers #19) by Christine Feehan-Review, Excerpt & Giveaway

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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date May 2, 2023

Gideon “Eagle” Carpenter is used to rolling with the punches life has thrown at him. It’s the only thing that’s kept him alive. He and his team of GhostWalkers have seen and experienced it all. He does his best to live with all the sins written on his soul. Then he hears the laughter of a woman with the ability to erase—even for a few precious moments—the darkness of his past.

Laurel “Rory” Chappel has always been a nomad. She’s accustomed to taking care of herself, despite the physical challenges she lives with. She thinks she’s too weak to find real love, but that doesn’t stop her interest in Gideon from turning into a full-on addiction. He’s all rough edges and danger contrasted with a tenderness that makes her feel safe. Still, after a life spent in motion, she’s not sure she knows how to stay in one place.

Gideon hopes he can persuade Rory to take a chance on him with every electric touch. But soon, life conspires against him, forcing the GhostWalker to risk everything to protect the woman he loves….

••••••

REVIEW:GHOSTLY GAME is the nineteenth instalment in Christine Feehan’s contemporary, adult GHOSTWALKERS erotic, paranormal romance series focusing on an elite group (4 teams) of enhanced men and women known as the GhostWalkers (GW). These ‘super soldiers’ were once part of an unauthorized government experiment performed by Dr. Peter Whitney. The original GhostWalkers struggled without a female anchor, a female whose genetic and enhanced powers were often in tandem with the men involved. This is GhostWalkers Gideon ‘Eagle’’ Carpenter, and bartender Laurel ‘Rory’ Chappel’s story line. GHOSTLY GAME can be read as a stand alone but for back story I recommend reading the series in order, or at the very least book one SHADOW GAME where the reader is introduced to the world of the GhostWalker.

NOTE: Due to the nature of the story line premise, there may be triggers for more sensitive readers.

Told from dual omniscient third person perspectives (Gideon and Rory) GHOSTLY GAME follows with Gideon’s discovery of the woman he believes is his fated mate. Laurel ‘Rory’ Chappel rarely stays in one place or city for very long but has found a home and friendship in San Francisco. A series of break ins and murders in her apartment building finds our heroine the target of police, police she begins to suspect are on the wrong side of the law. Meanwhile, several mysterious and dangerous men begin to follow our heroine from work to home, where she will come face to face with her future in the guise of GhostWalker Gideon Carpenter. What ensues is the building but trepidatious relationship between Gideon and Rory, and the fall-out as Rory’s issues of trust implode when secrets and lies push her out of Gideon’s life.

Rory Chappel has no idea she is a GhostWalker: a part of Peter Whitney’s orphaned girl experiments, experiments of which have left Rory with no memory of her early life, or the torture and pain that had been inflicted as a child but the more time she spends with Gideon, using their telepathic abilities, Rory’s memories and powers begin to tear at the fabric of her mind, a tear that can only be healed by a psychic physician.

Gideon Carpenter has not been forthcoming about who he is, and what he can do but it is his team of GhostWalkers that threatens his growing relationship with our story line heroine. Mack McKinley, Gideon’s team leader, suspects Rory is the enemy, sent by Dr. Peter Whitney, and as such has the entire team looking at Rory as an assassin, biding her time to destroy them all. As Rory continues to struggle with issues of trust, she begins to pull away, suspecting she has more than one target aiming to take her down. The $ex scenes are limited but passionate.

There is a large ensemble cast of secondary and supporting characters from GhostWalkers Team Three headed by Mack McKinley and his wife Jaime: Javier Enderman, Kane Cannon, Paul Mangan, Rhianna Bonds, Ethan Meyers, Lucas Atherton, Marc Lands, and Brian Hutton but saying that we are not witness to their powers or their strengths with the exception of Paul Mangan. We are introduced to Rory’s friends and neighbors: Lydia Sawyer, Janice DeWitt, Pam Williams, Cindy Atler and Sally Hudson, and Rory’s boss Brad Fitzpatrick, and Detective Warren Larrsen. The requisite evil has many faces.

The world building continues to focus on Dr. Peter Whitney and his experiments that have created a super solider, as well as the abuse of a number of little girls under his ‘care’ but use of these powers amongst Team Three is limited throughout the story except in the case of Gideon and Paul. I have to question why the Team would text information to one another when each of them has the ability to talk telepathically between minds.

GHOSTLY GAME is a story of power and control, secrets and lies, abuse, torture and brutality, acceptance and love. The premise is detailed and intriguing; the romance is subtle; the characters are powerful, determined and strong.

Copy supplied by the publisher

Reviewed by Sandy

Excerpted from Ghostly Game by Christine Feehan Copyright © 2023 by Christine Feehan. Excerpted by permission of Berkley. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher

Christine Feehan is a #1 New York Times bestselling author multiple times over with her portfolio including over 70 published novels, including five series; Dark Series, Ghostwalker Series, Leopard Series, Drake Sisters Series, the Sisters of the Heart Series and Torpedo Ink. All of her series have hit the #1 spot on the New York Times bestselling list as well. Her debut novel Dark Prince received 3 of the 9 Paranormal Excellence Awards in Romantic Literature (PEARL) in 1999. Since then she has been published by various publishing houses including Leisure Books, Pocket Books, and currently is writing for Berkley/Jove. She also has earned 7 more PEARL awards since Dark Prince.

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10. Giveaway runs from May 4-8,  2023