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Member Reviews

Her Lost Soul, the second novel in the Detective Maria Miller series, is a great addition for Detectives Miller and Conroy and their Strange Crimes Unit. An abandoned psychiatric hospital and four teenagers…. What can go wrong? For three of them, this was the scare of a lifetime when they escaped the asylum, but for Riley Holt, the nightmare is just beginning. A police procedural with a paranormal twist including ghosts and evil spirits makes for a very entertaining read. This book is filled with unexpected twists and turns, the storyline is engaging, and the characters are great. I do look forward to reading about their next adventure.

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I really enjoyed the first in this series and so was delighted to see another addition so soon after.
Her Lost Soul follows the same format, a not too long, slice of a Mulder and Scully type partnership, detectives that examine the slightly strange.

A run down, derelict “mental asylum” that a group of teenagers break into, potential spooky goings on, demons and a disappearance of one of the teenagers - yes please!

Dual time lines with the one set in the past when the asylum was open and mistreating its patients - yes please again!

This is proving to be a great little series. Fun spooky/horror detective stories that go for the shorter page count format that suits them down to the ground.
Good characters, fun plots that, let’s face it may have some holes in them if you think about it but the books are so much fun it doesn’t really matter or detract from the enjoyment.

I said at the end of my review of the first book that I hoped we’d see another one but I didn’t expect to see one so soon after. It doesn’t affect the quality at all. These really are a great slice of escapism. I wish more authors doing similar weren’t afraid to have a page count of under 300 pages. If the story can be told in that format then just do it. Don’t pad it out. The two in this series are as lean and trim as they come(hats off to the editor) but they are still full and complete novels with nothing missing.

I can’t wait for the next in the series where Maria Miller investigates the slightly weird.

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This book definitely made me feel nervous, absolutely adrenaline rush at points. Great build up of tension and suspense.

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If Helen is writing I’m reading. Another brilliant crime/thriller! It was gripping, intense, shocking crime. I’m loving getting to know detective Maria and Conroy, I’m loving the strange crime’s too it’s a little different. The cover is brilliant too

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Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this engaging eARC..

I have been enjoying books from this author writer over the past few years now (and the books are always well-written, and enjoyable mysteries/ police procedurals).

However, this is the first I have read from this series, where a pair of detectives investigate "unusual" crimes (where a well- matched pair of detectives investigate crimes which have a paranormal aspect).

I found this series a top-notch entertaining and refreshing read (thee type of read one learns to readily learns they xan expect from this talented author).

A fun series, (part "ghost story, couples with a police procedural) with a frightening, albeit engaging, subplot, Ms. Phifer continues to delight us as she redefines the typical " police procedural" novel. In this book I especially enjoy the relationship between the very well known starlette and a minority troubled teen, as they learned valuable mutually beneficial insights from each other and develop a strong bond of friendship between the two characters.

A fun an enjoyable read, one that I thoroughly enjoyed, I highly recommend this novel, written by a seasoned professional, you can trust this author will always provide solid entertainment, and I look forward to delving into this series further as this was my first foray into reading a book from this series..

A thank you and congratulations goes out to the author for supplying yet another wonderful book This novel is a unique and entertaining find, and I recommend you pick up this book from a relatively new series (one of which I will certainly be reading more of) I will look for another to purchase immediately after posting this review.

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Detectives Miller and Conroy, the only members of Strange Crimes within NYPD, are off on another of their mysterious cases. Set in a derelict hospital/asylum last used thirty years ago, it’s now the scene of a crime regarding a missing teenager who went in to do a paranormal investigation with three friends, but she never came out. As the daughter of the local police chief, no stone has been left unturned, so the only obvious conclusion is that she disappeared into thin air. Enter Miller and Conroy!

The second in the series involving these two detectives, and a marked improvement on book one. The plot was interesting and quite the page turner at times. Still too much filler, but a good lazy afternoon read.

Thank you NetGalley and Storm.

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I really enjoy this author. The first book in this series had me hooked. I don’t normally like paranormal aspects in books but this author knows how to write a book to keep your attention! Although I didn’t like this one as much as the first it still kept my attention and I was eager to find out what was going on. Really happy to have the opportunity to read this early thank you!

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thriller, detective, missing-persons, cold-case, supernatural, horror, abandoned-building, escaped-prisoner, family, family-drama, psychics, psychological-thriller, time-travel, dual-time-frames, famous-persons, unputdownable*****

Scary occult vibes for NYC Detective Maria Miller and her partner of the Strange Crimes Unit.
The story flips between 2023 and 1960. Both perspectives revolve around the abandoned mental asylum’s story and how events in 1960 interact with the people now. The further you get into the book, the more the different pieces come together to create a creepy supernatural crime thriller.
I requested and received an EARC from Storm Publishing via NetGalley

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I've been lucky to read alot of great books but never have I come across one that makes me immediately want to drop everything and read more of the author! This is that book. Since this is #2 in the series, I've got to read #1!

Crime, thriller, ghosts and evil ancient spirits is what Detective Miller is up against and the ending is perfection. Very hard to put down, it flows along so well.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGallery for the advanced copy in return for an honest review!

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