Harris, Charlaine – GRAVE SIGHT

[LJ Roberts]

GRAVE SIGHT (Amateur Sleuth-Arkansas-Cont) – VG Harris, Charlaine – 1^st in series
BerkeleyPrime Crime, 2005 – Hardcover

Harper Connolly, and her stepbrother Tolliver Lang, have a job that keeps them traveling the country. Harper can sense the dead and experience their last moments of life. They've come to Sarne, a small town in the Ozarks of Alabama, to find the body of a young girl and learn how she died. Harper finds the girl, who was murdered, but also tells officials that the boy with her was murdered, rather than committed suicide as was thought. When another woman is murdered, the police won't let Harper and Tolliver leave town and they are caught up in something much more complex than the job for which they were hired.

This is a darker series than Ms. Harris' others, and I really enjoyed it. The characters are fascinating; Harper is vulnerable, Tolliver, protective and, although some of their history is given, you know there's more to come. The characters in Sarne may not be likable, but they are realistic. Even though I figured out where the story was going, I enjoyed the journey and the suspense. I applaud Ms. Harris for creating a different, very interesting character, and look forward to seeing where the road takes them next.