Holding Court

by Kristen Held

When sixteen year old Jules Verity, who suffers from what her best friend calls "Psychic Tourette's Syndrome" (spontaneous outbursts of seemingly absurd prophecies that she can't control) takes a job at a castle turned dinner theater known as Tudor Times, all she wants is the chance to make some money, wear a fancy gown, and ogle gorgeous-but-taken Grayson Chandler from afar. Instead she's forced to wear the most mortifying costume ever, stumbles over a dead body that promptly disappears, and becomes a suspect in a jewel forgery scam. Determined to prove she's not a total freak who hallucinated a dead girl, Jules goes looking for answers in the secret passageways of Tudor Times. At first she's thrilled when Grayson volunteers to help her on her quest to find a dead body, but his sudden interest in spending time with Jules becomes suspicious when she discovers his girlfriend may be guilty of a lot more than perfect hair and fabulous cleavage. And if she can't unveil the truth in time, wearing an embarrassing costume and her psychic outbursts will be the least of her problems.

• ISBN10: 1633752275
• ISBN13: 9781633752276
• Publish Date: 1 March 2016
• Publish Status: Out of Stock
• Out of Print: 12 June 2017
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: Entangled Publishing, LLC
• Imprint: Entangled Teen
• Format: Paperback
• Pages: 352
• Language: English

Reviews

[readingwithwrin]

"Why is everyone so eager to assume I'm nuts? Just because I blurt out random bizarre statements and find dead bodies that disappear before anyone else sees them?"


Jules comes from an interesting family, her grandma can read peoples auras, her mom can tell if antique items are real or fake, and Jules has Psychic Tourette's Syndrome as her best friend calls it.
While her mom and grandma’s abilities are useful, Jules hasn’t yet been able to learn the importance of her ability and how exactly the words she spews out have any importance at all. But she is soon to learn how important her ability is and how it could just end up saving lives.

When Jules mom decides to go to Europe so she can appraise items, Jules is left without a summer job and with no car her job options are limited. With the help of her best friend Cami she gets a job at the local castle dinner theater that has recently opened. She is immediately given the job and takes the place of Angelica.
Once her first night shadowing Angelica is over and Jules is going back to the dining hall to meet the other employees she finds a secret passage way, where she finds a dead body…. But once she gets help and is able to tell them what happened the body is gone and isn’t able to be found anywhere.

With only two people believing her Grayson and King Henry VIII, she is left in an awkward position. But when an attempt to gravely injure her happens, they realize things are far more serious than anyone had realized. Once the police have been notified of everything happening at the castle, they suspect Jules of being an accomplice to the woman that is missing. Jules and Grayson decided it’s time to figure out what is going on and where the body has gone.
I thought this story was okay, after first I didn’t really like it so much because of how focused Jules was on Grayson, and how she couldn’t have him/he didn’t like her. Once she started to talk to him though and actually interact with him she stops being so obsessive. Mainly because of having to find a dead body and clearing her name of any suspected wrong doings, but still it was nice to see her growing as a character and not being so over the moon for him the whole story.
I also really enjoyed Jules and her grandma’s relationship, even though she got annoyed with her grandma’s whole aura thing you can tell that she also kind of liked the weirdness and how it was just how grandma was. I also liked how grandma explained to Jules why her ability wasn’t pointless and how it was important and even though it did at times seem pointless and just an annoyance it had ended up saving a person’s life in the past and if she stopped trying to stop it, than she just might be able to make a job out of it.

Overall if you want a quick slightly Tudor time contemporary then I think you just might like this.

Thank you to Netgalley and Entangled Teen for an e-Arc in exchange for my honest review.
See more reviews like this on my blog

[liz089]

Read more about this review and others on my blog Freyja Eats Books

STANDALONE or SERIES.
Standalone. Just one book.. Though I would like it if she would release more books (about this main character or another).

WHY this BOOK.
I noticed it on NetGalley and the description sounded interesting. A bit of a mystery with some paranormal powers.. in a Tudor-themed castle. Count me in !

FIRST THOUGHTS.
I really enjoyed this book. No it was not the most original or deep plot.. and even though most of it was kind of predictable, there were some things I did not expect. But most of all, it was a very funny read and it made me laugh out loud a couple of times. That made it all worth it.

PLOT.
So, the story is about Jules, a sixteen-year-old with a special gift. Only, she does not really perceives it as a gift, but more as a curse, one that she calls the “Psychic Tourette’s Syndrome”. Meaning that (mostly at awkward times) she blurts out weird sounding prophecies and make no sense at the moment. Because of that, most people in her town find her a freak and she feels as one.
But ! She gets the opportunity to work at Tudor Times, a castle in her town, playing the role of the Maid of Kent. Who turns out to be a crazy nun. Which seems rather fitting ^^ But.. on her first day she finds a body in one of the secret passages she stumbles on ! But when she comes back with back-up, the body has disappeared and nobody seems to believe her.. So it is up to her to prove that it really happened, and when another body turns up later things get even more weird ! Luckily, she has the help of her crush Grayson to solve this mystery. Only problem being that the killer found out she knows more and is after her now too ! Who is left to trust ? And… can she find the killer before he gets to her ?

This was a fast paced book that kept me on the edge of my chair. I was so into the mystery, wanting to know where the body was (and was there really a body) and who killed them. At the ending, when everything was revealed.. I was completely surprised, I did not expect that person to be the killer at all !

I loved the setting in the Tudor-themed castle. With all its little secret passages and hiding rooms, knights in shining armor *sight*.. I loved how everything was authentic and they wanted to give the visitors an as real experience as possible.

I also really liked how she shaped the way of her premonitions expressing themselves. It made for some really funny moments, but most of all it was very mysteriuous. At the moment she yells it, you have no idea what it is about, and try to think how the clue fits in.. and then later on, it makes complete sense ! Loved that.

Oh ! And I really liked how she put it all in the NOW. Using references to The Princess Bride (never read it, but it made me interested in it) and Taylor Swift.

I really adored her writing style, it was so easy to read and you fell right into it.

ROMANCE.
Ohhhh how cute and adorable they were ! Of course, you knew right from the start they would end up together, not much to guess about that, but it was just so cute !! because she perceives herself as a freak, she thinks nobody would want her.. while in the meantime he is totally crushing on her as well !! Though I did wonder why he stayed with Bree if he was so into her, later on that got clear as well. Only thing left to do was wait for them to confess. Ohh it was just sooo charming ^^

CHARACTERS.
I really liked the main character Jules. She was so quirky and just hilarious ! She made me laugh and snort so many times !! But also completely adorable in her love for Grayson. A person like her is just a perfect main character to have in a book, funny and full of life. Even though her life had not been perfect, she doesn’t get depressed or whiny, but moves on and gives it another try. Loved that.

I also liked the owner of the castle, Hank Bacon, very much. Even though I had my suspicions about him, he really looked out for Jules. Though he is kind of a weirdo walking around everywhere in King Henry clothes and talking like they did in the past. I had appreciation for his thoroughness, making sure that everything in the castle was as authentic as possible.

But most of all I loved her family. Even though she is not the most normal person (but then again, who is) she had a great support system. Her mother loves her very much, and her grandmother was just adorably weird. And her best friend Cami is there for her as well, all believing in her and trying to help her. I loved that.

FAVORITE QUOTES.
“You have to, Jules.”
“I know.”
“It really is the perfect job for you.”
“Minus the nun habit and the dead body.”
“Duh. So, what’s your plan?”
“I thought I’d put on a deerstalker cap ans an Inverness cape and walk around with a pipe in my mouth.”
“That ought to be effective.”
“I think the word you’re looking for is ‘elementary’, my dear Watson.”
.
“I’m calling Hank,” she tells me after I give her my version of the whole disappearing dead body thing.
“What? Why? What do you expect him to do?”
“Well, people are dying indisde his castle, surely he ought to do something?”
“Don’t worry, I’ll be fine. Gran gave me a stun gun.”
“Oh God. Please tell me you’re joking.”
“Nope. I’m all set.”
.
“I look up at him, and my heart gives a funny little flutter. “The virgin hides the truth!” I yell in his face.
“You don’t say?”
“I pretty much wish I hadn’t.”
.

FINAL THOUGHTS.
Ohh I had so much fun with this book !! Though I do have to say, this is not a book you should be reading because you are looking for something deep and complicated. This is a light and funny read and you should treat it as such. That being said, I had a lot of fun reading this book, it is a nice in-between story and you should definitely give it a try if you have the chance. So, I would like to give it 4 Freyja’s and I hope she will write more books in the future !

[Cocktails and Books]

This review was originally posted on Cocktails and Books

I was looking for something a little different to read and this Entangled Teen title caught my attention. The heroine is quirky (along with her grandmother and best friend), her job a bit over the top and the storyline full of comedy and a little suspense.

Jules, who has bouts of physic moments where she blurts out whatever is presented to her, finds herself playing a psychic nun at the local medieval castle tourist attraction. It also happens to be where the guy she's always had a crush on, Grayson, also works along with his seemingly perfect girlfriend. It's a comedy of errors that lead Jules to discover a dead body that somehow ends up disappearing. It's up to Jule to figure out what happened to the girl, since no one else seems to believe her.

The story was fun, although sometimes a little too far fetched for my taste. Jules, her grandmother and her best friend were ridiculous, but they often made me laugh. This wasn't my favorite book (since I enjoy a little more angst in my books), but it was fun and light.