annieb123's Review of The Curious Life of Ada Baker

by Karen Hamilton-Viall

'Ada Baker was a psychic. She was the seventh daughter of two parents who were both seventh children. And she had been gifted with some extraordinary powers.'
Ada Baker is a gifted psychic, who shares her home with three very bored ghosts. Spending their days roaming around Ada's house offers little amusement, and so the three of them convince Ada to help them investigate the mysterious death of local beauty Mary Watts, who is found naked and strangled in her bathtub. This begins a series of exciting adventures for Ada, as she draws on her unique skills to help solve this heinous crime. Along the way, she must convince a sceptical detective of her aptitude for channelling the abilities of the dead, avoid the unwanted attentions of a sinister stalker, and try to enlist the help of a squadron of ghostly spitfire pilots to save her own life.
Can the dead really bring justice for Mary and help save the living too? Will Ada solve the mystery of her murder? Or will Ada's curiosity lead to her own demise, causing her to end up as a ghost herself?

Originally posted on my blog Nonstop Reader.

The Curious Life of Ada Baker is a paranormal cozy mystery by Karen Hamilton-Viall. Released 27th Sept 2022 by Cranthorpe Millner, it's 324 pages and is available in paperback and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately. For Kindle Unlimited subscribers, this book is currently included in the KU subscription library to borrow and read for free.

Definitely one for modern paranormal mystery fans. It's thankfully not very scary at all and there's a definite cooperative/Scooby-Do gang type vibe. Ada and her (ghost) friends decide to investigate a local murder with the expected complications and dangers inherent in the task. I liked the author's world building and the subtleties of Ada's psychic abilities; she gets a boost to certain aspects of her abilities by allowing her ghostly flatmates to inhabit her body partially.

There's quite a lot of "telling" instead of "showing", but the very direct style of writing is less obtrusive as the story develops into a satisfying resolution. A series in the offing? The potential for future adventures is foreshadowed.

Three and a half stars. Definite potential.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

Reading updates

26 April, 2023: Started reading

26 April, 2023: Finished reading

26 April, 2023: Reviewed