Bitten by Books
Business partners and longtime lovers Frank Zhelikhovsky and Dr. Holly Ambrose are called in as consultants to investigate a suspicious accident involving a teacher at an exclusive boarding school. She might have been pushed out the window by a resident spirit that lives in the school, one who the students call Shadow Emma, the apparent doppelgänger for the accident victim, Emma Ward.
Frank is the skeptic, and Holly is scientific but open-minded about things from Oblivia (the place where the unknown phenomena seem to reside when they are not active in the everyday world). They have recently embarked on investigating these supernatural occurrences, dividing their time between New York and Florida. Lately, they do not seem as close, with tension between them. Maybe it is time to part ways, but they need to solve their case before they can attend to their personal relationship issues. Who is Shadow Emma, and what does she want with the school? Is she a threat to the faculty and students, or a protector?
The Doppelgänger Song was a rather talky novel. I am a sucker for a good occult detective novel, but this one had less action and focus on the supernatural aspects than I would have liked. While the characterization was well-done and intriguing, the narrative had a detached quality that made it hard to get excited about the book. I did like the wry humor and insight into human nature on offer, as well as the various viewpoints, including that of the entity behind the supernatural manifestations, and the underlying mystery was clever. Since they made a good team, I would probably read more stories about Frank and Holly in their supernatural investigations. Hopefully, the next book has more action in it.
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Summary : The Doppelgänger Song was a rather talky novel. I am a sucker for a good occult detective novel, but this one had less action and focus on the supernatural aspects than I would have liked. While the characterization was well-done and intriguing, the narrative had a detached quality that made it hard to get excited about the book.
