Darynda Jone's First Grave on the Right

Darynda Jones introduces us to Charley Davidson. Charley is a cheeky heroine who is a private investigator, has a contract with the police department since she can talk to the departed (comes in handy for her detective uncle and his case closing stats) to help them solve murders and who is also a Grimm reaper (she is actually in our realm and the departed realm allowing her to talk and touch ghosts as well as humans). First Grave on the Right was surprisingly a cute, corny, and quirky story. We also meet endearing characters…well, except for Reyes, he is just a super-hot sexy mystery.

First Grave on the Right is a great story; it keeps building throughout the novel weaving multiple stories to keep the reader engrossed. The novel has a fun ending that has me wanting to read the next book in this series to see what is next for Charlie and Reyes. I was excited about the back story and history of Reyes and Charlie. It was unexpected and very different from what I anticipated. I appreciated, also, that the author gave us insight into Charlie's childhood and what happened to shape her into the person she is today. Her past definitely lends to the explanation of why she hides behind her shield of sarcasm so people won't look too closely at her.

Darynda Jones is an author for anyone who likes paranormal books and especially cheeky heroines and is stumped on what to read next. I can definitely see why Jones won the RITA award for Best First Book with First Grave on the Right. It will have you laughing, frustrated, tensing up and rooting for Charley and all her bad luck, clumsiness and on the spot decision making.