Paranormal Properties
Paranormal Properties Book One
Paranormal Properties Book One
Tracy Lane
Genre: YA Paranormal
Publisher: Pants on Fire Press
ISBN: 978-0982727171
ASIN: B00BMHF6X6
Number of
pages: 192
Word Count: 33,000
Book Trailer: http://youtu.be/NwIoLYHHznU
Book Description:
Jake Weir, while on
the set of his parents ghost hunting TV show, agrees to help a ghost
investigate a 61 year-old murder.
Jake Weir is not
like the other kids in Dusk, North Carolina. Then again, Dusk, North Carolina
is not like other cities. Known as one of the most haunted cities in America,
behind Salem, Massachusetts and New Orleans, Louisiana, Dusk is ground zero for
Jake's ghost hunting parents.
The Weir family has
arrived in Dusk eager to scope out some of the town's 127 reported
"paranormal properties," which just happens to be the name of their
own ghost hunting show: Paranormal Properties. What Jake doesn't know, and what
his parents could never imagine, is that Jake can see ghosts! And hear them.
And talk back to them! This talent comes in handy when he runs into Dusk's
oldest, most famous ghost: one Frank Barrone, a one-time lounge singer made
famous by his booze-soaked ballad, "Barroom Eyes."
Frank was gunned
down by a local mobster in 1951 and has been searching for his killer ever
since. When he learns that Jake can see and hear him, Frank makes young Jake a
deal: if Jake will help Frank find his killer, Frank will help his parents find
a ghost to film for their upcoming Halloween Special on Public Access Channel
#319. Jake enlists the only friend he's made in Dusk, an overweight tomboy
nicknamed "Tank," to help him track down Frank's killer. As clues
emerge and old leads heat up, Frank and Jake learn they make quite a team. But
will Jake find Frank's killer? And will Frank find a real haunted house in time
for Halloween?
“Paranormal
Properties is a great, family-friendly Young Adult novel about a boy who can
talk to ghosts. Equal parts Scooby-Doo, CSI and the Hardy Boys, you will enjoy
getting to know Jake, Frank and Tank as much as I did. Now, if only ‘Paranormal
Properties’ was a real show I could watch on TV every week…” ~ Rusty
Fischer, author of Zombies Don’t Cry
Short Excerpt:
“Silas…”
The voice was eerie, barely above a whisper. Jake paused, his sneaker
poised above a grave as he stood in the middle of Dusk Cemetery.
It was nearly midnight and he’d grabbed the wrong flashlight before
sneaking out of his bedroom window. It had run out of juice halfway through the
graveyard, and he’d been blindly stumbling around ever since.
The moon was full, but it was frequently obscured by heavy cloud cover
and he had to wait until another patch moved through to see very well.
He wasn’t scared, so much. Jake had a special relationship with
graveyards, and this was far from his first time at the rodeo. Still, it was
the first time a headstone had ever talked to him.
The voice grew louder.
“Silas…”
It was a female voice, sounding dark in a way a ghost might: dark and
deep and frosty.
He risked another step, letting the moonlight guide his path. It was a
big cemetery, and well-maintained as cemeteries go. There were headstones
everywhere, some leaning, some taller than Jake.
“Silas…”
Jake turned to the left to follow the sound. It was coming from a
massive tombstone two feet taller than he was, and three feet wider. He pointed
the flashlight at it, but the beacon was dim, even after he banged it three
times on the palm of his hand.
Then, suddenly, it lit, falling upon the dead soul’s name: “Rose
Colder.”
It was there on the grave stone, but the flashlight flickered out just
before he could read the dates.
“Silas…” came the eerie voice again, so close he could hear the ghost’s
lips smacking.
But, wait. Did ghosts really have lips to smack?
Jake parted his own lips and spoke for the first time since walking
into the graveyard. “R-R-Rose?”
He hadn’t meant to stutter, but he couldn’t help it. He heard a rasp,
or a cough, and then the crunch of dry leaves behind the headstone.
“Silas?” was the reply, and then the rustling of cheap plastic against
flesh. The clouds broke, the moon shone down, and a giant, yellow monster
reared from behind the headstone, smiling.
Smiling?
“Gotcha!” said the beast, in a boastful, girlish voice. It was a girl,
a giant girl, a living girl in a big, yellow raincoat.
“W— who are you?” Jake stammered, trying to hold his ground. He had to
look up a good four inches to see her face.
Her eyes glittered beneath her short, greasy hair. She was heavy, but
with her big smile and that cheerful way about her, she looked more nice than
scary.
“I’m Tank,” she said proudly, inching closer to him with big black and
white sneakers crunching over dry, dead leaves. “Who are you?”
“Jake Weir,” he said, relieved he didn’t stammer that time. “And
who…who’s Silas?”
“Don’t you know?” she asked, sitting down on one of the large marble
slabs that surrounded Rose Colder’s grave. She patted the one next to him, and
he sat, too.
He didn’t know why, but even in a graveyard, even after pranking him in
her big, yellow raincoat that made her look like a linebacker for an NFL team,
this “Tank” girl didn’t scare him.
Much.
“No,” he replied.
Tank frowned. “Rose Colder,” she explained, “snuck out at midnight to
meet her boyfriend, Silas Miner, in this very cemetery over a hundred years
ago. But Silas’s Dad didn’t approve of his son dating a commoner, so he kept
Silas from seeing her and sent a couple of local thugs to teach Rose a lesson.
When the thugs showed up, Rose fought back…and lost. They buried her here, and
legend has it that every night, at midnight, she rises from her grave to take
revenge on the men who ended her life.”
“So…so that’s why you were calling me Silas?”
Tank nodded, and then slugged him on the shoulder. “What are you doing
here, anyway?” Jake shrugged. He didn’t really want to tell her.
She pulled a flashlight from her raincoat pocket and flicked it on,
right in his eyes. “Hey!” He held up a hand to shield his face.
“Wait, hold up.” Tank pointed the beam up. “What’s that on your hat?”
Jake blushed. He’d grabbed the hat at the last minute, not thinking
about it. He had so many of them, and they all looked alike: black ball cap,
neon green writing that spelled “Paranormal Properties.”
“You…you work for that TV show? The ghost hunting one?”
“You know about it?” Jake was surprised. They’d just gotten into town,
and his parents hadn’t even filmed an episode here yet. That’s what he was
doing out in the graveyard at midnight, trying to find something extra special
for a new episode.
Of course, they’d kill him if they found out, but he figured it would
be worth it if they finally got more than a handful of people to watch.
“Know about it?” Tank shouted. “I watch it every week! You know, the
live feed on the web page. We don’t have any local channels that play it.”
Jake beamed in appreciation. “Cool,” he said.
“So,” Tank urged, nudging his knee with her own. He noticed she was
wearing plaid pants under her yellow rain coat. “Do you work for it or what?”
“My Mom is the host. My Dad is the cameraman.”
Tank gasped and shoved Jake with each word. “No. Way! Get. Out. Of.
Town!”
She stopped
shoving him and stood up instead, yanking him by the sleeve of his T-shirt.
Dragging him from the cemetery, she said, “I love your Mom. You have to tell me
all about her.”
“Where are we going?” he asked, finally regaining use of his feet and
catching up to her.
She saw him at her side, looked down and let him go. “There’s a diner
around the corner, open all night. I’m buying you a hot fudge sundae and you’re
going to tell me all about what it’s like to have famous parents.”
“Famous?” he chuckled as he followed her past the cemetery gate. His
Mongoose bike was sitting there, dry and rusty, just where he’d left it.
“Sure thing.” She reached behind some bushes and lifted out a green ten
speed with just one hand.
They mounted their bikes and, now that he was looking for it, Jake saw
the neon sign for the Dusk Diner just around the corner. Yet, something was
still bugging him. “Hey,” he said, “what were you doing in the graveyard at
midnight?”
Tank shrugged. “Couldn’t sleep.”
“So you went to a cemetery?”
She shrugged again, pedaling
off. While struggling to catch up, Jake heard her say, “Hey, I met you, didn’t
I?”
About the Author:
I was fascinated
with the paranormal when I was very young. I always felt like someone was
around me even when I was alone. It caused me to be inspired to write a
paranormal book where a teenager can see and hear ghosts and actually makes
friends with one.
I use to love to
write short stories in school and always wanted to be a writer. But raising
children and working jobs I just could not find the time to indulge my passion.
Then my children grew up and I ended up having two teenagers at home who did
not need as much attention from me. I started toying with the idea of writing
once again. So setting aside 5 to 10 minutes per day to write at least one page
I could end up with a book a year. Now Paranormal Properties is published and I
have a list of 8 more books to write. I don't think I"ll be slowing down
anytime soon.
Goodreads
My Review:
When I saw this cover, I had to read this book. The Cover reminded me of Scooby Doo! I also have met the host of "The Haunting" and I wanted to read about the families tv show. However there is so much more to this book. A 14 year old can talk to ghosts and he is thrown into a world of murder and mobsters. I liked that the family were all involved with each other and I wish that their tv show was really on tv. I LOVED how the author was able to bring 1950's mobsters into the future. I also loved that the name of the town was Dusk, and it was known for being haunted. This book is great for kids that are past Scooby, but not ready for Stephen King. I was along for the mystery, and I did not expect the ending. I can easily see this book becoming a movie for young adults. I love a good ghost story where the ghosts seem like real characters that can walk, talk and be like regular characters. That is what I got with this book! I loved the Halloween "special" that they did in Hill mansion! I am keeping my eye on this author and hope that she keeps writing. This book was also adult enough to keep me interested, because of the way the author incorporated real life drama, that all families go through.
I am giving this book a 5/5. I was given a copy to review, however all opinions are my own!
When I saw this cover, I had to read this book. The Cover reminded me of Scooby Doo! I also have met the host of "The Haunting" and I wanted to read about the families tv show. However there is so much more to this book. A 14 year old can talk to ghosts and he is thrown into a world of murder and mobsters. I liked that the family were all involved with each other and I wish that their tv show was really on tv. I LOVED how the author was able to bring 1950's mobsters into the future. I also loved that the name of the town was Dusk, and it was known for being haunted. This book is great for kids that are past Scooby, but not ready for Stephen King. I was along for the mystery, and I did not expect the ending. I can easily see this book becoming a movie for young adults. I love a good ghost story where the ghosts seem like real characters that can walk, talk and be like regular characters. That is what I got with this book! I loved the Halloween "special" that they did in Hill mansion! I am keeping my eye on this author and hope that she keeps writing. This book was also adult enough to keep me interested, because of the way the author incorporated real life drama, that all families go through.
I am giving this book a 5/5. I was given a copy to review, however all opinions are my own!
This also reminded me of Mr. Boogedy, just not a comedy.
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