Scan barcode
chloeinbooksland's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
It was an ok read.
a_reader_obsessed's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 Stars
I know I sound like I’m on auto repeat, but this was consistent DSP Beyond fare encompassing a pretty good ghostly premise.
Cruz, being the great guy that he is, grudgingly agrees to help his bff Etienne debunk a supposed haunted house again since Etienne is a little worse for wear after recently being hurt. He wouldn’t normally be up for these ghostly confirmations, but seeing as how Etienne already ruled it out twice before, this would be easy money for Cruz as the customer’s simply requesting one last check. What Cruz doesn’t expect is to confront a hostile son ready to call him out on his nonexistent abilities.
Brody doesn’t want to see his father swindled, especially since there’s no such thing as ghosts, right? Unfortunately, his father is super stubborn and insistent that the house is haunted and is willing to pay an exorbitant amount, but Brody is determined to show that ghosts aren’t real and that Cruz is an imposter. However, what Brody doesn’t realize is that he’s closer to the ghosts than he ever suspected, and they’re definitely not the friendly kind. He also doesn’t expect to feel such a strong attraction and connection to the handsome kind stranger, but Brody can’t seem to help himself.
As Cruz and Brody get to know each other and try to figure out their paranormal situation, they of course develop feelings. Cruz is super sweet and easily the nicest guy on the planet. Brody has a big chip on his shoulder but with good reason, and he easily and understandably falls under Cruz’s affable charm.
Overall, this had a good mix of sexy and paranormal suspense. Regarding the audio, the character Brody, was quite incongruent with the rest of the wonderful narration by Simon Ferrar - I enjoyed everything about his performance except when it came to this MC’s voice. Regardless, this was a very good start to a new series, and I definitely look forward to Etienne’s story!
I know I sound like I’m on auto repeat, but this was consistent DSP Beyond fare encompassing a pretty good ghostly premise.
Cruz, being the great guy that he is, grudgingly agrees to help his bff Etienne debunk a supposed haunted house again since Etienne is a little worse for wear after recently being hurt. He wouldn’t normally be up for these ghostly confirmations, but seeing as how Etienne already ruled it out twice before, this would be easy money for Cruz as the customer’s simply requesting one last check. What Cruz doesn’t expect is to confront a hostile son ready to call him out on his nonexistent abilities.
Brody doesn’t want to see his father swindled, especially since there’s no such thing as ghosts, right? Unfortunately, his father is super stubborn and insistent that the house is haunted and is willing to pay an exorbitant amount, but Brody is determined to show that ghosts aren’t real and that Cruz is an imposter. However, what Brody doesn’t realize is that he’s closer to the ghosts than he ever suspected, and they’re definitely not the friendly kind. He also doesn’t expect to feel such a strong attraction and connection to the handsome kind stranger, but Brody can’t seem to help himself.
As Cruz and Brody get to know each other and try to figure out their paranormal situation, they of course develop feelings. Cruz is super sweet and easily the nicest guy on the planet. Brody has a big chip on his shoulder but with good reason, and he easily and understandably falls under Cruz’s affable charm.
Overall, this had a good mix of sexy and paranormal suspense. Regarding the audio, the character Brody, was quite incongruent with the rest of the wonderful narration by Simon Ferrar - I enjoyed everything about his performance except when it came to this MC’s voice. Regardless, this was a very good start to a new series, and I definitely look forward to Etienne’s story!
cmira2027's review against another edition
4.0
Loved this! It was such a fun read, I connected immediately with the story and didn't want to put it down. Cruz and Brody are such likable men, I wanted them to find a solution to the ghostly haunting so they could have their HEA. Etienne and Simone were great secondary characters, I would love to learn more about them and the Paranormal investigations. Maybe another book?, I'd like to see a romance for Etienne!
the_novel_approach's review against another edition
4.0
Dreamspinner Press met the demand for category romance with its Dreamspun Desires house line, and now, for those of us who enjoy when our fiction delves into the realms of the strange and unusual, there’s Dreamspun Beyond, all the romance you could possibly want but with a supernatural twist.
Vivien Dean’s The Charlatan’s Conquest is the second release in this fledgling line, and appears it may be the first book in a planned series set within this -verse. Dean fulfilled my expectations of a paranormal storyline in which two people falling for each other is its driving force, and I was drawn into things from the opening few paragraphs that preface Chapter One, a scene that, as it turns out, happens a bit farther along in the story. Here there be ghosts, of course, but where the premise could have adhered to the ‘been there, read that’ haunting of Loren Weber’s house, the author leads readers to the fork in the plot road, and we end up somewhere just a bit more unique and unexpected.
Loren has tried multiple times to convince expert in all things ghostly, Etienne Newman, that there is paranormal activity in his home. The problem is that there isn’t, but Etienne hasn’t had much success in convincing Loren otherwise, to the point that Loren is willing to pay Etienne an exorbitant amount of money—an amount Etienne threw out in an effort to dissuade Loren, never expecting the man to agree to it—for one more attempt at exorcising his unwanted specters. This is where Cruz Guthrie is thrown into the story’s spotlight. As Etienne’s best friend, Cruz is persuaded to step in, in the injured Etienne’s place, to go through the motions of evicting Loren’s unwelcome, albeit non-existent, house guests—because the twenty thousand dollars Loren is willing to shell out will go a long way towards helping Cruz’s family.
The red flags go up when Loren’s semi-estranged son, Brody, discovers that his father is still pursuing the ridiculous notion that ghosts exist, let alone that they’re squatting in his childhood home, and Loren is shelling out ridiculous sums of money on top of it. Brody’s set to expose Cruz for the charlatan he quite literally is—until strange things, inexplicable things, happen that cause the skeptical scientist in Brody to reexamine not only his beliefs but some of the things he’s spent the decades since his mom’s death convincing himself couldn’t and shouldn’t be possible, as well. Brody learns something about himself that explains so much, something I could see playing into the future of the series, and I’m looking forward to it with the hopes we also get to learn more about Etienne.
Doing what Cruz knows is the wrong thing, but doing it anyway because his reasons couldn’t be more unselfish, provides for the tension in the story; although, it’s a lowkey tension, which figures as a mainstay of this line of romantic fiction. If there’s conflict, it’s typically short-lived, so readers who enjoy a book that doesn’t delve into the over-angsty ought to appreciate this. Like anyone who is keeping secrets, Cruz fears how Brody will react when it comes to light that Cruz is more computer than ghost literate, and has only trained and practiced just enough with Etienne (and Etienne’s highly qualified accomplice) to pass as a practitioner of the supernatural. Cruz is such a white knight that it didn’t take long for Brody (or this reader) to be charmed by his kindness and warmth.
I enjoyed the paranormal elements of this story. I wouldn’t say they are frightening—not in my own estimation of scary, anyway—as much as they are fascinating, but their true purpose, apart from adding something fun to the mix, is to unite Brody and Cruz, which it succeeds in doing. Watching them fall for each other is a sweet and heartwarming journey through some more difficult external challenges. I will say that there were some things I had to let go and suspend my disbelief of, namely the connection between Loren, Brody, and the ghosts (specifics would be spoilery), but that’s based in my own pragmatism rather than a criticism of the story itself. I mean, if you can’t suspend some disbelief while reading a ghost story, when can you?
As is the goal of any romance, in the end I was glad to see Cruz and Brody get their happy beginning. The Charlatan’s Conquest is both charming and clever, a slow burn romance with a paranormal twist that keeps it from becoming anything but ordinary. As a first time reading of an author’s work goes, I was impressed by how effortlessly I was drawn in by Dean’s voice and characters. The pages flew by as I became more engrossed in the story, which is always a reliable marker of a good reading experience.
Reviewed by Lisa for The Novel Approach
Vivien Dean’s The Charlatan’s Conquest is the second release in this fledgling line, and appears it may be the first book in a planned series set within this -verse. Dean fulfilled my expectations of a paranormal storyline in which two people falling for each other is its driving force, and I was drawn into things from the opening few paragraphs that preface Chapter One, a scene that, as it turns out, happens a bit farther along in the story. Here there be ghosts, of course, but where the premise could have adhered to the ‘been there, read that’ haunting of Loren Weber’s house, the author leads readers to the fork in the plot road, and we end up somewhere just a bit more unique and unexpected.
Loren has tried multiple times to convince expert in all things ghostly, Etienne Newman, that there is paranormal activity in his home. The problem is that there isn’t, but Etienne hasn’t had much success in convincing Loren otherwise, to the point that Loren is willing to pay Etienne an exorbitant amount of money—an amount Etienne threw out in an effort to dissuade Loren, never expecting the man to agree to it—for one more attempt at exorcising his unwanted specters. This is where Cruz Guthrie is thrown into the story’s spotlight. As Etienne’s best friend, Cruz is persuaded to step in, in the injured Etienne’s place, to go through the motions of evicting Loren’s unwelcome, albeit non-existent, house guests—because the twenty thousand dollars Loren is willing to shell out will go a long way towards helping Cruz’s family.
The red flags go up when Loren’s semi-estranged son, Brody, discovers that his father is still pursuing the ridiculous notion that ghosts exist, let alone that they’re squatting in his childhood home, and Loren is shelling out ridiculous sums of money on top of it. Brody’s set to expose Cruz for the charlatan he quite literally is—until strange things, inexplicable things, happen that cause the skeptical scientist in Brody to reexamine not only his beliefs but some of the things he’s spent the decades since his mom’s death convincing himself couldn’t and shouldn’t be possible, as well. Brody learns something about himself that explains so much, something I could see playing into the future of the series, and I’m looking forward to it with the hopes we also get to learn more about Etienne.
Doing what Cruz knows is the wrong thing, but doing it anyway because his reasons couldn’t be more unselfish, provides for the tension in the story; although, it’s a lowkey tension, which figures as a mainstay of this line of romantic fiction. If there’s conflict, it’s typically short-lived, so readers who enjoy a book that doesn’t delve into the over-angsty ought to appreciate this. Like anyone who is keeping secrets, Cruz fears how Brody will react when it comes to light that Cruz is more computer than ghost literate, and has only trained and practiced just enough with Etienne (and Etienne’s highly qualified accomplice) to pass as a practitioner of the supernatural. Cruz is such a white knight that it didn’t take long for Brody (or this reader) to be charmed by his kindness and warmth.
I enjoyed the paranormal elements of this story. I wouldn’t say they are frightening—not in my own estimation of scary, anyway—as much as they are fascinating, but their true purpose, apart from adding something fun to the mix, is to unite Brody and Cruz, which it succeeds in doing. Watching them fall for each other is a sweet and heartwarming journey through some more difficult external challenges. I will say that there were some things I had to let go and suspend my disbelief of, namely the connection between Loren, Brody, and the ghosts (specifics would be spoilery), but that’s based in my own pragmatism rather than a criticism of the story itself. I mean, if you can’t suspend some disbelief while reading a ghost story, when can you?
As is the goal of any romance, in the end I was glad to see Cruz and Brody get their happy beginning. The Charlatan’s Conquest is both charming and clever, a slow burn romance with a paranormal twist that keeps it from becoming anything but ordinary. As a first time reading of an author’s work goes, I was impressed by how effortlessly I was drawn in by Dean’s voice and characters. The pages flew by as I became more engrossed in the story, which is always a reliable marker of a good reading experience.
Reviewed by Lisa for The Novel Approach
More...