REVIEW: Haunted Ever After by Jen DeLuca

Haunted Ever After by Jen DeLuca: When people think about Florida they normally think about sun, sand and theme parks but for the small coastal town of Boneyard Keys, things are a bit more on the spooky side and the residents are more than used to playing up their ghostly history if it means they can drum up a bit of tourism. No one knows this better than Hallowed Grounds coffee shop owner Nick Royer, while he might be used to the spooky the last thing he wants is to be ghosted by his new cute neighbour.

With all of her friends either getting married or popping out babies, Cassie cant help but feel bit out of place, so an impulsive move from Orlando to Boneyard might just be the thing she needs. So what if the town has colourful history and there are slightly weird and quirky things going on in her recently flipped historic cottage, this is her new home… it also doesn’t hurt that the cute coffee shop owner has taken a liking to her even slipping her free banana bread and telling her all about the towns spooky past… the only problem is Cassie isn’t sure if she is getting to deep to fast…

“Ghosts were real. Nick was a damn good kisser. She wasn’t sure which one was scarier. Or more exciting.”

I love a good haunted or spooky romcom and this book sounded just like the thing I would eat up and let me just tell you Haunted Ever After did not disappoint. I loved that this wasn’t a paranormal romance in the sense that there was a ghost or supernatural love interest, this was a romance with some spooky goodness thrown in for extra effect. There was so much to love about this book from all the punny goodness to the magical realism, also I’m simply a sucker for a grump meets sunshine romcom.

I loved Cassie, her character felt so relatable and I could completely understand how she felt with all of her friends moving on to a different place in their lives but with her feeling stuck and left out. I truly believe this book was the best thing she could have done for herself, while it takes a lot of guts to up and move, I love that even though she was scared she did this for herself. One of the things I really enjoyed about her character was getting to see her grown as the book progressed, we get to see her overcome her fears and learn to accept the ghosts, but we also get to see her learn to value herself more and leave the old friend group behind. Now for our hero, well I just adored Nick. This guy was the sweetest most perfect hero ever. There really wasn’t anything I did not love about this guy, I mean how can you fault a guy that is so self aware and in touch with his feelings. While he was reluctant to allow Cassie into his heart because of his fear of being left again, I couldn’t help but love the care in which he took to make Cassie feel secure. Truly this guy was hero gold and I loved that he was a tiny bit of a grump.

I absolutely loved how interactive the ghosts in this book were, truly Boneyard Keys was an incredible little town that I have fast come to love. I mean how can you not love the idea of having a house ghost that can chat with you over text and criticise your work, or having your ghost housemate send you messages using fridge magnets? I loved the role that Sarah played in bring Cassie and Nick together and all her quirky moments throughout the book, she was a brilliant supporting character and I loved seeing the bond between her and Cassie grow. This was just brilliant, and if you are a fan of the show Ghosts then you will definitely love this book! A total must read from me, if you like a bit of mystery, more than a few giggles and some good ole slow burn romance then this is the book for you!

Book Info:

Publication: August 13, 2024 | Berkley | Boneyard Key #1

Small Florida coastal towns often find themselves scrambling for the tourism dollars that the Orlando theme parks leave behind. And within the town limits of Boneyard Key, the residents decided long ago to lean into its ghostliness. Nick Royer, owner of the Hallowed Grounds coffee shop, embraces the ghost tourism that keeps the local economy afloat, as well as his spectral roommate. At least he doesn’t have to run air-conditioning.

Cassie Rutherford possibly overreacted to all her friends getting married and having kids by leaving Orlando and buying a flipped historic cottage in Boneyard Key. Though there’s something unusual with her new home (her laptop won’t charge in any outlets, and the poetry magnets on her fridge definitely didn’t read “WRONG” and “MY HOUSE” when she put them up), she’s charmed by the colorful history surrounding her. And she’s catching a certain vibe from the grumpy coffee shop owner whenever he slips her a free slice of banana bread along with her coffee order.

As Nick takes her on a ghost tour, sharing town gossip that tourists don’t get to hear, and they spend nights side-by-side looking into the former owners of her haunted cottage, their connection solidifies into something very real and enticing. But Cassie’s worried she’s in too deep with this whole (haunted) home ownership thing… and Nick’s afraid to get too close in case Cassie gets scared away for good.