I requested the ARC of Grim Tidings by B. K. Borison because I read Good Spirits last holiday time and really enjoyed it (for what it is, which is tropey contemporary romance). I’ve been waiting all year for #2 of the Ghosted series (episodic), and was disappointed just a little right off the bat because number two is not a Christmastime novel, but a Halloween one, and it’ not even that Halloween-y. It does take place in the same town in the same world (with Easter eggs from book one–I even thought I spotted a clue to the next book), and I do enjoy the whole idea of all these supernatural beings incognito in an old East Coast fishing village. Last time we had a regular mortal and a holiday spirit, this time it’s a grim reaper and an angel.

Blurb: Darcy is tired of the whole death thing, not sure she was ever happy being a grim reaper. For this latest assignment, she wants something different; she wants to be the hero, not the villain. But one look at her and local angel Gabriel just knows she is really bad news. He’ll do anything to thwart her obviously villainous intentions, but the more time he spends with her, the less he’s sure his ancient ideas of the world—and the Department of Hauntings & Spirits—are right. I mean, the tingling sensation he has around her is just because she’s evil, right?

Note: I like this cover about as much as the last one, which is not really at all. Plus, why is there still way too much makeup on the MC?

You can read my review of Good Spirits to get some idea of how this reading went. Though this jumps right into the spice, which is never my favorite—I need a lot of emotional build to appreciate it. And, as in the last one, the spicy scenes got a little technical for my liking.

I also don’t know that the setup really works for this one as well as in Spirits. Like, why is Darcy involving Gabriel in her plans? She wants him to help her save someone, but then he won’t do that, so he’s going to help her with the list that she just threw in there to get him involved and…??? The scene in which this happens just doesn’t sell it to me. I know they have to spend all this time together doing fun things to make the romance work, but I don’t get their motivations strong enough in the text.

All that said, I did like Darcy and Gabriel enough to fly through the book; their romance mostly worked for me. I would call it a fun book, but it didn’t quite live up to Good Sprits, for me. Will I still read Ghosted #3 when it drops (assuming next year for Thanksgiving, or New Year’s, or the Fourth of July, or something)? I would be interested in that, yes. Though I’m even more interested in trying out Borison’s Heartstrings series, beginning with First Time Caller.

But if you’re a fan of romance and also supernatural fantasy (by which I don’t mean romantasy) (and read spice level 3+), you should give this one a read (after its September 15th publication) while you enjoy a PSL. It’ll fly by and you’ll probably have a decent time reading it. And if nitty-gritty spice scenes with not-quite-human characters are your big thing, then this one is perfect for you. I know at least one person I will be recommending this to.