Whispers
Romance Books

Blue Moon by Carla Ledbetter

eBooks N' Bytes Reviews

Five Stars, Outstanding

The beautiful and emotional curator, Mary Corbett, reluctantly agrees to assess the aging Louisiana plantation as a favor to one of her colleagues. The moment she discovers that the handsome but married, Jack Windom, will be her partner for the unwanted assignment, her heart skips a beat... of course, it had to be the man who she had been attracted to and rejected by 5 years ago!

During their appraisal of the property, their mutual affections blossom and Mary learns that a Blue Moon will appear that night aimed at bringing lost souls back together. Mary and Jack are urged to attend the Blue Moon voodoo ceremony given by the elderly housekeeper, Sadie, who happens to be a voodoo high-priestess.

Upon Jack's return to aid his dying wife, Mary travels back to Boston to try to pick up where she left off. She quickly discovers that it will not be easy when she is plagued with nightmares about the deaths of the former owners of the plantation.

Mary convinces her wealthy Aunt Elizavon to buy the plantation to renovate and transform into a bed and breakfast so that Mary can search the place for clues to the mystery. Little did she expect the intruders, surprises, and dangers that befall her during those weeks in the plantation -- never mind the fact that Jack decides to bring his wife to visit...

Carla Ledbetter's expert descriptions of the run-down plantation paint a vivid picture to accompany the fast-moving plot. Her characters are well-developed, believable, and exude vulnerability. Each has their own weaknesses and I love how she lets the reader inside their minds to see what is motivating their actions from the determined Mary standing up to her cold-hearted aunt, Elizavon, to the manipulations of the vivaciously evil, Nicole Martine.

Blue Moon is a riveting suspense and romance story which dares you to keep reading regardless of the late hour. You become attached to the characters and my only regret is that it leaves you wanting more!

Now forever a Ledbetter fan, I am eagerly awaiting the sequel!

Review by Eva Almeida : eBooks N' Bytes Reviews
http://www.ebooksnbytes.com

Excerpt

Old love letters spoke of courtship rituals where men had wooed the hand of a maiden with charm and chivalry. Tattered and faded embroidered tablecloths brought back an age when embroidery was an art passed by women from generation to generation. How could today’s history books offer the diversity and wealth of information her work brought, when all they did was present facts in such a dry, straightforward manner? Mary's job took her deep into the lives and loves of people from the past. By the time she finished inventorying their possessions, she sometimes felt as if she knew them as well as her closest associates. Her job as a curator might be demanding at times, and traveling could be downright awful, but it was never dull.

Even with the overwhelming demands of work, she still found time for an active social life. Whenever she was home, outings with male and female friends filled her spare time. She was perfectly happy with the way things were. At least until now.

At thirty-five, she was hardly an old maid on the shelf. She knew the opposite sex found her willowy figure attractive, to say nothing of her green eyes and thick, red-gold hair. Unlike most redheads, she hadn’t been blessed with an abundance of freckles, and her fair skin seldom burned, even when she spent hours on the beach soaking up rays of summer sunshine.

Although she wasn’t seriously involved with anyone, she wasn’t in the least depressed about being single. She’d had two proposals, but declined them when her instincts told her to wait. A husband and a family would be wonderful, but if that didn’t happen, she was content with life the way it was.

The clock on the wall chimed, filling her office with the music of chattering birds. A whimsical gift from her boss, he’d insisted that she hang it in her office "to remind her to take her nose out of a reference book once in a while and pay attention to mother nature’s beauty". Her dismal mood evaporated and she straightened her shoulders. Her five minutes of "poor me" were up. It was time to get back to work.

Her gaze strayed to Tony’s manila envelope. Last year she’d spent Christmas in a drafty old house in upstate New York. She couldn’t be that unlucky again. She took a deep breath and withdrew the stack of papers.

It was an old plantation house in central Louisiana, about a hundred miles north of Baton Rouge. This assignment might not be too bad, after all. She’d always wanted the chance to work on a plantation. If nothing else, at least she wouldn't have to put up with snow and ice for a couple of weeks.

Hopefully, if there was a local bed and breakfast, she could stay there, instead of a hotel. With any luck, she might be able to get the owner to give her some tips about what it took to successfully run the business. Although she loved her job, she’d always dreamed of owning her own bed and breakfast, and had already saved enough money for a down payment. Maybe this time she’d find the right location. Her daydream over, she focused her attention once more on the matter at hand. This assignment would be a joint inventory with their chief competitor, Brannon Enterprises. A friendly rivalry existed between the two firms, and she'd already worked with them on several large jobs. If she was lucky, she’d be teamed up with someone who shared her passion for antiques. She had little time or patience for curators who did only the minimum to get the job done. They were the ones who gave her profession a bad name, and she had no qualms about telling them so. Unfortunately, whenever she spoke up, any working relationship quickly dissolved into a tedious test of wills. Luckily, she’d yet to come across anyone whose will or knowledge was greater than hers.

She rifled through the attachments and breathed a sigh of relief when she located the "Judgement of Possession," the only document issued once the estate had been legally transferred to the new owners by the court. Without it, she'd be forced to wade through a ton of red tape and make several court appearances.

Either the contents of this plantation were worth a fortune, or the heirs had more money than sense. Hiring two firms instead of one didn't come cheap, especially these two. Another thought struck her and she smiled. Maybe the heirs didn’t trust each other. That would explain why they wanted two appraisals. One company could keep an eye on the other. Her spirits lifted and she chuckled quietly. This job was going to be interesting, one way or another.