Title:  Defending the Dead
Series:  Relatively Dead Mysteries #3
Author:  Sheila Connolly
Genre:  Paranormal, Mystery, Romance
Published:  April 28, 2015
Publisher:  Beyond the Page Publishing
My Rating:  3 stars
Source:  NetGalley
Synopsis:

Abby Kimball has slowly accepted her recently discovered ability to see the dead, but none of the harmless sightings she’s experienced could have prepared her for the startling apparition of a centuries-old courtroom scene—where she locks eyes with a wicked and gleeful accuser. Thrown back more than three hundred years, Abby realizes she’s been plunged into a mystery that has fascinated people throughout American history: the Salem witch trials.

With her boyfriend Ned at her side, Abby digs into the history of the events, researching the people and possible causes of that terrible time and her own connection to them—all the while going more deeply into her connection to Ned, both extraordinary and romantic.

As Abby witnesses more fragments from the events in Salem and struggles with the question of how such a nightmare could have come about, she’s suddenly confronted with a pressing personal question: Were one or more of her ancestors among the accused? Unraveling the puzzling clues behind that question just might give Abby and Ned the answer to a very modern mystery of their own.

Read on for my thoughts on Defending the Dead.  No true spoilers, promise.

The Salem Witch Trials have always fascinated me.  Mass hysteria?  Or something more?  And honestly, it’s difficult to relate to the life lived back in that time mainly because it is so primitive compared to modern day.  What I might see as normal today – television – would seem like pure magic in that time period.

So I opened up Defending the Dead with anticipation, and was rewarded with a very good story.  Now I have to say, I wish I had read the earlier novels in this series first, just for more background and to know the characters at the beginning of their journey.  That does not mean that you have to, just a personal preference of mine.  I will go back and read the earlier novels, and perhaps you’ll see them reviewed here in the future.

Abby can see the dead, those in her ancestral line that is.  Recently she is seeing entire historical scenes playing out in front of her.  Scenes from Salem Witch Trials.  She is not prepared the the absolute anger directed at her from one of the ghosts in this scene.  And she begins researching the town of Salem and its infamous witch trials.

I enjoyed Defending the Dead very much.  Ned, Abby’s boyfriend, and his daughter, Ellie, also have the gift (or curse) of seeing the dead.  It was interesting to see three different people approach this ability from different points of view.  And most importantly, helping young Ellie deal with her ability.

The research for this novel with the Salem Witch Trials at its center was amazing.  I closed the book feeling that I had not only enjoyed a good story, but that I also learned about a painful time in our country’s history.

Highly recommend for anyone who loves a touch of realistic history within their stories as well as those who love the world of the paranormal.  And really who doesn’t love a good love story, which is at the base of this novel.  Pick it up and enjoy.

*I received an e-ARC of Defending the Dead from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. That does not change what I think of this novel.*

Available for the Kindle