Happy Wednesday Scribblers! How’s your week going? I hope you’re all doing well. I’m back again with a new book for you. Medium Rare by J.P. Jackson (find him here). Let’s jump into the book and my thoughts:
Blurb:
Cade Ivanov has inherited the family curse. Ghosts are everywhere, and lately, very angry. But Cade doesn’t know why. Desperate to be rid of the apparitions, he plans to move to a rural town where he hopes to find peace.
Jay McClaren is a single dad and real estate agent. When an unexpected call comes from a big city Medium looking to purchase, he’s thrilled for the business but is skeptical about his client’s professed abilities.
When Jay’s son starts experiencing violent hauntings, Jay has no choice but to rely on Cade for help. Can Jay and Cade battle the paranormal, or will the dead create a living hell?
My Review:
A Family Drama with Ghosts, Lots of Ghosts!
Did author J.P. Jackson just write his first ever Family Drama? Did he write a novel about family and community? Did he craft a story about people and how we all rely on each other? Did Jackson share a story about love and romance between not only two men, but them and their families? Could I have possibly read a novel by J.P. Jackson that didn’t make me want to hide under the covers, leave all the lights on, and call in a local priest to vanquish evil spirits?
The answer…
Yes. Yes, he did. However, in Jackson’s style you’ll get a dose of horror and gore and a lot of well written and tasteful ‘adult playtime’. Jackson’s words, not mine.
Honestly, this is quite possibly one of the best Romantic Fantasy or Romantic Horror novels I’ve read in a long time. Typically, with Jackson, you are in for a bloody good time with a lot of ‘adult playtime’. He is one of the masters of horror and telling tales that are creepy and dark. Making you not want to turn the next page, but darn it you have to, because you want to find out what happens and you want to find out how his characters are going to get out of the mess Jackson has put them in.
Medium Rare is a lovely story about community and what two men will go through to save and protect not only their family but also their neighbors.
As always, Jackson takes you on a wild adventure through the Canadian Prairie Lands of Alberta, which grounds the story in so much realism that you actually believe these are people going through some difficult times and not a story about some characters. Our two main characters are what you would expect from Jackson; rugged, men in their thirties, who would be classified as Bears. As with all of Jackson’s books you get a healthy dose of these two characters sexual adventure, which are not just thrown into the story to shout to the reader ‘here is your sex scene’. These scenes are used as moments of peace and building connections during some difficult times. This is something Jackson does well and I wish more romance writers would pick up on. In a lot of romance stories, I find I skip the sex scenes because they don’t bring anything to the story or they go on way too long. With Jackson these scenes are crafted in a way that you don’t feel like you’re being bombarded with ‘smut’ just to get the reader off (sorry that’s crass, but I couldn’t think of a better way to explain what I mean).
Romance aside, this is creepy and sweet. You definitely care for everyone involved and you absolutely hope that everything will work out. As always, Jackson’s characters are put through the ringer and you have to worry about if they’ll make it out okay. With Jackson, you can never be too sure.
Honestly, I enjoyed this book and read it one sitting. If you want an excellent romantic horror novel, this is the one for you. Medium Rare is part of the Haunted Hearts an Own-Voices Paranormal Romance Series celebrating own-voice authors and all things creepy and spooky.
There you go, my thoughts on Medium Rare by J.P. Jackson (find out more here). I hope you’ll check it out, as well as the other books in the series (learn more here). Until next time have a great week.