Crossing into the Mystic by DL Koontz Review with Giveaway!

• #TheCrossingsTrilogy
• Now and then, you see something that alters how you view the world. 

That's what teen orphan Grace MacKenna learns in this paranormal suspense novel, Into the Mystic, the first book in The Crossings Trilogy. 

Death, ghosts and the foibles of the living all collide together for our insufferably independent protagonist as she escapes from a volatile aunt in Boston to the secluded mountains of West Virginia, wrestles with lingering anger over the horrific deaths of her parents and sister, finds unexpected friendships in the local riverside town, and tackles a budding romantic triangle with two very different young men one living, one dead. 

In her isolated mountainside home, Grace discovers how to see and talk with ghosts. In particular, she is pulled into the life of a dashing Civil War ghost, William, and unwittingly finds herself helping him resolve unfinished business so he can cross into the hereafter. 

But is Grace actually experiencing angels and demons in disguise? Will she find out too late? And will her developing love for the ghost affect her decisions regarding her real-life romance? Before learning the answers, you ll journey with her to the backwoods flatlands of Georgia, and to Antietam Battlefield (during a full moon "when the divide between life and death is weakest...") where Grace interacts with menacing ghosts. 

Join Grace as she learns that forbidden love can make demands that teeter between life and death.

D. L. Koontz (aka Debra Koontz Roberson) was born in Pennsylvania, but with her husband Joe, now splits her time between mountainous West Virginia and their cattle ranch in coastal plains Georgia. She has one son, Matthew, and one step-daughter, Megan. She is a member of ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers) and ASJA (American Society of Journalists and Authors), and is a former journalist, business owner, and college instructor. She has been writing since she penned an award-winning poem in fifth grade. In an earlier career, she wrote non-fiction books, but that work came to a screeching halt on September 11, 2001, whereupon she gave up writing. Turns out, it never gave up on her, so a couple years ago, she listened to her heart and began writing The Crossings Trilogy. Her first novel is Crossing Into the Mystic. She writes about what she knows: muddled lives, nail-biting unknowns and eternal hope. Find her at: www.dlkoontz.com.




My Thoughts

Crossing Into the Mystic is a story of a 16 year old orphan, Grace who lives with her aunt and is unhappy living there. When she is willed an old mansion, Crossings, from her stepfather she leaps at the chance for independence and to find out why she is now the owner of this neglected home. Upon getting to the house, she finds that the mansion is eerily intact, with furnishings and other items straight out of the Civil War era, including a ghost of a war veteran who died at a young age in the home. There is unfinished business on his part and he enlists Grace's help so he can cross over. He was murdered and he needs closure as to why so he can move on. Grace meets a lot of locals, including Clay who she can give her heart to but is reluctant because she is also attracted to the ghost Will.

The story is well written and full of Civil War stories, a bit of romance, and mystery. See, Grace finds out that she can 'see' the ghosts wandering that have not been able to cross over because of unfinished business. How awesome to be able to see ghosts of days past, but creepy at the same time. I especially found the scenes at the cemetery gave me goosebumps. Grace soon learns how to interact or ignore these entities so that she can learn what happened to Will and find out she does.

This is part of a trilogy, the next book being Edging Through the Darkness, in which Grace discovers more secrets of her ancestral home. Crossing Into the Mystic was an easy book to get into, fast paced and I found the characters well thought out and this trilogy can be read by the adult and YA audience. A clean read but it does have romantic elements to it. I enjoyed this story and look forward to reading the next in the trilogy.

I received a copy of the book through Tomoson for review and was not monetarily compensated for said review.

Giveaway!
For this giveaway, just leave a comment telling me what you are doing this summer!..That is it! Plus, leave your email so I can contact you should you win! Ends July 20th!