Bad Karma

TEST

Bad Karma is about a psychic. Wait, don’t run away yet. It’s by Theresa Weir, and it avoids the usual cliches. How often do you read a paranormal novel where the psychic pretends to be a fraud? Or a romance novel where the heroine has an eating disorder?

The small town of Egypt, Missouri has a problem. The town’s master key is missing. The chief of police, Jo, hires a psychic to find the key. Most psychics would turn down such a trivial assignment, but Cleo Tyler takes the job because she needs the money. Rebellious cop Daniel Sinclair is determined to prove that Cleo is a fraud. For reasons of her own, Cleo lets him think what he wants.

Cleo has more important things to worry about. Cleo is a sensitive heroine – in the literal sense. Something about her motel room makes her uncomfortable, and it’s not just the orange curtains, bedspread and rug.. Is Cleo getting bad vibes because a crime was committed in that room? And why did Cleo have eerie visions of an abandoned barn?

Author Weir doesn’t reveal everything about her characters right away. Instead, she shows that she trusts in the intelligence of her readers by planting clues along the way. For example, the reader quickly realizes that Cleo has difficulty eating certain foods, but Weir she doesn’t tell the reader right away that Cleo has an eating problem. It isn’t necessary.

Both Cleo and Daniel blame themselves for tragedies that happened in their pasts, and they have additional burdens to face. Cleo is haunted by her unpredictable powers. The reader will feel her despair – and will never look at the color orange the same way again. Daniel tries to take care of his slower brother, Beau. But sometimes, Beau ends up taking care of him. As the novel progresses, Daniel must admit that Beau can get long without him. The relationship between Cleo and Daniel also follows a bumpy road. The troubled Cleo keeps to herself, so it takes Daniel a long time to trust her.

The town of Egypt comes complete with a colorful cast of supporting characters. You’ll love Beau, who is as obsessively neat and punctual as his brother is rebellious. Another stand-out is Jo, the chief of police. There is also a slimy villain.

The plot of Bad Karma is as quirky as the characters. When I read some romances, I can predict what happens next by how many pages are left. That didn’t happen with this book. Best of all, Bad Karma scored high on my dog-ear test. My what? When I read a book for review, I fold over pages on which I find problems. Some books look like origami by the time I’m done reading. But Bad Karma had very few dog-ears, and none of them were anything serious.

Readers who are tired of the same old thing in romances might want to try on a Theresa Weir novel for size. Fans of Cool Shade don’t have to be psychic to know that they will love this story. If you prefer traditional romances or lighter romances, or if you don’t like reading about troubled characters, this might not be up your alley. Otherwise, run to the bookstore.

Reviewed by Anne Marble

Grade: A

Book Type: Paranormal Romance

Sensuality: Warm

Review Date: 13/05/99

Publication Date: 1999

Recent Comments …

  1. excellent book: interesting, funny dialogs, deep understanding of each character, interesting secondary characters, and also sexy.

I buy too many books, too many weird heavy metal albums, and too many pulp novel reprints.

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