The Girl on Legare Street by Karen White

#2 Tradd Street
Copyright: 2009
Publisher: Penguin
Genre: Mystery
Pages: 335
Author's Website
My rating: 3/5


Simple Description: 
Melanie's mother deserted her over 30 years ago when she was just a child, leaving her to fend for herself with her psychic abilities and an alcoholic father.  Now her mother shows back up in her life and wants her to be her realtor to help purchase back the historical family home on Legare street.  Melanie has a lot of baggage when it comes to being abandoned as a child (who wouldn't) and wants nothing to do with her mother.  

However one of the spirits in the house has become too strong for just her mother to deal with. Her mom knows that she needs Melanie's help to put the spirit to rest and at the same time she wants to get to know her daughter.

Melanie's family is also making headlines. A sailboat was found off the coast and while divers were investigating it a trunk was found with human remains in it.  The sailboat belonged to her ancestors.  This could also be tied in with the violent ghost at Legare street because Melanie and her mother both smell the ocean at times.  A journalist has also shown up in their lives and is making things very difficult.

My Thoughts:
I liked the first in the series, The House on Tradd Street, but didn't love it.  I decided to buddy read the second in the series with some friends to see if the series picked up for me.  Unfortunately it didn't.  The problem is with Melanie. It's hard to really get into a book when you can't connect with the lead character. It's not that I don't like Melanie, it's just that she spends a lot of time whining over her mother abandoning her as a child.  Now, I get it, that's a very traumatic experience.  The problem is that I felt like it was dwelled on a little too much.  She also keeps pushing away Jack even though she really loves him, then getting jealous when he shows interest in somebody else. I just wanted to shake her sometimes.

The mystery aspect of this book and the paranormal aspect were both good.  I had figured it out, for the most part, somewhat early on yet it was still interesting to see the characters figure it out. Melanie learned a bit more about her abilities and grew in that regard, which I felt was good for the book and the series in general.

While this one fell a bit flat for me it was still a good/interesting read.  I kinda doubt I'll continue with the series, there is a 3rd out already.  Not connecting with Melanie just keeps me from wanting to go further.  I'll be interested to see what my friends think once they finish reading it though.