3 out of 4 stars
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Horror and romance are combined in Carol Hibbs’ novel, Forever Ends. When Gabrielle Bowman moves to Gimli, she has a feeling that her new house harbors strange secrets. She is not daunted by the mysteriousness of the place, especially when she starts dating her handsome neighbor, Ryan, and befriends his young daughter, Tess, who latches on to her as a motherly figure. That’s until she meets Christina, a ghostly little girl who loves popping up in her new home for cookies and tea. Gabrielle is not fazed by the friendly ghost until she begins receiving sinister messages in the house. Gabrielle vows to uncover the child’s secrets with the assistance of her sons and a few friends. They discover a terrifying truth. Gabrielle’s new home once contained satanic emblems and is the gateway to a dimensional hell. As Gabrielle tries to save Christina from an evil demon, tensions rise when it suddenly kidnaps Tess.
I curled up with this book on a rainy day and it did not disappoint. Although the storyline is popular for a lot of horror movies, Gabrielle’s character isn’t. In most horror books and movies, the protagonist is initially very terrified, but I admired Gabrielle’s nonchalant attitude towards having sinister, ghostly elements in her house. In addition, she is quite strange herself as she enjoys carving horned gargoyles from wood. She also has the ability to absorb pain from others and to glean psychic information from dreams.
The romantic aspect of this book is also well done. Despite the strange things going on with Gabrielle, the author also provides insights into Ryan’s life, such as his profession in cabin building, his family, and his musical interests. I got a clear picture of his backstory. As a result, Ryan did not seem like an accessory to the story and his relationship with Gabrielle did not feel forced. The story also contains steamy scenes, which were all deliciously written.
However, in my opinion, there should have been more focus on the paranormal part of the story. The demonic possession of Devin, the demonologist, could have been described a bit more, especially his physical features – did his eyes glaze over, or did they turn into black pits of demonic energy? I was also curious about what the spiritual house cleanse entails, but it is not described in the book. I also think that Gabrielle’s wooden gargoyles could have been a supernatural tool in the book. Gabrielle’s character borders on becoming witch-like and I would have loved to read more about this. Additionally, the title did not fit this story. It needs something much more edgy and mysterious.
The errors are minimal in this book and the few that I noticed did not distract me from the story. I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars for its unique lead character and its successful mix of romance and horror. Ideally, I would have given it 3.5 stars due to its slightly lacking delivery of the paranormal elements, but decimal ratings are not accepted. Forever Ends is recommended for horror, fantasy, and romance fans.
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Forever Ends
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