Review: Beyond The Grave by C.J. Archer

Title: Beyond The Grave

Author: C.J. Archer 

Series: The Ministry of Curiosities #3

Genre: SteamPunk/Paranormal/Historical Fiction

Publisher: Self-Pub

Publication Date: November 24th, 2015

Edition: Complete Series 'Box Set' (Kindle Edition, 284 pages)

Source: Amazon Purchase

Purchase: Amazon US | Barnes & Noble | BAM | Bookshop | Powell's

Synopsis:

   At the request of Lady Harcourt, Charlie and Lincoln begin searching for her missing stepson. Still recovering from her ordeal at the hands of a diabolical villain, Charlie is supposed to be resting. But resting is dull, so she throws herself into the task at hand, much to Lincoln's frustration.

   The search leads them down a dark path littered with family secrets and titillating scandal. Using her necromancy to expose those secrets, Charlie unwittingly raises a spirit with the power to override her control. With a dead body on the loose in London, Charlie and Lincoln must work together to send it back before havoc is unleashed, and the committee members find out.

   Because if they do, they will have more ammunition in their fight to send Charlie away from her home and everyone she loves.

***

   This book picks up just a few days after the end of the previous book and focuses a little more on the romance aspect than the paranormal aspects of the previous books. But with how things ended in book two, it makes sense and there are other plot elements woven through that make story not feel melodramatic and that series has lost focus. 

   The mystery that needed to be solved in this book wasn't what I expected, and at every turn, it became more clear that it was something rather mundane at work with the missing stepson. Even though the mystery didn't unfold the way I thought it was going to, it was still engaging and I enjoyed watching the mystery unfold, learning all the secrets that certain characters tried to keep hidden. Had me wondering how those would be revealed later on, and if Charlie would have the nerve to use it as leverage to keep certain people off her back. 

   I really enjoyed the investigating, seeing Charlie and Lincoln work together, and bringing Charlie (Charlotte) and Lincoln together more. Them coming together required both of them to grow. It required Charlie to step back and allow Lincoln to come to her when he was ready and required Lincoln to stop pushing people away. Lincoln in particular learns to trust others more, and that he doesn't have to work alone on everything.

   I hope to get to the next book soon. These are quick reads, but I kind of want to read them slowly, since they do go by so quickly. I read the synopsis of future books, so I know vaguely where things end up, but I have no idea how they get there, and I am excited to find out.