About the Book
Book: Night Falls on Predicament Avenue
Author: Jaime Jo Wright
Genre: Mystery/Thriller
Release Date: April 9, 2024
In 1910, Effie James is living a dream for two. Her younger sister is harboring a secret that has left timid Effie determined to fulfill her daring sister’s grand plan of seeking out adventure in their small Iowa town. When a British gentleman arrives, disrupting their peace with efforts to find the wife many claim lived her final days at the now abandoned house at 322 Predicament Avenue, Effie is thrust into intrigue she couldn’t have prepared for. But what she finds inside will forever link her to the scandal staining the house’s walls and to a woman whose secrets promise a curse.
A century later, Norah Richman is living out her late-twin’s dream of running their great aunt’s bed-and-breakfast on Predicament Avenue–a place Norah believes nothing good can come out of after her sister’s abduction and murder thirteen years ago. Her first guest is a crime historian and podcaster, and Norah resolves to stay far away from the charming and enigmatic man–until another guest is found dead. As they dig deeper, something sinister unfurls that will reveal an ominous unknown far greater than the possibility of death itself.
Click here to get your copy!
About the Author
Jaime Jo, the coffee-fueled and cat-fancier extraordinaire, has entwined her life with the legendary Captain Hook, residing serenely in Wisconsin’s rural woodlands.
Her literary vocation involves penning Gothic tales, a baffling change from that of Austenites, with a preference to the master of dark, Edgar Allan Poe.
More from Jaime Jo
True crime did NOT just become popular in this century! Scour the old newspapers for a full and detailed telling of the latest crime. That’s how I got the idea for Night Falls on Predicament Avenue! Yes! I read an old newspaper article from the late 1800’s in which they described in quite delectable detail, the crime scene of a murder in a house with questionable history. That being said, it’s also important to note, that forensics DID just recently become popular in the last 50-100 years. In the 1800’s, if you were murdered, it was common for your neighbor to tour and trample over your crime scene out of curiosity and/or the hope they might be of service in solving the crime. More likely than not, they were merely wanna-be podcast listeners of true crime shows simply born too early for that technological advancement.
My Impressions
“I can hear the darkness.”
“Sometimes findin’ out the truth is too painful. It’s easier to figure out how to get by an’ pretend the past doesn’t haunt you.”
Haunted, I am. Jaime Jo Wright, led by her self-acknowledged muse of Edgar Alan Poe, offers up one of her eeriest novels yet. What makes Wright, with her themes of death and fear so beloved?
For some, it may be the tendency towards the macabre. Wright pens this dual timeline and includes interludes of an unreliable narrator, totally obsessed with death and God’s judgment. At first, I questioned why I was reading something so dark. However, having read several of Wright’s books, I know that eventually the mysteries will be explained, and specters will be unmasked. Eventually, breaking through the dark clouds of the shadow of death, Wright will present that Ray of Hope that shines brightly enough to tunnel through the darkness victoriously.
Small town Shepherd, Iowa, holds secrets as it sees two murders a century apart. In 1901, the bankers’ daughters, Polly and Effie James, witness a terrible occurrence at 322 Predicament Avenue. Polly, terminally ill, becomes almost comatose after being an eye-witness. Effie, the bookish and more rule-oriented of the two, searches for a way to bring her sister back from what she believes is a premature sickness. Society conspires against Effie at every turn. At risk to her own reputation, Effie befriends a newcomer to town and starts investigating with him, breaking every expectation her parents have for her future.
Nearly a century later, Nora Richman owns 322 Predicament Avenue, capitalizing on its dark history to attract visitors to her B and B. A true-crime podcaster comes to stay, ruffling Nora’s nerves as he revives the two murders, one being that of Nora’s twin sister a decade earlier. Nora is a shell of herself since that event, barely able to leave her home, and wants nothing to do with resurrecting the hurtful past. Another death and a second visitor to the house sets in motion a course of events that could totally break Nora.
Fear of death. This is Effie’s predicament. “When a person lived afraid of death, when they could feel death’s cold breath on their neck every moment of the day, there was no courage left to be had. No anticipation. No hope. Only the force of one’s own will to try to outrun the fear before they were eaten alive by it. Before their greatest fear became their worst reality.” Whew, if reading that doesn’t explain Effie’s life and make you, the reader, afraid, I don’t know what will! Anderson, Effie’s English acquaintance, fears something very much.
Nora doesn’t so much fear death as life itself. Nora’s guest, Sebastian, is afraid of something that is altering his life. Nora has so many questions. How can she stop being afraid? Her friend answers, “He left you to live. So live, Norah. Believe there haven’t been mistakes, only a busted-up old world in need of hope.” The real question Wright challenges us, the reader with, is will we surrender to hope or fear? On what basis?
What an incredible wrap-up! I guessed one culprit, but never in a million years would I have nailed the other villain. Wright also drives home the point people are not as we judge them to be.
Bravo, Miss Wright! I’m ready for your next novel of creepy hope!!
I received a copy of this book from Celebrate Lit via NetGalley. I also bought my own ecopy and a paperback for my keeper shelf. No positive review was required, and all opinions are my own.
Notable Quotables:
“Death had been a guest here at Predicament Avenue for decades, and it was clear that Death wasn’t ready to check out quite yet.”
“It’s a’right to admit you’re not a’right.”
“It was as if the sun had gone down at 322 Predicament Avenue the night Naomi’s murdered body had been found, and it had never risen again.”
“What was it about being afraid that pushed a person away from God instead of toward Him?”
“Fear steals our joy and is the agony of those with no hope. It will not define us. Fear is the enemy we will defeat.”
My Rating
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Magnificent!! Nobody can tell a chilling tale like Jaime Jo Wright, yet bring enough hope into it that you are amazed at the journey, begging for more!!
Blog Stops
Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, April 10
Devoted To Hope, April 10
By The Book, April 11
Babbling Becky L’s Book Impressions, April 11
Inspired by Fiction, April 12
Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, April 12
Texas Book-aholic, April 13
Blossoms and Blessings, April 13
Locks, Hooks and Books, April 14
Blogging With Carol, April 14
Betti Mace, April 15
JESUS in the EVERYDAY, April 15
Live. Love. Read., April 16
For Him and My Family, April 16
Gina Holder, Author and Blogger, April 17 (Author Interview)
Mary Hake, April 17
Abba’s Prayer Warrior Princess, April 18
Holly’s Book Corner, April 18
Happily Managing a Household of Boys, April 19
Tell Tale Book Reviews, April 20
Sylvan Musings, April 20
Bigreadersite , April 21
Back Porch Reads, April 21
Lily’s Corner, April 22
Simple Harvest Reads, April 22 (Guest Review from Mindy)
Becca Hope: Book Obsessed, April 23
Denise L. Barela, April 23
The Lofty Pages, April 23
Giveaway
To celebrate her tour, Jaime Jo is giving away the grand prize package of a $50 gift card to Baker Book House in Grand Rapids, MI and an autographed copy of the book!!
Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.
https://promosimple.com/ps/2af9e/night-falls-on-predicament-avenue-celebration-tour-giveaway
Babbling Becky L’s Book Impressions 