West on Grainger is kind of a sequel to North on Drummond but it also works as a standalone. I still highly recommend reading North on Drummond because it is such a good book; I listened to the audiobook and loved it.

Perhaps because I live in Florida – not too far from where I think the fictional town of Sandy Bottom is located – I found many things in the story that I could relate to. While there definitely are very serious things going on in the book, there were also things that made me smile.

The mention of fire ants was totally relatable because I once stepped in a bunch of them and didn’t know it. I found out what I’d done after I boarded a bus bound for a day trip with family and friends and my foot felt like it was on fire. That wasn’t funny at the time but now I can laugh about it; the same way I laughed when I read the passage where Wendell remembers he’s in Florida where there are fire ants so he won’t be having any “naked outdoor dalliances” with Kyle. 😊

Another thing that made me smile was something that Kyle said in regard to the mystery about something that happened in the 1970’s. He opined that “wouldn’t whoever did be dead of old age?” I was in my early twenties in the mid-seventies and, fortunately, I’m far from dying of old age. 😊

I doubt that KC Burn intended for these things to be as funny as I found them, but I loved how they made me smile and how they relieved some of the tension I felt from other things happening in this great story.

The spooky factor and the mystery kept me glued to my e-Reader until I finished reading this book. Things happened to Kyle that I didn’t see coming and I think that’s the mark of a good storyteller. There were many secondary characters in this story that I’d love to know more about. In particular, we didn’t get to know as much about Jackson as I would have liked. That’s not a criticism, it’s an “I hope there will be more books in this series” comment because I think there is a lot of potential for more books to be set in Sandy Bottom. I loved everything about this book.

I almost forgot to mention that KC Burn will be a featured author at Coastal Magic Convention in February 2024 in Daytona Beach. Come check it out here; it’s a great convention that feels very cozy and intimate.

Reviews for KC Burn

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A crash broke the silence, shattering the sense that they were alone in the world together.

In unison, they both stood up, Wendell’s heart pounding as he strained to listen.

“Did someone fall? Should I call the police or an ambulance?” He couldn’t hear any cries of pain or pleas for help.

Kyle darted his gaze around. “It sounded more like something fell? Not heavy enough for a person, I don’t think.”

True. And maybe not thump-y enough to be a body hitting the ground. But better safe than sorry.

“I need to check this out”.

“I’ll come with you.”

Wendell smiled gratefully at Kyle. He’d much rather not be alone if there was an emergency. He snatched up his phone and keyring, then led Kyle into the lobby.

“Where do you think it came from? Upstairs?”

Kyle shrugged. “Maybe. But it sounded closer than that. I think.”

He hoped he wouldn’t have to start knocking on doors. Like Kyle said, it didn’t sound loud enough to be a human body, but if someone was hurt in their suite, well, he had a responsibility for that, didn’t he?

They peeked into the tea room and the main dining room, both of which were dim and obviously empty. Wendell flicked on lights but that only confirmed that the rooms were empty and undisturbed, ready to serve guests tomorrow first thing.

“Library’s next.” Then the game room. Then opening unoccupied rooms. Not long before he’d have to figure out if he had to start knocking on doors. Pretty much the last thing he wanted to do.

Kyle nodded, and gestured for Wendell to proceed.

Wendell flicked a switch by the door and various tabletop lamps flickered to life, filling the room with a serene yellow glow. This particular room had no windows—the one existing window had been blocked up at some point to accommodate the later addition of a fireplace—and as such, always required lighting.

Wendell strode into the room, almost at the far wall, when he spotted it.

“This must be it.” He turned back to Kyle, who hovered in the doorway. “Is something wrong?”

An indecipherable expression crossed Kyle’s face, before he sucked in a breath and walked into the room.

“Nothing’s wrong.”

“Uh. Okay.” Something definitely was, but Wendell wasn’t about to poke his new friend about something sensitive. “Anyone else here?” Wendell called out.

“Don’t say that,” Kyle said from just inside the doorway.

“Why not?”

Kyle rolled his eyes. “This town is full of ghosts. You don’t want to accidentally invite one in.”

Wendell’s eyes widened. “For real?”

“Eh. I don’t know. I’ve never seen a ghost, but Eddie—he’s a medium—and he says stuff like that all the time.”

Wendell made a mental note to seek him out at some point during his stay. Interviewing a ‘real’ medium would be excellent research.

Then Kyle approached close enough to see what Wendell had found. “What the hell happened here?”

It looked like someone had swept an arm across an entire shelf of books, sweeping them to the floor, along with some sort of ceramic sculpture, which lay in shards on the floor amongst the haphazard pile of hardcover books. This had to be the source of the crashing sound they’d heard.

Wendell frowned. “If we were back home, I’d assume we’d had an earthquake, and these books hadn’t been shelved securely or something. But you don’t get quakes out here, do you?”

Kyle shrugged. “Not that I’ve ever heard of. I guess there’s a first time for everything, but wouldn’t we have felt an earthquake strong enough to dump books off their shelves? I’ve never been in an earthquake.”

“Yeah, we definitely would have noticed that.”

“Kids, then? A stupid prank?”

Wendell chewed at his bottom lip. “Think there’s any way outsiders, like kids from the town, could easily get in here and do this? Although I have no idea why they would.”

“The Lady isn’t exactly Fort Knox, but I also don’t see any reason why anyone, kids or not, would sneak in here to do this. And it’s not like there aren’t any security measures.”

“Yeah, I know. So weird.” But it wasn’t a prison. Any number of employees, past and present, could have either gotten around the current security. Maybe it had been a localized weather phenomenon?

And just like that, Wendell could believe it was a freak weather thing as a gust of chilly air swept across his neck.

Kyle also rubbed his arms. “It’s cold in here.”

One of the table lamps nearby flickered, then the bulb blew with a sharp pop.

Kyle yelled, and clutched at his chest. Wendell flinched, then curled a lip at the shards of lightbulb glass that had been added to the mess on the floor.

“Can you grab me a broom or something to clean this up? I’ll start putting the books back.”

Within minutes, the mess had been cleared up but the vibe between him and Kyle was still weird.

“You sure you’re okay?” Wendell asked as they returned to the lobby.

The question got him a big sigh. “It’s stupid but I’ve never liked that room. I don’t know why.”

“Haunted? The Orange Lady?” Wendell could not be that lucky. But Kyle snorted and rolled his eyes.

“Not hardly. I don’t think there have ever been any sightings of her in the library. Besides, I’m sure I’m not sensitive to ghosts, or I would have seen one at least once during the many, many ghost tours I’ve done.”

“And you don’t think hating a room for no good reason might be a haunting?”

Kyle smirked, and Wendell smiled back, relieved to see Kyle’s good mood returning.

“Nope. It’s probably something wonky in the proportion of the rooms and it’s messing with my equilibrium or something. Maybe asbestos.”

“Asbestos?” That was the sort of horror story Wendell was not interested in living. Not a tiny bit. “Wouldn’t there have been inspections or something to correct that?”

“I’m just kidding. But I wasn’t kidding when I said that room hadn’t been changed since the house was built.”

“Original? That’s pretty cool, actually. What about the rest of the place?”

“The guest rooms upstairs are mostly original too.”

“I suppose so.” Nevertheless, the mental gears that Wendell had feared were rusted over for good had, well, they hadn’t started moving. Nothing as solid as a faint idea. But this simple discussion tweaked something in his mind. Like it was lubing his gears, or scrubbing away the rust. Preparing for work. Too soon for hope yet, but if he relaxed and let it happen, he might be able to coax his muse back.

“And I guess you haven’t seen the Orange Lady, have you?”

“Nope. But I haven’t been here overnight, either. She doesn’t show herself during the day, or so I’m told.”

Kyle’s phone buzzed and he pulled it out of a tight pocket.

“I have to get ready or I’m going to be late for my tour.” Kyle grabbed his bag and swanned into the employee bathroom.

Shortly after, Kyle emerged wearing the same pirate-esque outfit he’d worn the previous night, except this time his eyeliner was thicker and more dramatic.

Butterflies swooped and soared in Wendell’s belly. Kyle was just so beautiful. Too beautiful for a writer nerd like him.

That didn’t stop those damned butterflies.

Sandy Bottom Bay Series

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