The Devon Bookshop is a dark fantasy by debut author V. E. Hall. Released 14th Nov 2022, it's 320 pages and is available in paperback and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately.
This is a quirky paranormal fantasy set in and around a bookshop. There are ghosts (oh, so many ghosts), witches, benign and malign influences and a semi-hapless couple running the bookshop who believe (Acacia) or not (Matt) in the supernatural influences in their environs.
It's charming by turns, the author has created a simple but entertaining story. The writing is choppy and unfinished in places; there's -so- much telling and not a lot of showing in her writing style. The basic story is solid, though, and nothing that wouldn't be fixed with a firm editing process.
Three and a half stars. It's unclear from the denouement (and the author's website) if this will be a continuing series, but at the present time, there are no announcements of upcoming books. It does work well as a standalone, however.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
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