Holly‘s review of MacGowan’s Ghost by Cindy Miles
Gabe MacGowan—a sexy, brooding, guilt-ridden widower and father to mischievous seven-yearold Jake—is the proprietor of Odin’s Thumb Inn and Pub in a misty Scottish seaside village. He decides to sell the inn and move, not only to give his son a more stable environment, but to escape the ghosts who haunt him—in particular his dead wife.
Gabe hires Allie Morgan, an easy-going and fun-loving American, to oust the spirits who are chasing away potential buyers. Odin’s Thumb is bustling with frightened tourists, quirky residents of the village, and dodgy yet lovable apparitions—including the ghost of a sea captain who fancies Allie. Allie knows she can help Gabe chase away his own ghosts, but can she help him rediscover life—and love?
I’m not sure what I was expecting when I picked this up, but it turned out to be a really cute, light read. This is really just a fluff story. Without thinking about it too much I’d say it’s a sweet, light story.
Allie was a bright, sunny person. That might have been irritating, but she was well balanced by humor and wit. She communicates with ghosts, helping them find the reason they’re unsettled in the afterlife. The ghosts of Odin’s Thumb aren’t unsettled. As a matter of fact they’re very well settled. She knows Gabe is the unsettled one, she just can’t figure out why. She didn’t push Gabe to find out his reasons, and I liked that.
Gabe was more dark and brooding, but that wasn’t irritating either. He suffered from things in his past in a way I found believable. He really blew it as a younger man and now he’s trying to make up for it. I thought he went a bit over the top trying to sell the pub, even if I understood his reasons.
The ghosts were cute. I thought their interactions were hilarious. I really liked Gabe’s family. His aunt and mom were great. I especially liked Gabe’s son Jake. He was adorable.
A couple things annoyed me. The characters kept using the heroine’s first and last name. Allie Morgan was how they addressed her and thought of her. On one page her first and last name was used 6 times. 6-freaking-times. I might have been able to excuse it but it was only Allie that was thought of that way.
I also had an issue with the timeline. I don’t understand why Gabe’s wife just started plaguing him. She’d been dead for 7 years but he was just now bothered by her? That seemed strange to me.
I’m pretty sure this book is part of a series, but I didn’t see it listed on her website.
3.75 out of 5
This book is available from Signet Eclipse. You can buy it here or here in e-format.
I bought this one at the UBS during the last So Cal Blogger get together but have yet to read it. Maybe I’ll move it up in the reading order. *snort* that assumes there is a reading order.
It’s really only very loosely tied to her other books, but is more like a stand-alone. So Holls, I know you won’t have any issues. But for those that do… the order of the books is:
Spirited Away
Into Thin Air
Highland Knight
MacGowan’s Ghost
Thirteen Chances
A Christmas Spirit (in the Highlander Christmas anthology)
All her Highlanders are somewhat interrelated, but each story is a complete standalone. And, yeah, I’ve read them all. My faves were Spirited Away and 13 Chances. I think Miles is quite talented, and I really like her books.
I’ve read all of Cindy Miles’ books and loved them all, but if I had to pick this one would be my least favorite. You should try another one, though, because she has the sweetest books!:)
@Lori – mostly I was annoyed b/c I knew there were books that came before this but couldn’t figure out what they were (thanks for the list).
@Chelsea – I definitely want to try something else by her. I might go back and start at the beginning.