Review of PARAMOUR by Margaret Ethridge

PARAMOUR
Margaret Ethridge
Turquoise Morning Press, Publisher
January 2011
ISBN# 9781935817383
Paranormal Romance
Trade and e-book available
Novel, 215 pp
Author Request Review
Margaret Ethridge Website

Two men: one living, one dead, and both vying for her love.

Camellia Stafford has never been alone in her room. For twenty years, she’s been engaged in a fierce power struggle with her bedroom’s previous tenant, Frank DeLuca, the ghost trapped in the light fixture above her bed.

Caustic and cranky, Frank has one soft spot—Cam. Over the years, their feelings for one another have evolved from grudging friendship to an enduring love that burns white-hot until Frank puts his feelings for Cam on ice.

When she suffers the loss of her beloved father, Cam returns home to say good-bye, and confront her feelings for Frank. She finds an unexpected shoulder to lean on in neighbor, Bradley Mitchum. Cam falls hard and fast for the handsome ad man’s charming smile and passionate nature, but Brad’s easy-going exterior masks a steely backbone tempered by adversity.

Now Cam must choose— Is her heart strong enough to determine which dream could lead to a love that will last a lifetime?




My Ratings
Review


Sexual

After reading the last sentence of the above blurb….it was easy for me to answer.
Ghost + dead = Frank. Human + alive = Brad.
Hmmm…Brad - Frank - Brad - Frank - Brad…..

I actually wanted to rate this story a 2 A Small Howl, due to the ludicrous story line of a HEA with a ghost, but there were some things Ms. Ethridge did well. With that being said…. Beware, these are spoilerish. (Is that a word?)

BIG PROBLEM….CAM. She loves a ghost, a dead man. Who only appears to her when the light is turned on, in her old bedroom. And who can’t feel her, BTW. I feel she just uses Brad as a substitute for Frank. For example, when Cam and Brad are doing the horizontal bop with Frank looking over Brad’s shoulder, I’m wondering just who Cam is making love to. Or was this supposed to be a make-believe ménage? Someone should have sent Brad the memo.

I like Frank. He has his flaws and tries to steer Cam in the right direction - toward the living. He loves and cares for Cam deeply. Hey, he’s been stuck in her bedroom sconce for the past few decades 24/7, and Cam’s the only confidant he’s ever had.

“You need a shrink.” Frank blew out a breath. “This isn’t real.
It isn’t healthy, Cam.”

I found the parallels Ms. Etheridge uses throughout the story highly enjoyable.
Frank doesn’t have a heart and Brad had heart problems.
Frank breaking his Mother and then Cam (although I struggled with than one).
Frank dead and trapped; Brad alive and vibrant.

Paramour: an illicit lover
rhymes with
Aperture: an opening or open space; hole