I love Fanny the pug. Any dog in a book is great and Fanny is a hoot. I also like her owner, Tallulah Thomspon, although the fact two major things about her were withheld until the last chapter was irritating. Maybe I should have seen them both coming, and it’s my bad I missed them and was irritated.
Moving on.
“Love ’em and Leave ’em Lucius” Stewart” was another interesting character. ‘Stuck’ is the word in the synopsis and that appears appropriate. He can’t do anything but haunt his hotel in the hopes of either passing into the great beyond so he can be with his lost love or, alternatively, falling in love with a flesh-and-blood woman in the modern day.
This sets up an interesting story where Tallulah is supposed to unhaunt the hotel and Lucius needs to convince her to stay. I enjoyed the story, but Tallulah’s jealousy bordered on irrational and made her look weak, which she is most definitely not. I was also amused that she called Lucius “man candy from a bygone era”.
The challenges Lucius faces are numerous, from all the fandangled technology, to the disappearance of the buffalo, to being arrested and put in a jail. A twentieth-century ghost in a twenty-first century jail. Yeah, that was amusing. Despite the portrayal of him from others, there is a special man in there and I enjoyed getting to know him.
There was a satisfying dénouement as the couple do have their happy ending. The finish beyond that was a surprise and I felt deceived, but other than that, it was a good book.
Jeffrey Hutchins’ performance was good, especially his portrayal of Lucius. He was consistent and easy to listen to.
Now, I had periods of weird static/buzzing noise. I did try to find out if other listeners had the noise, but I couldn’t find anyone to let me know. At first I thought it was when the ghost appeared, but it wasn’t. I hope no one else has the problem, but if they do, know that it isn’t too distracting and it does eventually disappear, not long after it starts.