cover image Surreal Estate

Surreal Estate

Jesi Lea Ryan. Riptide, $17.99 trade paper (242p) ISBN 978-1-62649-855-6

Themes more often seen in horror and thriller novels get a warm but not saccharine twist in this good-hearted, upbeat contemporary romance. Musician and psychic Sasha Michaels, who can communicate with the spirits of homes, ends a bout of homelessness when an abandoned house invites him in. Broke house flipper Nick Cooper discovers that the foreclosed home he’s bought at auction has Sasha as an unexpected resident, and offers him the option to stay in exchange for working on the renovation. Sasha and Nick get attached to each other, but they discover that houses—both Sasha’s traumatized childhood home and the one under reconstruction—have feelings that must also be considered, making for a very unusual love triangle. Drama comes from outside sources, such as Sasha’s mother’s drug addiction and the deadlines set by Nick’s dangerous loan shark, rather than from relationship stress or homophobia; the social environment consists mainly of Nick’s supportive family and coworkers. This treat will delight readers who crave sexy stories with two masculine protagonists but no macho posing, just a touch of the uncanny, and undeniably happy endings. (Nov.)