Not Dead Yet by Jenn Burke

Narrated by Greg Boudreaux

I know some audio listeners who prefer not to listen to books they’ve already read in print, but I’m the opposite – if I enjoy reading something, I’m always up for experiencing it again, and as I don’t have much time for re-reading, audio is the perfect way for me to return to a favourite story. Of course, sometimes I don’t do that because there are some narrators I dislike listening to, but when a favourite book gets paired up with a favourite narrator – Bring. It. On! Jenn Burke’s Not Dead Yet is a funny, sexy and exciting paranormal romantic mystery with a unique premise; I loved it when I read it earlier this year, and loved it just as much in audio – which, given it’s narrated by the ever fabulous Greg Boudreaux – will come as a surprise to exactly no-one.

Wes Cooper is a ghost. Well, no, he’s not. But he’s not alive either. Back in 1933, he was shot and killed by his lover Michael (in a suicide pact gone wrong), but Michael’s sister was a witch who cast a spell to bring Wes back to life. The spell worked wonderfully – in fact, it worked TOO well, because not only did it bring Wes back, it made him immortal and left him with the ability to exist in both the living plane and the otherplane, the shadowy place between the living world and the world beyond, and to effortlessly slip between the two.

In the years since his not-death, Wes has made a living by working as a “retrieval specialist”, using his ability to move between the planes to get into places undetected and then to steal – er – retrieve things for his clients; possessions they want back, letters they shouldn’t have written, contracts they shouldn’t have signed and so on… and it’s while he’s on one of these jobs that the trouble starts. Wes isn’t sure what he’s seeing at first; when he’s in the otherplane, he doesn’t see clearly through to the living world, seeing only shadowy, indistinct images that don’t allow him to pick out any details. So it takes him longer than it might otherwise have done to realise that he’s witnessing the final stages of a murder. By the time he does work out what’s going on, it’s too late for him to do anything other than notice that the murderer has a shadow like nothing he’s ever seen – dark grey, with jagged edges and surrounded by an aura of danger – and to know that he needs to get out of there fast. Wes does just that, stopping only to make an anonymous call to report the murder on his way home.

Still feeling guilty and ashamed that he did nothing to help the victim or stop the murder, Wes finds himself compelled to help try to find the killer. But where can he start? He can’t just call the police and tell them he witnessed the murder when he was a ghost! Or… maybe he can. His best friend, Lexi – who is the great-grand-daughter of the witch who brought him back to life – suggests Wes could call Hudson Rojas, the cop with whom Wes had had a five-year relationship back in the 1980s. It’s a long shot, but Hudson is one of the few people who knows what Wes can do; if nothing else, Wes can pass along what he knows and leave it up to Hudson – assuming he’s still a cop – to decide what to do with it.

Thirty-three years after an acrimonious parting – Hudson was firmly in the closet back then and wasn’t prepared to put his relationship with Wes before his job – it’s hardly a surprise that the reunion between the two men is an awkward one. Hudson listens closely to Wes’ story but makes it clear he’s not interested in catching up or making small-talk or even picking up where they left off. At fifty-eight, he’s still gorgeous and is rocking that whole hot silver-fox thing, but he’s dismissive and abrasive, which isn’t the way Wes remembers him at all. But even though Hudson’s attitude really annoys Wes, he nonetheless finds himself agreeing to accompany him to interviews in his ghost form to look for anyone whose silhouette matches that of the killer.

As Wes and Hudson start to find a way to be in each other’s orbit again, they also start to realise that they have more on their hands than ‘just’ a murder. The story takes some very unexpected twists and turns, and some huge surprises are thrown into the mix to produce a wildly entertaining, fast-moving story that will keep listeners guessing until the final chapters.

The author does a tremendous job with the world-building in this book, clearly defining the capabilities of the various supernatural characters she introduces and setting clear restrictions and boundaries. But the really compelling things about the story are the characters and the relationships she develops between them. The story is told entirely through Wes’ PoV, and I loved his snarky, quirky voice and viewpoint; he’s a complex, flawed and endearing individual who often comes across as rather immature in spite of his actual age, something which is brought home very strongly during his first meeting with Hudson in the story. But Ms. Burke does a great job of showing how his social isolation – first as a kid growing up in a hostile environment, then as a result of his immortality (as he says, the excuse of having “good genes” can only explain away his unchanging appearance for so long, so he’s had to avoid relationships for the most part) has led to his tendency to put himself first. Because of the single PoV, we don’t get into Hudson’s head, but we nonetheless see him very clearly – a dedicated cop who has seen more than he cares to remember (and worse) and who has never forgotten Wes, no matter how hard he wished he could. Meeting Hudson again makes Wes start to realise he needs to do better, and their rekindling romance is a delicious slow-burn. I loved that Wes and Hudson were still so much in tune after so many years apart – and especially that Hudson is so mindful of the way attraction and intimacy work for Wes (it’s not explicitly stated that Wes is demisexual, but that’s what I understand from reading between the lines).

The superbly written secondary cast adds colour and depth to the story which also benefits from a wonderful performance by Greg Boudreaux, who, for want of a better term, totally nails it. Everything about his narration works; the pacing is just right, all the characters are clearly differentiated and his interpretation of both leads is spot on. Wes is lively, funny and snarky while Hudson is the voice of reason most of the time, his deep, matter-of-fact tone hiding a dry sense of humour that starts to come out as he and Wes begin to reconnect. He conveys the strength of their connection extremely well, leaving no doubt as to the nature of their feelings for each other, effortlessly taking listeners with him through the highs and lows of the story, whether he’s bringing the funny or bringing a lump to the throat in the more intense, emotional moments.

The main plotline in Not Dead Yet is wrapped up by the end and we leave Wes and Hudson in a good place – but there are some very intriguing threads left over for book two, Give Up the Ghost. It goes without saying I will of course be snapping it up as soon as it’s released!

Caz

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