Book Review: The Visitor by Amanda Stevens

The Visitor by Amanda Stevens
Series: The Graveyard Queen
On Sale Date: April 1, 2016
Fiction \ Thrillers \ Suspense
Mira, 384 pages
Source: Bought
Amazon | Goodreads | Website

My name is Amelia Gray. I'm the Graveyard Queen.

Restoring lost and abandoned cemeteries is my profession, but I'm starting to believe that my true calling is deciphering the riddles of the dead. Legend has it that Kroll Cemetery is a puzzle no one has ever been able to solve. For over half a century, the answer has remained hidden within the strange headstone inscriptions and intricate engravings. Because uncovering the mystery of that tiny, remote graveyard may come at a terrible price.

Years after their mass death, Ezra Kroll's disciples lie unquiet, their tormented souls trapped within the walls of Kroll Cemetery, waiting to be released by someone strong and clever enough to solve the puzzle. For whatever reason, I'm being summoned to that graveyard by both the living and the dead. Every lead I follow, every clue I unravel brings me closer to an unlikely killer and to a destiny that will threaten my sanity and a future with my love, John Devlin.

Graveyards, Ghosts, and Riddles - The Visitor is filled with spine-tingling chills, rich Southern Gothic atmosphere, mystery, and romance 

Every cemetery has a story.  Every grave, its secrets.

THE VISITOR is the fourth book in Amanda Stevens series, The Graveyard Queen, and what a fantastic way for fans and new readers to spend time in her capable hands as she creates once again a setting rich in southern charm, surrounding readers in a dark, chilling mystery with a heroine who is no stranger to the supernatural.

Amelia Gray - the Graveyard Queen

In some cultures, people believe children who see visions and apparitions grow up to become death walkers. 

Confession time. I adore this series. Amanda Stevens writes a story for adults that brings back to mind all those times you may have stayed up late sharing ghost stories as a kid. Those stories that left you looking over your shoulder while you couldn't resist the lure of more. The Graveyard Queen features the protagonist Amelia Gray who is a restorer of historical cemeteries, those usually lost and abandoned for good reasons. Each book features a different Southern location and, of course, an unforgettable cemetery along with ghosts and a mystery. The lure of these books is not only the fabulous writing with vivid settings but it is the mystery that is slowly being revealed about Amelia's affinity with the supernatural.

Haunghtings, Ghosts, and Kroll Cemetery 

Amelia's latest restoration project leads her to Kroll Cemetery where she discovers clues to a mystery that involves a cult's murders along with a cemetery filled with strange gravestone markings. THE VISITOR steadily increases the tension and supernatural happenings. Creaking floorboard, visitations of the ghostly variety, trinkets left as clues and the ever present sense that something is summoning Amelia to Kroll Cemetery. 

Cicadas, Skeleton Keys, and Stereograms

Atmosphere is Queen in THE VISITOR and through some twists and reveals, readers will experience some extra sensory delight. Stevens writes the Southern Gothic vibe and pairs it with a mystery that just won't let you go. From swarming bees and flying Cicadas, to strange Skeleton Keys odd things are piling up. I especially like the strange pictures and the use of stereograms that added such a haunting feel.   

Destined and Forbidden Romance 

The Graveyard Queen series features a destined romantic thread that is seriously brewing into heady tension as Amelia and John Devlin find themselves irrevocably drawn to one another, yet it seems that both are hiding secrets that spans generations, many that are just now being revealed to readers leading us to question just how far does their connection really go. 

In the End

THE VISITOR gave me all the terrific Sothern Gothic atmosphere, a spine-tingling mystery, and terrific writing I have come to expect from  an Amanda Stevens book. Who can resist a strong heroine surrounded by Graveyards, Ghosts, and Riddles? Perfect for fans of mystery and want a read tinged with the supernatural and romance.