THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERKaren White invites you to explore the brick-walked streets of Charleston in her fifth Tradd Street novel, where historic mansions house the memories of years gone by, and restless spirits refuse to fade away… With her extended maternity leave at its end, Melanie Trenholm is less than thrilled to leave her new husband and beautiful twins to return to work, … beautiful twins to return to work, especially when she’s awoken by a phone call with no voice on the other end—and the uneasy feeling that the ghostly apparitions that have stayed silent for more than a year are about to invade her life once more.
But her return to the realty office goes better than she could have hoped, with a new client eager to sell the home she recently inherited on South Battery. Most would treasure living in one of the grandest old homes in the famous historic district of Charleston, but Jayne Smith would rather sell hers as soon as possible, guaranteeing Melanie a quick commission.
Despite her stroke of luck, Melanie can’t deny that spirits—both malevolent and benign—have started to show themselves to her again. One is shrouded from sight, but appears whenever Jayne is near. Another arrives when an old cistern is discovered in Melanie’s backyard on Tradd Street.
Melanie knows nothing good can come from unearthing the past. But some secrets refuse to stay buried….
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I didn’t finish this book as I didn’t like all the ghosts. Things moving etc.
I love, love, love and crave Karen White’s series on Tradd Street.
In that I live just a few miles from Charleston, I buy books about it. This was a GREAT READ!! I didn’t want it to end. It was a really GREAT READ!!
Good story, but the heroine’s OCD didn’t make her especially likeable.
Not as good as other Karen White’s books.
I really like the way Karen White writes. This is a good mystery and funny and you feel like you know the characters even if you don’t particularly like them. But this is the second of her books that I’ve read in which the main character (woman) is weak and pitiful and actually a little stupid about who she is and the people inn her life. I kinda thought that she ought to be grown up already.
I have greatly enjoyed all of this series. The characters are well developed and if you truly enjoy a haunting mystery series you will love this.
Wonderful characters, great story line and always a pleasure reading Karen White’s novels.
Enjoyed very much. Surprised @ the ending.
I had waited for this book for too long so when I finally had it, I couldn’t wait to read it. I have become part of this interesting group of people who live and solve crimes and interact with ghosts in Charleston. In this book the baby comes and many strings are tied up, the mystery is always good and the interplay with ghosts is believable. If you’ve read her other books in this series, you need to read it, if not, to be honest, I’d start with the first book.
This is the 5th book in the Tradd Street series by Karen White. I loved every one of them and couldn’t wait to read this one. The characters are great. I loved the scenes of historic southern homes in Charleston and the ghostly spirits. Karen White is a great story teller.
Karen White never fails to get your attention. Great story although I had an overwhelming urge to smack the main character upside her head. Can’t wait for the next one in the series..
This is the first of these books I have read and while I assume there was a more thorough introduction of characters in the earlier books, I was really able to follow the characters and guess some earlier events. I will go back and start this series with book 1.
This is a ghost story, so I almost didn’t read it (I couldn’t sleep for weeks after I read The Exorcist back when I was in college.). Charleston, however, is one of my favorite cities, so I plunged in, promising myself that I would stop reading if I thought this would give me nightmares. I’m happy to say I enjoyed the book and never worried about nightmares. The main character has a”gift” she inherited from her mother—she can see ghosts. But she has learned to be comfortable with her gift, and that put me at ease, too. Yes, there were some scary ghost encounters, but there was also romance, and some wonderful glimpses of old Charleston streets. All in all, a fun read.
Predictable romanc. Disappointed.
THE GUESTS ON SOUTH BATTERY by Karen White is the fifth book in the Tradd Street series.
It is the story of Melanie Trenholm as she is returning to work as one of the top selling real estate agent after having been off for an extended maternity leave. Melanie and her husband, Jack, have had a lot adjustments to make after having a set of twins, Sarah and JJ short for Jack Junior, and having trouble finding the proper nanny. On top of that, Jack’s last book idea was stolen and published by none other than Marc, who is the husband of Rebecca, Melanie’s cousin. Jack is having writer’s block on what to write about next or to write period. Also the fact that they have a teenager, Nola, Jack’s daughter who came to live with him after her Mother’s dead, living with them and life is not only full but hectic at times.
Jayne Smith, an orphan raised in the foster home system, had never meet Caroline “Button” Pinckney, the owner of the home she has just inherited according to Button’s will. Jayne’s dislike for old home brings her to Melanie to sell the house as soon as possible so she can buy a new, modern home with her unforeseen inheritance. At their first encounter, Melanie finds out that Jayne is a professional nanny and realizes that they both share so many of the same thoughts on childrearing. She seems to be an answer to her prayers. Jayne becomes the nanny for Sarah and J.J. After convincing Jayne that more money could be made if the house was renovated, Melanie oversees the process along with her good friend Sophie who she places in charge.
It doesn’t take long for Melanie to figure out that there are lingering ghost, both good and bad, in the Pinckney house that are capable of not only scaring off workmen, but that can do bodily harm to the living. Jack starts researching the house’s history, the previous owners and trying to find more about why Jayne inherited it not only for Melanie but also thinking it may be a source writing a new book.
Melanie recently reunited with her Mom, Ginette Prioleau Middleton, after many years of separation after her parent’s divorce, which Melanie felt as abandonment. Her parents even recently remarried. Both Melanie and Ginette seem to have the same “special” talents of seeing and feeling ghost. They find that they need to combine their same but sometimes different talents to try to solve the mysteries around Pinckney house before someone gets seriously hurt. They need to find out what they are trying to tell them and what they need so that they may pass over.
Added to current event, there is the appearance of a gapping sink hole at Melanie and Jack’s home where an old cistern was found that must be explored with the help of the students of Pompain Hill Chapel Ease for historical significance, clocks are stopping everywhere at the same time, and phones that have been long disconnected are making phone calls. Plus it becoming more and more evident that Sarah may share some of the “talents” of her Mom and Grandma.
Without spoiling the ending, I will say you will discover several surprises along the way. You definitely won’t be disappointed with how things turn out and like me you will be hoping that there will be a book six in this series to see what adventures are in store for Melanie and Jack next time.
Although part of a series it can be read as a standalone. This is the first book I have read in the series and first book by this author and I had no trouble with learning the characters in the book or keeping up with the storyline. The book in intriguing, spellbounding and will having you turn pages to see who, what, when or how is going to help solve this mystery. While the paranormal is not my normal genre to reach for, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and will definitely be searching out more books by Karen White.
Love a book that takes me away to a different place with romance, a touch of family rifts, a heaping spoonful of mysteries, (plural!), some background on old homes and their upkeep, and topped off with good old ghostly secrets and scares!
Melanie is in love with het twin babies, her husband Jack, her life as a realtor, and getting to know her mom Ginette and her stepdaughter Nola. But her house is a huge drain on her as it keeps her busy with repairs, ghosts of old, and it’s eating up the money faster than she and Jack can make it. It’s funny in the way Melanie thinks her clothes are shrinking instead of assuming she needs to lose weight. And the label maker just goes to show an OCD person is alive and well and trying to control the household…you can’t really control twins!
Jayne Smith seeks Melamie as a realtor to unload an inheritance, a very old home, once owned by the wonderful lady called Buttons. Jayne hates the house, fears the house and wants it sold. She then moves into Melanie’s home as a nanny to the twins. The everyday family exchanges are so real and I felt as if I was spying on them.
But the old home has a spirit or spirits and questions keep coming up as to how or why Jayne inherited it. Jayne and Melanie tend to think alike and bond quickly. A question throught the book pertains to Button’s brother Sumter, wife Anna, and their daughter Hasell. I caught on right away to the sicknesses of Hasell and the reason for her death. But in the dark and shocked about Jayne.
This book has some really nice twists in it and scares. A certain doll gave me the creeps. But it’s also about family and relationships and I felt as if I’d read a personal diary. And family love comes through loud and clear. The features of historic homes added a great DIY piece to the puzzles as did the clocks stopping at 4:10, smells, and plenty of scares thst kept me reading into the night. Atmospheres abound, suspense builds and doesn’t disappoint…so even though this is a busy season, take a break and curl up with a vintage home in Charleston, South Carolina that happens to have bumps in the night. Four and a half stars!
Melanie Trenholm is back to work from maternity leave as a real estate agent in Charleston. Her life seems very normal but her past is very unique due to her ability to communicate with ghosts. This past year her life has been ”spirit free” while spending time bonding with her twins. Her steady life starts to change when she begins to feel unsettled on her way to work. Her sleep was disturbed by a phone call that felt like a ghost. What is the significance of this new connection?
Her first day back at work went better than expected when she lands a client who wants to sell a home that she recently inherited. The client is not from the area and is not interested in owning a historical home. When the pair arrives to inspect the property, Melanie can sense an overwhelming amount of spirits. Through this connection, she convinces the new owner to renovated before selling. The mystery behind the unsettled spirits begins to unfold during the construction as Melanie encounters strange occurrences.
This book is the fifth in the series and can be read as a stand-alone. The Guests On South Battery is a very enjoyable read with elements of paranormal and mystery. I expect a further continuation of this series from Karen White.
I had never read this author before but after the first paragraph of this book I was “hooked”. Being from South Carolina I was very familiar with the setting of this book. This is always a plus in reading.
My favorite book series by my favorite author! Karen White is such a wonderful writer, with awesome characters, but none better than Melanie and Jack. Why has this not been made into a tv series?!