The Old Shelter

by Sarah Zama

A historical fantasy novella set in Jazz Age Chicago

In the spirit world, desire is magic and nothing is more powerful than freedom

Chicago 1924

When Su Xie (Susie) arrived in Chicago at the height of the Jazz Age, she thought she found freedom. The freedom to do whatever she wanted and own beautiful things she never dreamed of. She didn’t know what Simon may ask her in return, but she thought no price was too high, whatever it’d be.

One night, Susie meets Blood in Simons speakeasy. And he guides her on the hidden paths of the spirit world, where desire is magic, and nothing is more powerful than freedom.
Blood’s quiet presence and attention help her look inside herself, discover her true desires and break free from all deceits.

When Simon asks her to pay her debt, Susie finally sees the golden cage he has so carefully built around her. Now she’s strong enough to fly free – but will she be willing to sacrifice Blood’s life to win her own freedom?

I really thought Susie is a tough heroine. She is a woman who is determined to live comfortably. She is very loyal and dutiful to her lover, but when she meets Blood, she realizes that there is more to life than just to live comfortably. She begins to question her life and desires, and realizes that if she wants to be happy, she must make hard choices.

Lauralee Jacks
History Women Perspective Blog

This is the type of story that will have you wanting to reread it just to see if you missed any of the clues! It is a quick read and will keep you turning the pages long after you should be asleep. The reader becomes hooked into the welfare of Susie and then Blood, caring about them as if they were long lost friends.

Melinda Kelly
Goodreads

Ms Zama writes in English but she’s not a native speaker, which at first put me off. However, she seems wonderfully aware of this erstwhile problem and turns it on its head to enhance the sense of otherness felt by Susie as a stranger in a strange land, just as the author herself is a stranger working in a strange language.

Jeffrey K. Walker
Official Website

As Sarah had described it as romance, I was worried [Ghosts Through the Cracks] might not fit into the rest of the blog, so I asked her for an ARC, which she kindly provided. I received it around 10 pm. My intention was to flick through it to make sure it was appropriate to my blog, then head to bed – which I estimated I’d do some 10 minutes later. Instead, I was sucked into the world of Susie and the 20s Chicago. What started out as a love triangle between Susie, a Chinese dancer at a speakeasy; Simon, the owner of the joint; and a haunting stranger called Blood, soon took a sinister, paranormal turn. And I kept turning the pages, not turning in until after midnight…

Nicholas C. Rossis
Nicholas C. Rossis Blog