Ghost, Interrupted

October 23, 2006
An amateur ghost-hunting team takes on a professional-grade haunting in this pale paranormal novel by the author of Bollywood Confidential
and Goddess for Hire
. Former stockbroker Scott Wilder recruits Indian-American psychic Anjali Kumar for his San Francisco ghost-hunting firm, the Cold Spot. Soon, the pair picks up the telekinetic drifter Coulter Marshall, whose golden-boy looks get more ink than his talents. The trio lands jobs removing spirits from expensive homes, but Singh's ghosts aren't scary in the least; they're just a pretext for the heroes to zip around the Bay Area and for Scott's ex-girlfriend, parapsychologist Vivica Bates, to re-enter the picture with her own paranormal investigation team. By the time the teams go head-to-head at a military base to impress the Department of Defense by exorcising the spirit of a tortured soldier, the mission is less important than the goofy antics that ensue. The spooky moments are brief, but the book's unlikely heroes make for pleasant company.

December 1, 2006
First-generation Indian American Anjali Kumar is psychic, but her parents made her promise never to tell anyone. When her computer-programming job is outsourced to India, she undergoes a crisisshould she look for another programming job or attempt to make a living using her psychic abilities? A chance encounter with Scott Wilder, founder of the ghost-hunting company the Cold Spot, has her teaming up with Scott and Coulter Marshall, a charming Tennessean with alarmingly powerful telekinetic powers to cleanse Bay Area homes and businesses of their paranormal baggage. But poltergeists aren't the only trouble for Anjalishe finds herself in the middle of a love triangle with her two coworkers, and a very human villain named Vivica Bates is set on causing trouble for the Cold Spot. This is Singh's third novel (after "Goddess for Hire" and "Bollywood Confidential") about young Indian American women who are blessedor, occasionally, cursedwith special powers or talents. It's a formula, but as in Singh's earlier books, the result is fast paced and clever, and it works. Recommended for chick-lit collections.Nanette Donohue, Champaign P.L., IL

Copyright 2006 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

December 1, 2006
Anjali Kumar has spent her whole life trying to suppress her psychic talents, but when handsome ghost hunter Scott Wilder tracks her down for help with a case, she reluctantly agrees to assist him in ridding a single mother's house of a pesky spirit. Anjali is successful in getting the spirit to cross over to the great beyond, and to her surprise she finds herself embracing her gift and signing on to work for Scott's company, The Cold Spot. The Cold Spot gains another employee in telekinetic Coulter Marshall, a charming Southern hustler who has made his way from Tennessee to San Francisco. But the three face serious competition from Scott's former fling, Vivica, who runs a ghost-hunting team of her own and doesn't share Scott's concerns for safety while hunting paranormal entities. Singh's third novel is out-of-this-world fun and, with a compelling cast and possible love triangle, definitely has the makings of a potential series. Let's hope this isn't Singh's only visit to The Cold Spot.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2006, American Library Association.)