A brilliant, chilling series debut, featuring a Charleston real estate agent who loves old houses—and the secret histories inside them.
Practical Melanie Middleton hates to admit she can see ghosts. But she’s going to have to accept it. An old man she recently met has died, leaving her his historic Tradd Street home, complete with housekeeper, dog—and a family of ghosts anxious to tell her their secrets.
Enter Jack Trenholm, a gorgeous writer obsessed with unsolved mysteries. He has reason to believe that diamonds from the Confederate Treasury are hidden in the house. So he turns the charm on with Melanie, only to discover he’s the smitten one…
It turns out Jack’s search has caught the attention of a malevolent ghost. Now, Jack and Melanie must unravel a mystery of passion, heartbreak—and even murder.
User Ratings and Reviews
4 Stars Fun Read
I really enjoyed this book. I only gave it 4 stars, because I had it all figured out way before the end. However, it reminded me of all the Victoria Holt, Mary Stewart,and Phillis Whitney books I read as a young adult. I love ghost stories and this is for sure a ghost story. However, if you like Stephen King or Peter Straub kind of ghost stories this is not for you. But I have never gotten over my love for those light, fun romantic ghost stories that the above mentioned authors wrote. Victoria Holt was the first author I read when I was in grammer school that introduced me to a ghost story, and I still enjoy the genre she falls into. So again, fun book, no surprises, but very entertaining. I look forward to the sequel where I can find out what happens to the characters.
4 Stars The House on Tradd Street
Cannot put it down. Captures the mystique of Charleston. I will listen more closely for the past on my next visit.
3 Stars Nothing Special
Eh. Not that terrible, but not that great, either. Writing is pleasant, but the main character — not so much. Mellie (I’d hate being called that, too) is pretty unpleasant to be around. She may have plenty of reason to be so abrasive, but still, I don’t think I’ll seek out her company again in the next book.
The story is nothing new if you’ve read a lot of these types of books.
5 Stars Get a Copy and Get Comfy!
What a FUN read! I couldn’t put it down and even after I finished it I immediately passed it on for someone else to enjoy. I love southern charm novels filled with history, antiques, independent gals and vivid descriptions of life in the south. Throw in a few ghosts and you’ve won me over. The only negative I can come up with is the 10 months I have to wait to read the next book in this series. I am happy to know there will be more to follow after the next. It’s not heavy literature but not quite fluffy chic lit either – somewhere in between I suppose. If you have a weekend to fill, fill it with this book!
3 Stars A slightly amusing scooby doo-like mystery.
I love novels about old houses with a few ghosts, real or symbolic. Naturally, when I saw this novel I scooped it right up. Unfortunately, The House on Tradd Street turned out to be full of cliche, unlikeable characters accompanied by a predictable flimsy plot. The book centers on real estate agent Melanie Middleton who visits an elderly man hoping convince him to allow her to list his crumbling but historic home. Two days after their ineffective meeting, the elderly Mr Vanderhorst passes away and leaves his home to Melanie with the stipulation that she must live in for one year before she sells it or any of its contents.
One of the flaws of this book is that it full of uninteresting, unlikeable characters. Melanie Middleton is a stuffy, snobby, predictable, vanilla thirty-nine year old who hasn’t had a date in years and spends her evening alphabetizing her books and laying out her cereal bowl and spoon for her breakfast the next morning. Sophie Wallen, Melanie’s friend and side-kick is a new age, hippy, organic-loving-everything professor of historic preservation who helps Melanie with the renovation of her new historic house. One of Sophie’s favorite past-times is astrology, and when Melanie attempts to set her up with another useless character, Chad Arasi, an art history professor, Sophie stauchly objects because she is a Gemini and he is a Capricorn. Anyone who dabbles in astrology knows that the sun sign is only one piece of the astrological puzzle when it comes to compatibilty. Looks like the author didn’t do her homework. Last but not least there is Jack Trenholm, a hottie (and he knows it) writer who helps Melanie uncover the secrets behind the historic home. He’s your typical jerk, but at least he added a bit of humor to the story.
I debated whether to give this book three or two stars. The big mystery surrounding the house was so predictable it reminded me of a scooby doo episode, which ironically is mentioned in the book. There were also awkward gaps throughout the book. For example, at one point Melanie takes time off from work to get herself together after suffering a big disappointment, and then all of a sudden she’s back at work. She also goes away on a big weekend with a certain character and the author simply skipped writing about the rendezvous and just resumes with Melanie back at Charleston. There are also too many people in this book who can see ghosts: Melanie, her mother, a plumber working at the house, and a little boy she comes across one evening.
The one redeeming thing about this book is that the exchange between Melanie and Jack was pretty darn hilarious at times. Jack was your typical gorgeous-you-know-you-want-me jerk, but some of his verbal jabs at Melanie had me rolling. This is the only thing that made me give the book three stars instead of two. The book was not bad. It made me giggle a few times, the plot, although predictable moved along quickly. The House on Tradd Street just failed to impress me. If you are buying for the mystery aspect of the book, don’t bother. If you are buying it for the supernatural part, watch an episode of Ghost Whisperer instead.
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