Amanda Stevens

My father’s rules. I’ve never broken them...until now.

The Restorer

My name is Amelia Gray. I'm a cemetery restorer who sees ghosts. In order to protect myself from the parasitic nature of the dead, I've always held fast to the rules passed down from my father. But now a haunted police detective has entered my world and everything is changing, including the rules that have always kept me safe. It started with the discovery of a young woman's brutalized body in an old Charleston graveyard I've been hired to restore. The clues to the killer—and to his other victims—lie in the headstone symbolism that only I can interpret. Devlin needs my help, but his ghosts shadow his every move, feeding off his warmth, sustaining their presence with his energy. To warn him would be to invite them into my life. I've vowed to keep my distance, but the pull of his magnetism grows ever stronger even as the symbols lead me closer to the killer and to the gossamer veil that separates this world from the next.

Rebecca C Wright

I really wanted to love this book and truthfully I did *like* it but the ending felt rushed and the amount of focus on the romance rather than the mystery left me feeling less than pleased with the book. If I had known it was a romantic suspense rather than mystery/suspense novel I may have not felt disappointed. Again I did like it, I just did not love it and probably will not read the others in the series. It was a good read, the pacing was good and the writing and dialog were excellent. I loved the feel of the south as the book portrayed it. I liked the main character when she was working at the mystery but felt she was too mushy and immature in the romance parts. All in all I would recommend it but with a big "this is a romance novel NOT a mystery/suspense novel".

Re-read award-winning author Amanda Steven's chilling modern gothic series and relive the journey of Amelia Gray, Graveyard Queen. THE RESTORER Never acknowledge the dead. Never stray far from hallowed ground. Never get close to the haunted. Never, ever tempt fate. My name is Amelia Gray. I'm a cemetery restorer who sees ghosts. In order to protect myself from the parasitic nature of the dead, I've always held fast to these rules passed down from my father…until now. Detective John Devlin needs my help to find a killer, but he is haunted by ghosts who shadow his every move. To warn him would be to invite them into my life. I've vowed to keep my distance, but the pull of his magnetism grows ever stronger even as the headstone symbols lead me closer to truth and to the gossamer veil that separates this world from the next.

Honestly, this was just an okay book. I felt that the "romance" aspect felt a bit forced. It didn't come off as natural. There was a nice little mystery and I actually really liked the last 30 pages, if the rest of the book had been more like that I would have enjoyed this more.

Sasha Mann

Jasmine

Re-read 09/27/2021
I'm so glad I forgot so much of this book because while certain things felt familiar and re-remember all the characters I love came relatively quickly the actual mystery element I had completely forgotten, and therefore got to experience again. I stand by everything I said in 2016 this is truly a perfect fall read and the haunted ghostly atmosphere was the right amount spooky I was looking for. The tiny hint into the secret society and other things that will come up in later books. Of course, Amelia and Devlin, I'm a romance reader at heart and I do love seeing their relationship slowly develop over these six books. The thing I personally looking forward to the most rereading this series is seeing all the details I missed the first time around and just in general getting re-experience all the eerie vibes that Amanda Stevens does so damn well. 
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Really enjoyed it!! The book had a great atmosphere to it and just the perfect amount of creepy (great fall read). Loved the slow burning relationship between Amelia and Devlin I'm really looking forward to seeing it develop! I really liked the whole premise of Devlin's character being haunted by his dead wife and child's ghost, that what really pulled me into the story. 
  “Have you ever had a recurring nightmare?” “Yes.” He paused. “And then I wake up and remember that it’s real.”


 I've been on the search for a while now looking for my next Urban Fantasy after finishing all the Experiment in Terror book series earlier this year (cries for an eternity over how good they were) and not so patiently waiting for more books from the Fever Series (addicted). I'm so happy I stumbled across this series it has a little it of everything I like. Amelia being a grave restorer and also having the ability to see ghosts I think that was the kind of unique touch I was hoping to find when I stumbled across this series. Onto the next one, I'm excited to see where it all goes!!

Sarah Escorsa

Had I been aware than this was to be the first book in a paranormal romance series, I would have steered clear of it. I don’t particularly like romance and rarely read any book belonging to that genre. 

Anyway, the blurb on this book sounded engaging enough so I decided to give it a try. It was actually quite entertaining and well-written. The mystery is intriguing enough and the paranormal aspect of it is not over-the-top, which is nice. The characters did disappoint me though. They were quite flat and I just couldn’t get myself to really like any of them. Amelia’s character in particular felt a bit forced. She seemed both bland and distant (not good for a first-person narrative) so her supposed feelings for Devlin felt a bit out of character. I really didn’t care for the whole romance part of the book which seemed both quite ridiculous and unoriginal. 

Not a dreadfully bad book but not a good one either. I won’t be reading the rest of the series.

Fran

the book was just ... wow! my mother recommended the book to me & while I kind of knew what I was getting into, it did not at all prepare me for this book!!! i loved it!!!

Melea Mullican

I enjoyed this story the second time. I don't think it was as good as I remembered, but it's a good thriller for this time of year. I recommend this if you're looking for a ghostly slow burn with a touch of romance.

Southern Today Gone Tomorrow

Written by Amanda Stevens, the first of the Graveyard Queen Series, follows Amelia, a woman who can see ghosts and restores graveyards in the South. This novel is different, for me, and unique because this is one person who can see ghosts and has never acknowledged them.

This is also defined as a paranormal romance. It isn’t an explicit romance, but that is prominent in the story in an emotional way.

I really enjoyed this novel. This is modern writing at its best. I loved following Amelia as they explored the mystery of the new body that wasn’t supposed to be there. I enjoyed the romance with Devin, possibly because we are given a main character that has actual fears and can be brave and that Devin is the kind of guy that I should never go for, but would be so tempted to. He is fantastic.

I honestly would recommend this book to everyone. The “adult” section of this novel is fairly subtle. Nothing is explicit. The writing is superb, and I am very excited to read the second novel and may go find it in my library today as soon as this is finished.

This book is a great choice for anyone who is a fan of the paranormal, mystery, murder mystery, ghosts, romance, basically a wide range of tastes. Not for fans of high fantasy. Not for people who ONLY like romance in a novel.

Heather Roden  

A great book

Okay I loved this book ,couldn't put it down . Can't wait to read the other ones . This is a must read

The Restorer

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