The Lingering Dead

In this fanciful continuation to the Deadworld series (following 2011’s Deadworld and The Vengeful Dead), Duncan’s Scooby Gang turns into a cross between Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Criminal Minds with mixed results. Leaving the FBI was difficult enough, but going from the FBI to a startup paranormal investigations company with no clients and no focus is even more terrifying than Jackie Rutledge ever imagined. Sure, she has a partner with unlimited funds and lavish tastes, and she heads a group of experts including one ghost and two undead, but how can Jackie lead anyone when she can’t even keep herself together? As she attempts to determine why the town of Thatcher’s Mill appears to have more than the average number of ghosts, the reader joins Jackie’s colleagues in fretting about her mental state, to the detriment of narrative tension. (Apr.)