Pretty Little Dead Things

Years ago, a car accident killed Thomas Usher's wife and daughter and left him with an unwanted gift: the ability to see the silent shades of the restless dead. Now a psychic detective, Usher takes a mundane job for night club owner Baz Singh, keeping an eye on Baz's daughter, Kareena, an assignment that ends when Usher finds Kareena's corpse. Usher soon learns that Kareena's death is just the latest in a series and that the murders, the kidnapping of a little girl, and even Usher's own past are all elements in the cheerfully malevolent Mr. Shiloh's vast occult plot. McMahon's prose is serviceable; Usher is a competent-enough example of the paranormal gumshoe, from tragic backstory to gloomy worldview; and there is the necessary unresolved shadowy menace. Unfortunately, the novel never ventures past these basic ingredients. (Jan.)