In the Air Tonight

Handeland (Moon Cursed) begins the Sisters of the Craft paranormal trilogy with this smart, romantic tale. Raye Larsen feels like an outsider in her hometown of New Bergin, Wisc., so she hides her ability to talk with ghosts. Her secret may come out, though, after New Orleans police detective Bobby Doucet thwarts an attempt on her life by a cleaver-wielding killer. The miscreant carries a snarling wolf ring in his pocket that branded several NOLA victims and led the detective to New Bergin. Raye’s connection to the killer is part of a complex story involving the Venatores Mali, a 17th-century group of witch hunters led by a particularly nasty villain. Bobby has his own link to the spirit world: he’s trying to get past his guilt over the death of his young child, whose voice haunts him. Handeland punctuates smooth storytelling with dark humor and uses a mix of first- and third-person narration to amp up the emotional content. Agent: Robin Rue, Writers House. (June)