MRC RECOMMENDS: Under the Apple Tree by Kathleen J. Easley
“I fell in love with the characters, the story, and everything about this book.” – The Mystery Review Crew
Under the Apple Tree
By Kathleen J. Easley
Genre: Paranormal, Mystery
Recently divorced from a suffocating marriage, Kate Ecklund is determined to make it on her own. She buys an old abandoned Victorian manor with plans to restore it and turn it into a bed-and-breakfast. But she soon discovers that the house is haunted by the ghost of the previous owner, Blossom Thatcher, an aged recluse who died alone in the moldering mansion. Even in death, Blossom’s spirit awaits the return of her lover who tragically vanished over eighty years ago. Curiosity and compassion compel Kate to unravel the mystery and bring peace to the grieving ghost. To do this, she must seek clues to the past, which ultimately lead to a hidden map to a lost gold mine.
As the plot unfolds, two men come into Kate’s life. One sweeps her off her feet with his good looks and amorous style, while the other amuses her with his wit and engaging repartee. The story is told through chapters that alternate between Kate in the present and Blossom in the past. Set decades apart, the two unique love stories are inexorably entwined, shrouded in mystery, touched with humor, and imbued with elements of the supernatural.
*Affiliate links are used in this article. The Mystery Review Crew is an Amazon Affiliate and, as such, earns from qualifying purchases. See our privacy policy and disclosures for more information.
Find it on Goodreads and Amazon.
Review of Under the Apple Tree by Kathleen J. Easley
This new novel from Kathleen Easley combines family, a mystery, and the paranormal realm.
Kate, recently divorced, decides to take the money from her divorce and purchase a historic home. Her goal is to turn it into a B&B, but this home needs quite a bit of work. She enlists the help of her brother, and while refurbishing this home, they uncover secrets that have remained buried for decades. The story alternates between the present and the past. The past is Blossom’s story, the love she lost, and why she is still lingering in the present.
Kate is a take-charge woman and, surprisingly, the only person who can see Blossom’s ghost. She isn’t quite sure what to make of it, but small clues lead them down a path to uncover the truth about Blossom’s beau and what happened to their family. I enjoyed the interactions between Kate and her brother. It is typical sibling banter, but they have each other’s back.
Two men enter the picture, seeking Kate’s affections. While it may not have started off that way, we see their interest piqued. However, is that interest real, or is there something that they want from Kate?
The story has some humorous moments, including the next-door neighbor who is something of a busybody and a gossip. However, that attention will be significant later in the book, and Kate will appreciate that this neighbor is paying attention.
There were some twists that I wasn’t expecting, but those twists enhanced the storyline and added some intrigue.
I fell in love with the characters, the story, and everything about this book. I enjoyed the back and forth in time as each time we visited the past, we learned a little more about Blossom, her family, and why she was still lingering in the present after her death.
I thought the book was well laid out, and I can see this becoming a series. However, there is only one ghost, so I’m unsure what future books could entail from the paranormal realm. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed Under the Apple Tree. I’d like to say I figured out some of the details revealed in the end, but alas, I did not. However, that is what made the story more intriguing: uncovering the clues little by little meshed in with solid characters, including some with unsavory motives.
About Kathleen J. Easley
Kathleen is the author of the Brenna Wickham Haunted Mystery series, number one being “Siblings and Secrets,” and book two, “Families and Felons.” Set in Seattle, these are contemporary murder mysteries with a paranormal twist and a hint of romantic suspense.
Kathleen was born in a small town in southern Iowa from a long line of stubborn Swedes. Her maternal grandfather was the pastor of a small rural church built by Swedish immigrants. His congregants loved him because he could preach in Swedish “the way God intended.”
When Kathleen was five years old, the family moved to Seattle, a burgeoning city full of possibilities. They settled in a suburb just north of town where Kathleen grew up with her three siblings, eventually graduating from Shoreline High School and later, Shoreline Community College.
Kathleen met the love of her life in high school. They married and built a house on acreage in a quiet rural community in the Snoqualmie Valley, east of Seattle near the foothills of the Cascade Mountains. Turns out you can take the girl out of the country, but you can’t take the country out of the girl. There, they raised three beautiful talented daughters, as well as a passel of animals, including cats, dogs, rabbits, goats, and horses. Her first dog was a pedigreed golden retriever which she trained and showed, collecting fistfuls of ribbons. She spent several years as a Girl Scout leader, then transitioned to 4-H where her daughters showed their dogs and horses at the fair. They even raised three golden retriever puppies for Guide Dogs for the Blind.
She has had varied work experience, from insurance claims assistant to school bus driver, and even a stretch at Barnes and Noble as a book seller. She likes to sew quilts and make beaded jewelry. A true denizen of the Pacific Northwest, Kathleen loves deep blue water, tall green trees, and the Seattle Seahawks. On nice days, she can often be found with her husband on their boat cruising the San Juan Islands.
Always an avid lover of books, one of Kathleen’s favorite childhood memories is sitting on her father’s lap while he read “Lassie Come-Home” aloud. Another pivotal moment in her life was getting her very first library card in fourth grade. Since then, she has read nearly everything she could get her hands on, including every animal book ever written, followed by a wide range of classics, and eventually science fiction and fantasy.
She first whetted her writing skills on fanfic, and self-published three novellas through a fan-run forum dedicated to The Man From U.N.C.L.E. television series.
But it was the enduring works of the great Gothic romantic suspense novelists Daphne Du Maurier, Mary Stewart, Victoria Holt, Barbara Mertz, and Phyllis A. Whitney that finally convinced her that those were the kinds of books she wanted to write. Smitten with mysteries, several plot ideas began to rattle around in her head, eventually materializing into the Brenna Wickham Haunted Mystery series.
