Darkscope by J. Carson Black

Darkscope by J. Carson Black

GOODREADS SUMMARY: After Chelsea McCord’s marriage falls apart, her uncle talks her into a change of scene---Bisbee, Arizona, the scenic mining town with a notorious past. Her great-grandfather, mining magnate Lucas McCord, helped build Bisbee at the turn of the last century. 

Chelsea discovers an ancient box camera in a dusty trunk, the film still inside. On a lark she photographs the town. Is it her imagination, or does the stench of death emanate from the camera’s inner workings?

And when Chelsea looks through a viewfinder wavy with age, she sees children in gunny-sack clothes, their eyes dark and grainy. Children from the 1920’s. She sees a young man and woman at a train station that no longer exists.

And as the past superimposes itself on the present, Chelsea learns the secret of her family’s true legacy. With one click of the shutter, she has unleashed a pure and hungry evil that will consume everyone she loves.

Now Chelsea must fight to save her beloved uncle---and herself.

[caption id="attachment_342" align="alignright" width="316"] Darkscope by J. Carson Black[/caption]

I'm the type of person who loves paranormal mystery novels, but this fell short. It was paranormal (ghosts) and it was a mystery (who is the killer?), but the story seemed to drone on and on and focus on tangents that didn't add to the plot. The characters were naive and the main character, Chelsea, was weak and kind of an idiot for being touted as being from a notoriously strong, independent family that takes care of themselves.

Some parts of the book were genuinely interesting and I didn't want to put it down, but then the ending to the excitement always fell flat.

Then there's a specific scene when Chelsea is on the phone with Bob when the camera "surprises" her (I hate spoilers so I'm leaving it vague), but I seriously laughed out loud. My husband asked me if I was reading a comedy. "I don't think it's supposed to be," I answered. Ridiculous.

Why three stars? Because there were parts I liked and other parts I really, really wanted to like but couldn't get into. It's not a bad book. Just kind of a cheesy mystery.