The beginning was promising I was intrigued but then it just fell flat for me and I was not interested anymore. The characters didn't do it for me.

This YA is a paranormal suspense. It is also is a detective story. The back and forth of tropes could give you whiplash but I feel it works in the YA genre. The characters are lovable and relatable.

Love the narration on this book! This was my first Helen Phifer book, and it won't be my last. Scary, twisty, and smart with the irresistible supernatural element. Absolutely kept me glued to my ear buds!

Though this book isn't very long, the story and character development are very good. Add in a little time travel and supernatural aspects and the story is fast paced and keeps you interested until the end. This is the second in a series. I have not read the first book.

Narrated by Stephanie Canon

I didn't realise, going into this, that it's the second in a series. That didn't change anything for me at all. There are a few references to previous weird happenings that Maria has dealt with, but aside from that this was easily read as a standalone.

Another audio listen, and it was entertaining enough. The audio didn't really impact my read - I listened mostly attentively, and aside from most of the men sounding the same it was easy enough to hear the story as it was written.

Riley and her friends are exploring an old, abandoned mental institution (one of my favourite tropes) when she goes missing. Things about her disappearance are a little strange, so Detective Miller and her partner, Frankie, are put on the case.

These two worked well together, but I was happy to ignore most of the 'no we're just friends for real' stuff in favour of the actual story unfolding. We're given a second storyline from 1960, and I found that part particularly fascinating. Faye was an unexpected character that I was happy to meet, and I'll be googling for real-life similarities later today for sure.

Pacing was great, characters were fun and dynamic, and the story was intriguing. An easy listen.

With thanks to Netgalley for an audio ARC

"Her Lost Soul" by Helen Phifer is one of the creepiest books I've ever read or listened to. It is more than a thriller; it's a paranormal horror.

A group of four friends go ghost hunting in an old closed down insane asylum. They experience a lot of strange haunting events and run out of the place scared.. but one of them is left behind. Riley is the missing girl. Maria and Frank are the investigators called in from another city because they deal with paranormal cases. There is time travel in this book that takes us back in time 50 years to when the building was a functioning hospital. Marilyn Monroe was there as a guest, using a different name.

Characters 5/5
Writing 4/5
Plot 4/5
Pacing 5/5
Unputdownability 5/5
Enjoyment 2/5 - too scary for me
Narration 5/5
Cover 5/5

Stephanie Canon did a terrific job with the narration.

Thank you to Netgalley, Dreamscape Select, and Storm Publishing for providing this audiobook in exchange for my honest review

Ths is the second book of a series, and readers continue to follow Maria and Frankle, NYPD who end up dealing with unusual and mysterious cases. In this second installment, Maria and Frankie are brought in to investigate a teenager's disappearance after she and her friends went exploring an abandoned psychiatric hospital.
Despite being part of a series, this book definitely works as a standalone. I think this story has a bit of a hard time figuring out what it wants to be - so I'm calling it a paranormal cozy mystery. its a little too light to fall into the horror genre, and not exactly an edge of your seat thriller. I think that readers who enjoy a historical element to their cozy mysteries could have a lot of fun with this one.

You want to grab my attention? Include an abandoned haunted psychiatric hospital in your story and you’ll have it! Well, Her Lost Soul starts out with four teens doing amateur ghost hunting in, you guessed it, and abandoned psychiatric hospital. It’s schedule for demolition, but before that happens they just want to have a look around. Four of the enter, only three come out. And that’s where Maria Miller and her partner Frankie come into the picture. It’s an odd case, and that’s apparently after the events of the first book odd cases are now their specialty. Yes, this is the second book in the Maria Miller series. I have not read that first book, and while there are references to it in this book you can easily read this one as a stand alone, though I’ll admit the tidbits they mention about their first adventure definitely got my interest and I’ll be picking it up.

You definitely get an X Files-ish vibe from Maria and Frankie, except that thanks to the events of the first book they are both definitely believers. As for the story, it’s a wild fast paced adventure, incorporating not just the supernatural but it also has a time travel/dual timeline component. (Which definitely included some things/characters I wasn’t expecting.) If I had a complaint it would be that the ending felt a little bit rushed, but I still enjoyed the story from start to finish, and this is a series I’ll be following from now on. I believe this is the first time I’ve heard Stephanie Canon’s narration and she definitely delivered a solid performance. I’d like to thank Dreamscape Select, Storm Publishing, and NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to and review an advanced copy of the audio version of Her Lost Soul.

https://www.amazon.com/review/R1TY6FC8O4L40H/ref=pe_1098610_137716200_cm_rv_eml_rv0_rv

Four teenagers break into an old abandoned psychiatric hospital on Beacon Hill to see what horrors they could find before the building was demolished. However, only three teens left the hospital building that night. Riley Holt, who is the Police Chief’s daughter, vanishes without a trace. Detective Maria Miller and her partner Frankie Conroy were contacted by a friend of the Chief’s to consult on the case as they specialize in “weird cases.” Aside from the horrible acts that were committed on patients while the hospital was in operation, the abandoned building was also the hiding place of the College Kid Killer. The case gets weirder as the case progresses. The three teenagers are unable to provide any insight on the disappearance of their friend and a mysterious grave that’s found has more than one set of remains…
This book was book 2 in the Detective Maria Miller series. When I requested to listened to this ARC audiobook, I wasn’t aware that it was a series as I likely wouldn’t have requested. However, I felt that this book could be read as a standalone. I didn’t feel that I was out of the loop on anything. The premise of the story was interesting and reminded me a little bit of the television series, Evil or Ex-Files. While I enjoy a good paranormal story, this book didn’t cause the hair on the back of my neck to stand up or even prickle. This was pretty vanilla in regard to spook factor, and I feel it could have been a little more feeling invoking or maybe the audience for this series is more Young Adult thriller/horror. The narrator did well, however, the voices for the male characters was very similar so there were times that I struggled to differentiate what male was speaking.
Thank you NetGalley and Storm Publishing for allowing me the opportunity to provide my honest feedback on this audiobook ARC.

In the book Her Lost Soul, author Helen Phifer follows Detective Maria Miller and her partner Frankie Conroy as they explore the disappearance of Riley Maria at an abandoned psychiatric hospital. But what is really going on at this falling apart hospital? This was a very strange story. I did not care for it. Lot’s of confusing twists and turns. Time travel? Weird spirits? I would not recommend this book. The audio-book narration was very good. I received a copy of this audio-book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Another great read!

Not sure I've read this author before...

So, in the beginning, I was feeling like this was a YA thriller/Fantasy/Haunted House type of read, but as the book progressed, so did my feelings about it!

Riley and her friends went to investigate an old Psychiatric Hospital in Beacon NY...just days before it is going to be razed. They want to take pix and document what it is like...as it is feared to be haunted, with very strange things going on there. OF NOTE: It has not been in use for many years...

While they are there, they experience some strange stuff, but attribute it to the other kids playing tricks on them. That is NOT the case.
When they get scared and exit the building, Riley is NOT with them.
Although they look for her, they cannot seem to find her.

So, they are forced to call 911...and Riley's Dad, who happens to be the Chief of Police in the area.

As they are investigating, strange things seem to be going on all around...and we start to get a feel for what is happening.

Additionally, NYC 'Strange Happenings' Police are called in to help out, as one of them has a friend in the local Police Dept.

Again, investigations are happening and they are delving in to people who were familiar with the hospital when it was up and running...

And then, we have the time travel loop! =0

As if there weren't enough going on, we have more added!
Add in some celebrity figures from long ago...and we have the whole shebang!

4 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️for me!!

#HerLostSoul by #HelenPhifer and narrated by #StephanieCanon.

Thanks to #NetGalley, #StormPublishing and #DreamscapeSelect for an ARC of the audiobook which released on 2/28/24.
Of note: It says this is book #2. I did not read #1 and did not feel like I missed anything...

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IG @ #BookReviews_with_emsr or
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Thanks so much for reading!📚⭐️📖

Keep in mind that this book falls within the paranormal genre.
Despite this, I found the final chapters to be overly exaggerated and nearly comical, resembling a Disney horror film.

While Detective Maria Miller and Riley were well-developed characters, as were the supporting cast in Her Lost Soul, I was slightly disappointed. The writing was strong, the plot was captivating, and the characters were all greatly fleshed-out, however I cannot say that I really enjoyed this book.

If you enjoy ghost stories, I suggest giving this a read, but if you are expecting a more traditional mystery-thriller, you may be let down.
It's difficult for me to decide between a 2-star and a 3-star rating, as there were few negative aspects that would justify a lower rating. In the end, I have settled on a 2.5-star rating.

The second in the Detective Maria Miller series did not disappoint. I loved the moody atmosphere. The descriptions of the hospital were so on point, I felt as though I were there. Looking forward to the next in the series!

A good paranormal mystery! & you don't have to read book 1 to understand the story line!

Publisher's summary
She moves her flashlight around the dark, empty ward. How could her friends have left her alone in a place like this? But she isn’t really alone. Someone is watching. And he won’t let her leave this place alive…
Shortly before midnight, four teenagers broke into the old abandoned psychiatric hospital on Beacon Hill. Only three came out again. The missing girl—Riley Holt—is the seventeen-year-old daughter of the local police chief and she appears to have vanished into thin air. Called from Manhattan to take over the case, Detective Maria Miller and her partner Frankie Conroy uncover the sinister past of the abandoned hospital, which was once the hiding place of the notorious College Kid Killer, who never revealed the burial site of his final victim.
Then a fresh grave is discovered in the hospital’s old cemetery and Maria expects the worst. But when the remains of two young women are recovered, it appears that neither belongs to Riley. Maria and her team make the connection between the secret grave and the College Kid Killer, but with Riley still missing and her three friends unable to shed any light on her whereabouts, the case gets more complex by the minute.
Maria must delve into the hospital’s tragic past—and into the girl’s own family history—to work out what happened to Riley Holt. While the girl’s father acts the part of the distraught parent, Maria’s instincts tell her that something isn’t right. And the elderly former caretaker of the hospital seems to know more than he’s letting on. As she comes close to the terrifying truth, eyes follow Maria’s every move. She’s about to put her own life on the line but can she find Riley before it’s too late?

Thanks to NetGalley & Storm Publishing for the arc of this book!

Her Lost Soul
By: Helen Phifer
Narrated by: Stephanie Canon
Publisher: Storm Publishing
Series: Detective Maria Miller, Book 2
Release date: 02-28-24

I enjoyed this book. I thought this story was more of a horror than thriller but it had a great story packed into a shorter book. I love time travel stories and this one was unique. Detective Maria Miller wasn't my favorite character compared to other women detective books. Overall, it was a fast enjoyable listen!
The narrator was fantastic and really brought this story to life!

Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Select for an Audio-Arc!

I enjoyed this book! I really like Maria and Frankie. I love how this book had sprinkles of humor, along with mystery and thriller vibes. This is well written. I am excited to read more about Frankie and Maria and see if anything happens there! 4 stars. Highly recommend.

I was really intrigued by the premise of this book. I look a good spooky book. Unfortunately, it fell a little flat for me. I'm not sure if it was the narration or the "famous actress" at the asylum or what, but it started to feel a little cartoonish to me. Maybe I was just expecting more of a serious thriller and this gave more young adult vibes. The overall idea of the story was good and there were parts that were really spooky to me, especially at the beginning when they first entered the hospital, and at the end when they are trying to rescue RIley.

Her Lost Soul, by Helen Phifer is number two in a series, however this can be enjoyed as a stand alone. Okay let me start by saying this book gave me the heebie jeebies, big time, and I enjoyed every single minute. I am a sucker for ghosts, haunted creepy places, and murder mysteries. The Narrator did a great job with bringing the characters to life. She has a really impressive cornucopia of voices. This audio book ended too soon for me, so I am looking forward to reading about the characters next adventure.

I get squeamish with horror/spooky things but I can’t get enough of Helen Phifer’s Maria Miller series! Book 2 adds some new paranormal elements and some old Hollywood. I love that these are spooky without being too spooky for me to be able to listen to them. I can’t wait to see where Maria and Frankie go next!

Stephanie Canon once again does a fantastic job at breathing life into these characters

This book had my interest the entire time. It is definitely interesting and honestly gets you thinking. I love seeing abandon places but this just gives me one more reason to never go into them lol. Very interesting book and a great storyline.