The Girls On Floor 13
By:Helen Phifer

4 Stars

Crime. Murder. Drama. Ghosts. This story has it all. When two girls are murdered in the Parker Hotel, on the the 13th floor, detectives Maria and Frankie are brought in. They seem to find themselves on a not so normal case. Again.

What could be better than hauntings and murder? This book was a surprise to me. It was a part of a series, and yet, as a stand-alone, it was so good. It DID make me want to go read the others, sooner rather than later. I never felt like I missed anything major. It just made me want more information. I loved the characters and the storyline. It was spooky and well written and I can't wait to find more from this author.

*I want to thank Netgalley and the author for this book in return for my honest review*

Stormi Ellis
Boundless Book Review

Thanks netgalley for another wonderful ghost story by a brilliant author Helen Phifer.
Had ready her other book and this one was equally as good loved it cannot wait for another one..
Two teenage girls one interested in ghosts went to New York from their hime town to visit a run down hotel which had a reputation for being haunted by a lady in a pale blue dress.
What they did find was a demon who cut off their feet and left them dead.
Detective Maria Miller and her sidekick were called in to investigate the murders as they had a reputation as ghost hunters.
What they did find was a lot worse and nearly killed Marua Miller.

I wish this was just crime fiction. It sort of took away the mystery and fun of solving a crime. Detective Maria is called to solve a gruesome murder of teenage girls. The book focuses on some sinister being that resides in the hotel rather than finding out the reason for the murder. The story also fluctuates timelines which don't actually do much for the plot. Also it didn't satisfactorily explain the foot fetish.
I give this book 2 stars because I didn't enjoy the paranormal angle.

I thank NetGalley and Storm Publishing for the E-Arc and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Another great entry to the series, this was creepy and chilling and I couldn't put it down. Brilliant!

This third installment in the series started strong with a chilling double homicide at the Parker Hotel. The initial mystery grabbed my attention, and the author cleverly weaved in a touch of the paranormal, keeping me on edge. However, as the story unfolded, cracks began to appear. The dialogue felt forced and lacked natural flow, jolting me out of the narrative. Additionally, Maria's internal monologue revealed a bombshell about her feelings for Frankie, a development completely out of the blue and unsupported by prior interactions. This kind of abrupt shift happened repeatedly, undermining the emotional core of the characters.

The biggest letdown was the ending. The story veered sharply into horror territory, leaving the initial murder investigation dangling. The explanation for the killings felt at odds with the crime genre, creating a jarring disconnect. While some readers might enjoy the heavy paranormal elements, I found it a frustrating departure from the series' initial promise. It seems the author struggled to reconcile the crime and paranormal aspects, resulting in a disjointed and ultimately disappointing experience.

Another fine crime/supernatural story featuring Detective Miller.
The story hops back and forth between historical murders in the room and the present day case Maria needs to solve and is a bit confusing in places as it is not always clear in which time a character is acting.
The supernatural bits (for me) need to be taken with a suspension of disbelief, but the points are not over-laboured, more accepted as another aspect of crime solving and the book reads well as a result of this clever weaving of the current crime and resident evil!

An old hotel with a creepy past, two dead girls, sinister messages, and strange visions. make for another creepy and fun book in the Detective Maria Miller series by Helen Phifer. I enjoyed the creepy paranormal vibe in this book. As with the previous books in the series, readers will see Detective Maire Miller and her partner, Frankie take on a paranormal case at a hotel which had an identical double murder which occurred decades earlier. I enjoy the paranormal aspect in this series and how Marie and Frankie are called in to investigate the cases which are supernatural in nature.


The thirteenth floor of a rundown New York City hotel room is no stranger to chilling events happening. Is the hotel haunted? Is the thirteenth floor haunted? What or who is responsible for the deaths of the two teenage girls? How is this case connected to the past case? That is what Marie and Franke (and myself) set out to solve in [book:The Girls on Floor 13|209070964].

Having to solve a current case which is identical to a past case is reminiscent of the first book in the series, [book:The Haunting on West 10th Street|195068811] which also had a case in the present which resembled a case in the past.

Readers also get to see more of Marie's private life, which was a nice touch as readers of the series have seen her meet and date Harrison.

I enjoyed the mystery in this book as well as the many characters. This is the third book in the series and I highly recommend reading [book:The Haunting on West 10th Street|195068811] and [book:Her Lost Soul|200516568] as well. Can this book be read as a stand-alone? Perhaps, but the first two books in this series are so well done that I highly recommend reading them as well.

While I enjoyed this book, it was not my favorite in the series, that honor goes to [book:Her Lost Soul|200516568]. But this was a solid installment in the series, and I enjoyed the chilling, haunted, and creepy vibe in this book. Plus, the atmosphere is off the charts! A creepy old hotel paired with tension and twists, made for fun reading.

If you enjoy books with a paranormal element paired with a police procedural, this book series fits the bill!

Chilling, creepy, well written and atmospheric!

3.5 stars

Thank you to Storm Publishing and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.

Read more of my reviews at www.openbookposts.com 📖

Wow, what a gripping story! I couldn't put this book down; I devoured it in just one day. The pace was relentless, keeping me on the edge of my seat throughout. It reminded me of the chilling atmosphere surrounding the Cecil Hotel murders. Despite not being someone who typically reads supernatural stories, I found myself thoroughly captivated. I thoroughly enjoyed the universe the author crafted; it felt like she had a knack for immersing the audience into the story, making it easy to picture every scene vividly. Overall, I found the storyline to be thoroughly enjoyable. I'm now eager to explore more of the author's work and will definitely be purchasing some of their other books.

This is the third book in the series. I have read the previous 2 and felt there was promise in the series.

This started off very interesting with the death of two teens at the Parker Hotel. I felt the set up of the mystery was good, and it caught my interest immediately.
Maria and Frankie are heading up the investigation. I knew because of previous novels, that there would be a paranormal element. I don’t mind this in stories, but it has to be woven in through a way that draws the reader into a sense of belief of the possibility. The author manages, somewhat, to do this.

I was hoping that by the third book the writing would have progressed. The conversation in this was stilted. And the sudden shifts! Maria was talking to her boyfriend Harrison, then admits in her own head that she has cared for Frankie for quite a while. WHAT??? There was no segway to this thought. This happens a lot.
The ending was a disappointment. I will not write a spoiler- but this changed over to a “horror” book, hiding as a murder investigation. However, the explanations for the murders don’t fit in the crime genre. And even then- it was a letdown and very dissatisfying.

There are some who really enjoyed this book, and if you like more paranormal than crime, then I think you will like this book. I guess for me, I like my paranormal separated from a crime!

Thank you NetGalley and Storm Publishing for this ARC. This is my voluntary, honest review.

(2 stars for the beginning because that did draw me in!)

Book three in this paranormal crime series the bodies of two teenage girls are discovered in a rundown New York City hotel room with their feet cut off and this hotel has history of the ghostly kind.

Case assigned to Maria and Frankie the dynamic and camaraderie between these partners is fab and the added humour throughout

A suspenseful and entertaining read which was atmospheric in-depth and detailed in the writing style which helped to add clarity to the setting and characters.

I have read other series by this author, but this is my first time reading a book in this series. It was an interesting read about a supposedly haunted hotel, where several murders have took place over the years. If you like to read about the supernatural and paranormal you will probably love this book. Thank you Netgalley for this arc.

The story here is really interesting and unique. There is a mix of suspense, thriller, and paranormal that I really enjoyed. I just struggled so much with the story telling. The dialogue was forced, unrealistic and cliché. It was really hard to work through the conversations and character within the story. 2.5 rounded to 3 for the overall plot only.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

I wanted to like this more. Number one: a British author writing a book set in America really needs to do better research or get an American editor. The britishisms in this were literally on every page, almost every paragraph. It was distracting and really annoying and took me right out of the story.

The story was a great idea, but the writing was just not up to telling it properly. Everything felt very surface level even though it was trying to be deep and meaningful. Flowery, over the top, and wordy speeches happened at least once a chapter.

Also, it was quite confusing… the tenth floor is higher than the thirteenth? You sometimes didn’t know who was speaking and all of the character voices sounded the same.

This is the third in a series I haven’t read or heard of, but I would’ve expected better chemistry for the cop partners and also the female lead and her boyfriend, who she always just called her friend?

The ending was very abrupt and seemed to be resolved way too easily by a priest praying about it. Also, it got VERY religious and preachy about two thirds of the way in, which was slightly off putting.

This book wasn't necessarily bad, it just wasn't for me. When I requested it I didn't realize that it was a paranormal mystery (not a genre I really read), nor that it was part of a series, so those things are on me. However, I did have some problems with the book in general. A lot of the horror elements just felt like a pastiche of existing horror franchises (demons, haunted hotel/hotel rooms, etc.), without really doing anything new with them. I also felt like the dialogue wasn't very realistic. And, it was set in New York, but the characters kept using British terms for things (i.e., "lift" instead of "elevator"), which kept pulling me out of the story. That being said, it was fast paced and I liked the characters in general. If you're a fan of paranormal mysteries, you would probably enjoy The Girls on Floor 13.

I read this book pretty fast. The beginning had me hooked right off the bat. I like when it went from past and present day. I will say though I thought this would be more thriller but it was giving horror as well which I wasn't expecting.

This had both suspense thriller with a splash of paranormal activity which is what I like. I will definitely read another book from this author. Thank you NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to try this story.

I'm not usually one for supernatural stories, but this book might change my mind. It was suspensful, and gripping. I didn't want to put it down. Well done!

Book 3 Detective Maria Miller Series

I really enjoyed this book and was hooked from the first chapter.

This is a fast paced, paranormal murder mystery. We follow detectives Maria and Frankie as they work to solve the murder of 2 teenagers whose bodies were found in a room on the 13th floor of the Parker Hotel.

I didn’t realise at the time this was the third book in the series. Even though I didn’t read the previous book I still story. However, as I did like this book I would like to read the others to see how Maria and Frankie found themselves at the Parker Hotel.

Thanks to NetGalley, Helen Phifer and Storm Publishing for the ARC

A real twisty, paranormal thriller and if that's your thing your going to love it.
A little predictable in places but overall an enjoyable read by this talented author.
My thanks to netgalley and the publisher for my early copy.

I really struggled to read this. The interaction between characters just felt stilted and a bit false. The good people were all far too good and nice. What saved it though, and kept me going right to the end, was the incredible plot.