KIRKUS REVIEW!!

by Meg Napier ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 14, 2026

An entertaining, genre-blending mystery and love story.

In Napier’s supernatural romantic thriller, a medium teams up with her childhood friend (and longtime crush) to find his missing brother.

Amanda Warren has been able to communicate with the dead since she was a child,and it’s a gift that her family accepts; after all, her mother’s bloodline includes many instances of women with “second sight.” Now in her 20s, Amanda monetizes her ability by offering her services as a medium under the name “Amy-Elise.” She passes along spirits’ messages for her clients—and when such messages don’t exist, Amanda makes things up to provide her customers with comfort and advice. During one session, she encounters the spirit of the grandfather of her childhood best friend, Keith Grayson, and his brother, Peter. The grandfather’s message is urgent: “Peter is in trouble, and you and Keith have to help. QUICKLY!” Peter has been missing for four days, and Keith and their parents are extremely worried. (Back in high school, Amanda dated Peter, but she’d been infatuated with Keith.) Amanda meets with Keith at Peter’s condo, which has been ransacked. Before long, the brothers’ grandfather reaches out to Amanda again, telling her to leave that place; shortly after she and Keith depart, the condo blows up. Soon, Amanda reveals her gift to Keith for the first time, and things get more complicated when they finally acknowledge their romantic feelings for each other. As they look into Peter’s disappearance, they find that he’s angered some unsavory people, including Russian gangsters. Napier delivers an intriguing tale with paranormal flair. The book is mostly split between Amanda’s first-person perspective and Keith’s close third-person point of view, allowing the story to unfold in dynamic and entertaining ways. Both are intriguing characters, but Amanda is particularly compelling in the casual way she navigates her abilities, as well as the comedic manner in which she handles a helicopter parent of a college-aged son early on, by saying that her spirit guides “both insist [that] this is your time to focus on you.”An entertaining, genre-blending mystery and love story.

Pub Date: July 14, 2026

ISBN: 9781959289074

Page Count: 310

Publisher: N/A

Review Published Sept. 8, 2026

Get your copy of SECOND WHISPER here! https://books2read.com/SecondWhisper