Donn's Hill

By: Caryn Larrinaga

Narrated by: Jessica McEvoy

Length: 9 hrs and 54 mins

Publisher's summary

"Grief can change us... rewire our brains and shift the way we look at the world..."

After returning home from her father's funeral to find her boyfriend in bed with another woman, Mackenzie Clair is looking for a fresh start. She thinks she'll find it in her favorite childhood vacation spot, but returning to Donn's Hill awakens more than nostalgia. Mac regains a lost psychic ability to talk to the dead, and the poltergeist haunting her apartment is desperate to make her use that gift to find his killer.

Aided by her new roommate - a spirited Tortoiseshell cat named Striker, and the ghost-hunting crew of the nationally televised show Soul Searchers, Mac struggles to learn how to use her powers. But she'd better get a handle on them fast, because someone in town is hiding a deadly secret. If Mac can't somehow divine the truth, Donn's Hill will never be the same.

©2017 Caryn Larrinaga (P)2017 Immortal Works

Fun little mystery

This is a fun little mystery that will keep your attention all throughout. And of course, the narration by Jessica McEvoy is top notch as always. I'll listen to anything she narrates.

Caryn this is the best

This is the kind of book you should write as a detective paranormal series. I loved it and the narrator.

Donn's Hill

Caryn Larrinaga’s first installment to her The Soul Searchers Mysteries series, Donn's Hill, was a fabulous first introduction to her work. I had the pleasure of listening to the audio version with Jessica McEvoy narrating. She did a wonderful job bringing this story to life. I was intrigued with MacKenzie and the mystery she was involved in.
I am giving Donn’s Hill a very well deserved five plus stars. I look forward to reading the next installment from The Soul Searchers Mysteries series, Donn’s Shadow.
I received the audio version of this book from the publisher. This review is 100% my own honest opinion.

Great story, great narrator.

I have to confess that I came to this book after being a long time listener to a podcast, and I expected this book to be at leas

Starts slow but good characters and great narrator

I chose to listen to this book after receiving a free audio copy from Audiobookworm Promotions. All opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased.

Mac moves to Donn’s Hill which she has fond memories of visiting when she was young. As she starts a new page in her life, her psychic abilities are heightened. Her character is developed throughout the story and as Mac learns more about herself, the reader learns more about her as well. The other characters are interesting, some quirky, and although they’re not as well developed as Mac, they add a lot to the story. My favorite character is Mac’s cat, Striker. Actually, I’m not sure if Striker belongs to Mac or if it’s the other way around.

The story started slowly but became more interesting once Mac meets the Soul Searchers, a group who help people find closure with ghosts, and they even have their own show. They’re excited to have a psychic on their team before Mac even realizes that that is what she is. Shortly after she joins the Soul Searchers, Mac finds a body and realizes that it’s the man (poltergeist) who has been haunting her since she arrived in town. She has so many questions once she finds the body! Will she be able to sort things out? Will she be able to find the killer?

Jessica McEvoy does a great job with the different voices in the story. She’s the perfect narrator for Donn’s Hill. This is more a performance than a narration and she brings the story alive. I did have to increase the speed to 1.3X because the narration was a little slow but then it was perfect.

I’m looking forward to listening the next book in the series!

[Roxie Reviews] | 'Donn's Hill' by Caryn Larrinaga

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Caryn Larrinaga tells a lovely story about a grown woman who is adrift in her life, struggling to find her place after losing everyone she loves. She only knows a portion of her history and longs to know more. She believes returning to Donn's Hill, a place she remembers visiting with her mother as a child, will help her do so. She has no idea what it actually has in store for her.

I listened to this as an audiobook narrated by Jessica McEvoy. Her narration is wonderfully done. Her voice is perfectly suited to this tale. She reads this exactly as I would have read it in my own head -- with perfect cadence, intonation, and emotion. She plays all of the characters impeccably, even the cat, if you can believe that. I have been a fan of McEvoy's for quite a while, and she never ceases to amaze me with her talent and her range. She is always able to convey the truth of human experience and emotion through the power of her voice. She's a real powerhouse.

The combination of Larrinaga's beautifully written characters, intriguing plot, captivating setting, and McEvoy's exquisitely done narration, this story comes alive. It's creepy yet endearing in the complexity of its humanity.

Read this review and more on my blog at roxiewrites (dot) tumblr (dot) com.

Good start to the series.

Mackenzie Clair has had a rough time of it. Her father just passed away and after coming home from the funeral she finds her boyfriend in bed with another woman. She decides its time for a change, and new start. She gets a bit more then she expects. She heads back to Donn's Hill. A place she loved going on vacation as a child. She starts to find out a few things about her mother who passed several years ago. She also is found by a kitten who decides Mackenzie is her person. She also meets a group of Ghost Hunters known as the The Soul Searchers. Oh yea and Mackenzie is psychic, she just doesn't know it yet.

This book is a mix of murder mystery and urban fantasy. The spook factor is there from the first few pages. And the body list builds quickly. Caryn Larrinaga does a really great job with this story. Jessica McEvoy's narration is pretty good. At time her over pronunciation got a but rough, but other then that I really enjoyed the book.

Excellent story!!

This was a very well written book. It kept my attention all the way through and I started book 2 immediately after listening to this one. I loved the story and the characters and even recommended it to my daughter about half way through this book! For the most part, I enjoyed the narration. My only issue while listening is how she pronounced her T's and G's. They were very pronounced. Instead of just saying words with those letters, she actually put emphasis on those letters. It was extremely distracting and became annoying quite quickly. Other than that, she did an great job. I was voluntarily provided this review copy audiobook at no charge by the author, publisher and/or narrator.

Ghost Points To His Killer

A great start to this psychic series. Mac Claire is stalked by the ghost of a murdered man and is determined to find the answers. Why is he chasing her and who killed him? In her quest, she finds a lot of the town's secrets.

wonderful audio horror book

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

yes, the narration was nuanced and well acted, the story not the typical horror. enjoyed it.

Have you listened to any of Jessica McEvoy’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

yes, this performance is amazing, just like any of her performances.