There is a well kept secret agency of federal law enforcement called the SCU, which stands for Special Crimes Unit. This agency works to solve crimes that go beyond the realm of what's considered normal, and each of the agents has some form of psychic power. SCU is called in to investigate what may be a serial killer, who is leaving a trail of murdered young women, as he heads south. The small town of Sociable, Georgia appears to be in his path.

Trinity is the sheriff of Sociable. She is also part of "The Group," which consists of a dozen people from the town who went to school together, stayed in town, and socialize together. When one of their members is murdered, Trinity calls in the SCU, because evidence points to a killer that the agency dealt with previously, and believed dead. When another member of the group is murdered, this time, more brutally than anything the town has seen, it appears that the murderer may be one of their own.

The agents from SCU are almost always tested when they are working on solving a paranormal crime. The man in charge of the unit, Noah Bishop, has an uncanny ability to send the agents with the right abilities to defeat the "monsters," as they call the criminals. In this case, Hollis is the agent who is going to have to face her fears and use all her strength to defeat this evil who has amazing powers that seem to extend even beyond the grave. Hollis, herself, was brutally attacked years ago, and has blocked it from her mind to allow herself to function. It's brought back to her in a most brutal way.

I started reading Kay Hooper years ago when she wrote strictly romance books. She then turned to romantic suspense which evolved into thrillers with paranormal elements. Now her books even touch the horror category. This is not something I usually read, but her books are enthralling and compelling. HAUNTED is no exception. It's engrossing, captivating, graphic, and downright scary. She has a gift of introducing a multitude of characters, and letting you into their minds so you come to know them very well. I believe that readers who enjoy this genre will be thrilled with this book. It's not even my regular choice of reading material, yet I couldn't put it down.

Book Summary

How do you make peace with the dead if the dead aren’t ready to forgive? In New York Times bestselling author Kay Hooper’s new novel, the answer lies in the twisting shadows of a small town, and its secrets yet unearthed...

When Deacon James’s younger sister Melanie calls him, terrified, he goes to her aid in the small Georgia town of Sociable. What he finds is a scared young woman in the grip of what she insists is a paranormal nightmare—and murder. Two local men have been killed under mysterious circumstances. And Melanie is the prime suspect.

Trinity Nichols left a high-stress job for quiet, small- town life. But news of the murders has left her—and the town—on edge, especially when there is nothing remotely ordinary about how the men died. And her investigation is yielding more than she bargained for, including a group of strangers who have descended on Sociable, some with abilities Trinity finds hard to believe, and agendas she refuses to trust. For some reason, they know a lot more than they should about what’s happening in town. And what’s happening is growing stranger by the minute.

Now Trinity, Deacon, and this odd band of FBI agents must work together to solve a series of disturbances so incredible that Trinity, and the town of Sociable, will be changed forever. She just isn’t certain who—or what—will be left standing when it’s all over.