Review : Jillian Cade: (Fake) Paranormal Investigator by Jen Klein

Summary (from Goodreads)

Title : Jillian Cade: (Fake) Paranormal Investigator
Author : Jen Klein
Publication Date : September 1st 2015
Publisher : Soho Teen
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Jillian Cade doesn’t believe in the paranormal. But her famous professor father does, and now that he’s gone, she decides to milk his reputation—and all the suckers who believe in the stuff—to open a private investigation firm. After all, a high school junior has to take care of herself, especially if she’s on her own.

Ironically, it’s when she takes on a case that might involve a totally non-paranormal missing person that things get strange. Particularly when Sky Ramsey—a new boy at school and an avid fan of her father’s—forces his way into becoming her partner and won’t shut up about succubi, of all things.


Before Jillian knows it, she finds herself navigating both her growing feelings for Sky and a sneaking suspicion that the poor saps she’s been scamming know something she doesn’t. Yet.

Personal Thoughts

Jillian Cade: (Fake) Paranormal Investigator, with its Veronica Mars meets Supernatural vibes in the summary, immediately reeled me in. It sounded like it would be an entertaining read with a cute romance. The book wasn't without its lows for me, but overall, this was a fun debut novel and I think this series itself could become epic with more character, plot and world development.

The book, as you might have guessed, is centered around Jillian Cade, who in her father's absence decides to run his paranormal investigation company. Only thing, she doesn't believe in the supernatural. Jillian was an interesting character for me, because I had conflicted feelings about her. She was sassy, witty and quite intelligent. For the most part, I did like her, but there were times when her reluctance to believe in the supernatural despite numerous evidence being thrown in her face, was frustrating. Actually, it took her almost the entire book to accept the fact that yes, there were paranormal creatures in the world that she lived in. I would have disliked her because of her ignorance but her dry wit and sarcasm, which read very funny, are what got me through the book. Jillian was also independent, and she was clearly suffering from the absence of her father. I did hope that more of her complicated relationship with her dad was explored, but with the way the book ended, I have no doubt that the sequel will delve into that.

One part of the book I really enjoyed was Jillian's close relationship with her cousin and partner, Norbert. The two of them were almost like siblings and I loved the bond of friendship between them. They were supportive of each other and were willing to help each other no matter what the situation. Jillian also found romance in this book with Sky, a new attractive boy at school. These two did not start off well, but their bickering and bantering were a highlight for me. The progression of their romance and all the swoony kisses were delightful. I loved their chemistry together and I'm excited to see more of the two of them as a couple in the next book.

The plot and world building were where Jillian Cade: (Fake) Paranormal Investigator were a littly shaky and I personally thought needed to be more thoroughly fleshed out. At the beginning of the book, one of Jillian's classmate hires her to find her missing boyfriend, who she believes was kidnapped by a succubi. This book had the feel of an adult UF/PNR book and I think if it had been more thoroughly developed, it could become a series just as addicting as so many UF/PNR books are. I wanted to learn more about all the paranormal creatures because the main character spent the entirety of the book not believing that they existed, there was hardly time for the author to grow her world. There were twists and turns throughout the book that did surprise me so I have to give credit to the author for that. And I'm sincerely hoping the plot and the world will expand in the sequel.

Despite my quibbles, I did think that Jillian Cade: (Fake) Paranormal Investigator was a very readable book. The book ended with an interesting revelation, so I'm looking forward to reading the next book. If you enjoyed the older style YA paranormal books, then this might be a book you want to check out.

Rating 

Cover : 3/5
Plot : 3/5
Characters : 3/5
Writing : 3/5

 Thank you to Edelweiss and Soho Teen for the e-ARC of Jillian Cade: (Fake) Paranormal Investigator.