If I Stopped Haunting You is a spooky romance you'll die for

When it comes to spooky romances, many ideas come to mind and it's hard to put If I Stopped Haunting You by Colby Wilkens in just one camp.

While the book does have its fair share of spooky elements, there is still a romance at its core and that's why it has to be described as a spooky romance since the author weaves in some unique elements.

Let me start by saying that if you're not a fan of unlikable characters, then you're probably going to want to skip this one. While some people will like Penelope Skinner, she's not exactly the warm and bubbly heroine most of us are used to.

Regardless, I decided to give this one a try and it ended up surprising me. I'd like to thank St. Martin's Press for sending me an ARC so I was able to read this one early.

If I Stopped Haunting You takes spooky to another level.

As mentioned, this book had a unique meeting as it follows Penelope Skinner, a Native author who is on a panel with another author, Neil Storm. While Penelope tried to make her book a success, it's nowhere near as popular as Neil's. Due to that, the two get into an argument during a panel and she throws a book at his head.

From there, her life basically goes into a nosedive as she can't seem to get inspired and hasn't written anything since. However, things start to change when her friend invites her on a writing retreat at a spooky castle, and who else is invited? Neil Storm. While the two admittedly can't stand each other at first, it slowly morphs into attraction.

Penelope is understandably hesitant given everything in their past but that's not all. The castle they're staying at is haunted and Neil and Penelope are the only ones who can see the ghost. While the two are trying to write and figure out their feelings, they're also trying to figure out what's going on with the lady of the manor.

As the story unfolds, we learn more about Neil and Penelope's writing journeys and personal lives while also delving into the ghost and why she's still haunting the castle. While things seem bleak, Colby Wilkens manages to pull it all together in the end and gives us a satisfying story that did feel a little bit meta. Once you get to the end of the story, it all makes sense.

If I Stopped Haunting You did have the bones but something was missing for me. Maybe it's just me, but I didn't fall in love with this story as I hoped. However, it does get me more excited to try out Colby Wilken's upcoming release which is If I Dig You. It's an f/f romance between archeologists which just sounds delightful.

If I Stopped Haunting You by Colby Wilkens is out now where books are sold.