NILA'S BABIES

A widowed father and a new nanny form a romantic connection in the midst of malicious witchery in this supernatural thriller.

Simensen’s (Executive Action, 2016) textured, sinister tale of good versus evil is a somewhat radical departure from his debut. Life deals a crushing blow to Floridian Gordon Hale when his mother dies and then his wife, Karen, succumbs to brain cancer, leaving him a single father with 1-year-old twins. His sister Mary urges him to hire Nila Rawlings, a highly recommended, 23-year-old British nanny. Gordon reluctantly agrees, and soon Nila is watching over the kids in Gordon’s family’s beach cottage in Castle Key. But after Nila moves in, the author weaves sinister themes of witchery and demonic possession into the increasingly complicated yarn. Busybody neighbor Hattie insinuates herself into Nila’s life, but it’s the elderly woman in her charge, Myra Silk, who causes real trouble, using voodoo witchcraft rituals to create human zombies under her control and hatching a plot to corrupt the twins. Gordon and Nila expectedly grow closer as they care for the children, and they eventually fall in love as his memory of his wife fades. Simensen throws his narrative into high gear when Gordon’s embittered, drug-addicted ex-girlfriend Maggie breaks into the house and Nila must defend herself with lethal force. When Maggie’s dead body goes missing from the morgue, Hattie and Myra invoke a powerful ritual. Although the plot has a tendency to become overwrought at times, the author cleverly sets up a devilish premise, delving into romantic mystery, horror, and supernatural suspense to satisfy a wide variety of readers. As more body-switching sorcery occurs and Nila and Gordon’s love deepens, Nila also becomes embroiled in a familial melodrama. This impressive and vividly imagined story will keep readers guessing throughout—and it even leaves room for a sequel.

A quirky, ambitious novel that’s surprisingly compelling and devilishly spooky.