A Twist of Karma – Wendy Wanner

·         Purchase link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B087NQC8X3

·         Genre:  Paranormal Suspense

·         Print length: 301 pages

·         Suitable for young adults? This is an adult book but suitable for mature teenagers 16+

·         Trigger warnings: No

·         Amazon star rating: 5*

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About A Twist of Karma

When a grieving mother turns to an ancient Buddhist ritual for solace and mistakenly awakens a vengeful spirit, dark karma threatens to destroy everything she holds dear…

Struggling with depression after the death of her young daughter, Jennifer flees to a healing center in the Sri Lankan jungle. Encouraged to visit the local temple, she finds unexpected meaning in the beliefs of Buddhism. But it’s not long before she becomes entangled in the mystic—and dangerous—world of village folklore, and the slippery, transferable energy of karma.

Still, the jungle works its magic, and Jennifer begins to recover. Returning to Santa Monica, she rebuilds her life through painting, even opening her heart to a new love. But when her deceased daughter appears begging for help, and mounting bodies baffle the police, she battles to repair the shift in karma and free her daughter’s soul.

Praise for A Twist of Karma:

Rating: 5 out of 5.  “A Twist of Karma, by Wendy Wanner, a story that is fascinating from the first paragraph, is also literary paranormal fiction of the highest quality. It faithfully begins in an exciting, exotic locale—a jungle in Sri Lanka—with a main character—Jennifer Stephens—in the vise of crushing morbid depression and guilt brought on by the recent drowning death of her eight-year-old daughter—Suzie—at their home on the beach in Santa Monica. Jennifer was poolside absorbed in a novel when Suzie called out to her, “Mommy look. Watch me dive.” Jennifer didn’t lift her eyes from the pages she was reading until she sensed an unsettling silence. By then, it was too late to save Suzie: she’d drowned. The death of a child is each parent’s worst nightmare, and so for a novelist, this is a subject not to be lightly undertaken as only a novelist with superior skills can make this work.”. Author James Jordan, Amazon

5 out of 5.  “Loved this supernatural suspense novel by author Wendy Wanner. It tells of Jennifer who struggles with grief and, after visiting a retreat in the jungle of Sri Lanka, strange things begin to happen. It delves into the fascinating world of Buddhism and takes you for a magical and suspenseful ride.” Mrs K, Amazon

My Review
A Twist of Karma is one of those books that sound intriguing, although you're not quite sure what you're getting into when you start it. It's a paranormal suspense novel that has depth, emotion, and moments of unsettling unease. It's definitely not a book I would read at night, in the dark, with only the glow from a small reading light or the glow from an e-reader's screen. As someone with an overactive imagination (especially at night), I can honestly say this book has a very creepy vibe to it. 
The story starts with Jennifer, our main character, who is grieving the death of her young daughter. She's struggling, and so she's on a retreat in Sri Lanka to learn how to cope with her pain and try to become whole again. While in Sri Lanka, Jennifer learns about Buddhism and the idea of karma. Using her new knowledge, and with the help of yoga and meditation, Jennifer finally comes to terms with things after three months and heads back home to California. But that's where things get weird.
I don't want to say too much more in case of spoilers, but the rest of the story, which takes place mostly in CA, is where all the strange and unnerving things happen. Not only does Jennifer have to contend with her own mind, and whether she's slowly going crazy or not, but there's a killer on the loose, and women are being murdered late at night. 
Struggling to uncover the truth behind it all, Jennifer starts to realize that maybe there really is something to this karma thing after all.
I enjoyed the story overall for its uniqueness. While I had the "mystery" behind what was going on with Jennifer relatively figured out, the rest of the story was fascinating. It was a little slow in some spots, but not too bad. It just took a little bit to get going sometimes. But I was hooked throughout, curious to see what would happen next.
I liked that we, as readers, got to learn a little bit about Buddhism along with Jennifer. I liked the little table of terminology at the end of the book that explained what the words meant. The odd happenings that Jennifer had to deal with were written in a way that gave me goosebumps. And there was a scene around the 35% mark, where Jennifer was at the cemetery, that turned me into a tearful mess. As a mother myself, that scene was hard to read. 
If you're looking for something a little different in the paranormal suspense genre, give A Twist of Karma a whirl. You just might like it. 
4 stars!

About the Author:

WENDY WANNER writes supernatural suspense novels based on folklore and cultural idiosyncrasies, with a touch of the paranormal. With a BA in Cultural Anthropology from UCLA, Wendy’s interest in cultures and religions drives her to travel the world, encountering different beliefs and traditions which surface in her novels.

A passionate reader and traveler, Wendy is also an avid dancer, yogi, and SCUBA diver who surfs and paddleboards every chance she gets. An Arizona desert girl at heart, Wendy is the mother of two boys and now lives in Dubai with her Scottish husband.

Author links:

·         Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wendywannerbooks/

·         Website: www.wendywannerbooks.com

·         Twitter: https://twitter.com/wendy_wanner

·         Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wendy_wanner_author/