Grave Images

**Reader Comments & Reviews**

Well I am sorry it has taken me so long to respond but i have to admit that I LOVED BOTH !!!!!! I read Grave Images and thoroughly enjoyed it. So decided to read Trees...
D.D.

What a beautifully crafted story! The ghosts are as real as the characters. You have mastered the art of giving away only small pieces of the puzzle in the beginning and then cascading them in dozens in the last few chapters. Is this the story that they want to film? What a goldmine of images for them to work with! thank you for the privilege of reading it at this stage!
What would I write on a book jacket???....mmmmmm....let's see.... A story of ghostly beauty, the power of the mind, and heart-pounding intrigue. Prepare to leave the lights on all night.
K.W.

Jarron Marshall is a scientist blessed with a brilliant mind, a few good friends, a fascination with fungi, and some very bad enemies. Unfortunately, he has no idea why he has enemies. It seems to have something to do with his research on Endophytes, a kind of fungus that exists within other living organisms, but it takes a while before he begins to understand the implications of that research and why it worries a lot of powerful people. Jarron's life doesn't get any easier when a brutal assault leaves him with a peculiar sort of brain damage. It appears that certain dormant parts of his brain have been jolted to life: he is now sensitive to a variety of paranormal phenomena, including ghosts. One of those ghosts is the spirit of the man who attacked Jarron and was later eliminated by his employers. The ghost is not amused by his own death and hell-bent (literally) on revenge. If all this sounds like a bit of stretch, don't be concerned. N.D. Hansen-Hill pulls it off and does it with style. The inventive plot moves at breakneck speed, throwing thrills and chills and puzzles at the reader, interspersing hair-raising action scenes with warmly human and humorous interactions among the characters. And what a wonderful bunch of characters they are: Jarron's best friend, a science fiction writer with no taste for fantasy; a mysterious, female, sort-of scientist who switched majors from botany to burglary; a security officer with conflicting loyalties; and Kris Chandler, who's a cross between guardian angel and stage magician. Their dialogue is multi-layered, frequently hiding their affection for each other under insults, their fears and worries under bravado, and their doubts under aggression. It's impossible not to care about these people. I made the mistake of starting to read this book as soon as I got home from work. Some time later my understanding husband put food in front of me. I think I ate it. I don't know what it was. By the time I finished the story, several hours later, I was wrung out, elated and completely satisfied. It isn't a perfect book. When you finally get out of the story far enough to start analyzing it, you realize the plot doesn't entirely hang together, some of the characters are a little out of focus, and the climax has logistical problems. But who cares? It's a story so well-told, so engrossing, so entertaining, it pulls you into its world, holds you there, and doesn't let go until the last sentence. It's the most completely entertaining book I've read this year.
Stars: 5
Reviewed by Karen McCullough

Jarron Marshall is a brilliant scientist, but not so brilliant as a regular person. Jarron is a person that defines what is said about people who are absolutely brilliant scientists; they lack in other areas. But with Jarron, this lands him into something that is much more than one person should have to go through and it all starts with an open door. Jarron's internal alarm system goes off when he sees his front door slightly ajar. Unfortunately for him though, he pays no attention to it as he has forgotten to lock the door before on numerous occasions. So he just blames everything off that this time when he pulled the door closed that he not only forgot to lock it, but that it simply didn't latch either. He was wrong and this mistake in judgment almost costs him his life, not to mention his sanity. The beating that Jarron received at his home when he disregarded the open door triggered something in his mind, it woke up a part of his mind that normally is completely dormant. This in return causes him to begin to see and hear things that no other living person could. It causes his friends to wonder about him and even as much as doubt his sanity, that's all right though, Jarron is doubting it too. But the race is on, the race to get Jarron to reveal where the endophyte can be found, before he is destroyed. Because on the road that he is on, that is what the solution will be regardless if it is from his own hands or the hands of others. Jarron had accidentally discovered an endophyte; a simple organism that could change the world and the change would be for the better. What Jarron doesn't know when he puts in the grant request for his project, is that because of his brilliance in the scientific field he is under constant surveillance. His grant request sets off alarms for people at quite a few companies, companies that could be either positively or negatively affected if his project succeeded, and each wants the endophyte as their own. Author ND Hansen-Hill has written an absolutely spellbinding book. GRAVE IMAGES is a book that reaches deep into the imagination, setting it afire and keeping you glued to the book. This is a book that will keep you on the edge of your seat, make you laugh, cry, and yes, even scare you at times. There are multiple characters in this book that come into the main focus, but each of them play a very important part of Jarron's life and what he is going through at the present. This reviewer is definitely looking forward to reading more from the author.
**** Excellent
Review by: Tracy Eastgate
Tracy's Book Reviews

Oh this book was great fun. If you like suspense, mystery and intrigue along with a little bit of fantasy this is your book. Jarron, Nick and Khris are long-time friends. Each is unique in his own way. Jarron is a brilliant scientist, Nick is a math genius and a famous science fiction author, Khris is a magician at, well, at being illusive. No one is sure what Khris does for a living; they just know he'll never be caught doing it.
Jarron has discovered something that could possibly save the world from hunger. In fact someone is determined to steal his discovery; very nearly killing him in the attempt. Nick's determination to help his friend almost ends in his demise. During Jarron and Nicks' recovery in the hospital, the thief tries to kill Jarron again knowing that Jarron has seen him and can identify him. Now the ISO is called in to protect Jarron. He has a guard, Andy Wakefield, on his door constantly, and his hospital stay is extended to help him recover from this second attempt on his life.
Jarron finds that he has some unexpected after effects of his encounter with Halloran, the would-be thief. Halloran has died in an "accident", but his presence has now returned to Jarron's house and no one who is close to Jarron is safe. How is Jarron going to rid his house of this evil presence? How will he protect himself and his friends? Why has his research suddenly been taken over by people his newly acquired instincts tell him are merciless and evil? How will Khris and Nick react to Jarron's eerie pre-knowledge of events before they occur? Now that Andy is a friend how will Jarron protect him when he finds out the people out to get him are Andy's employers? How is he going to manage to hide the location of his discovery from these ruthless people and still benefit mankind? Jarron knows that as soon as he divulges the location of this discovery he and all of his friends are dead men.
This book will grab you from the first paragraph and drag you on a roller coaster ride of suspense, intrigue and attempted murder. Enjoy the ride; this book is well worth it.
I'd love to review more of your books. You are amazing.
Number of Stars: 5
Reviewed By: Bea Henson

Steve King better look out! N.D. Hansen - Hill just may take a bite out of your tush! Clever stuff! Intelligent! Scary! Scientist type Jarron Marshall discovers Jack Halloran trashing his place while in search of something. What, Jarron doesn't know. Really peeved at seeing his favorite papers trashed. he attacks Halloran and, for his troubles, ends up with brain damage and the ability to see and hear people that aren't there. Shades of the Sixth Sense movie with Bruce Willis? Yea, yea, but ever so much more and ever so much more terrifying! The science here is clear and the characters are fresh and new despite an occasional resemblance to something out of the X-Files as well as that, um, Bruce Willis film. I actually dropped my Rocketbook at one point in my reading and at another, cried like a baby. This is good stuff and begs to be adapted for film. Grave Images rivals the best of Stephen King and may even do him one better.
Buzzy
Leann "Buzzy" Arndt