Spirits Rising: Spirit Caller, #1

By Krista D. Ball

Rachel has no trouble believing in spirits. It's the living she has a tough time believing in.

The man she's in love with? Taken. The job she loved? Gone. Her neighbours? They're taping religious tracts to her door. Then a rebellious teenage Wiccan accidentally summons the area's ancestral Viking spirits -- who promptly bring their thousand-year war to the remote Newfoundland fishing village.

If Rachel's going to have any hope of sending the spirits to their peace, she'll have to stop drooling over unattainable men and trust her 93-year-old neighbour to help her stand against the spirits before their supernatural war engulfs them all.

 

• Language: English
• Publisher: Krista D. Ball
• Release date: Feb 24, 2013
• ISBN: 9781498955867

Book preview

Author’s Note to the 2023 Edition

A lot has changed over the past twelve years since I first wrote this story. Language evolved. Themes changed. Major events took place. Culture shifted. I changed.

In preparing this new edition, I’ve decided not to remove/change any of the terms or concepts that aged in the past decade, with the exception of one term. I also resisted rewriting parts of this book, which is difficult for both a writer and someone who is always trying to evolve. I also did not modernize technology. That means the cell phones will continue to flip open.

I did make a couple of small adjustments to format, and fixed a few typos and this really annoying habit of Early Me of only capitalizing a word sometimes.

I kept the Canadian spelling, and the Newfoundland accent. I know some people found the uncommon accent difficult to read, but the accent is a part the story, a part of Newfoundland, and a part of me.

I hope you enjoy!

CHAPTER 1

The Problem with Not-People

I’m not sure about this latte thing, Rachel, my elderly neighbour said. Steam billowed from the bright blue-and-yellow mug in her hands that read, BEST GREAT-GREAT-GRANDMOTHER, the second great having been scribbled above the other with a black marker. She sniffed, her face uncertain.

Go on, Mrs. Saunders, I urged. I think you’ll like it. Where’s my mail?

She shot me her signature don’t rush me, missy look before saying, It’s in the basket by the microwave. I got Amy to pick it up from the post office for you every few days.

I’ll give her a call tomorrow and thank her. Amy was Mrs. Saunders’s granddaughter who lived three villages down the road and was such a sweetheart about running errands for people. I retrieved the wicker basket from the counter. The mail was six inches high, so I carried the entire basket back to the table. Mrs. Saunders took a cautious sip of the steaming beverage. No reaction yet. She took another sip.

The old lady lived next door and was perhaps my best friend since I’d moved to Newfoundland. I’d never called her by her first name. As the oldest woman in the entire Northern peninsula of the province, she received the Mrs. honorific; no one used Mrs. Saunders’s first name. It was one of those Newfoundland rules, or so I’d been told. I’d met eighty-year-olds who called her Mrs. Saunders.

Well?

She shot me a look. It’s too hot and it has frothy stuff on top. She took another sip and smacked her lips.

I grinned and turned to my mail pile. It consisted of a month’s worth of bills, junk mail, and a postcard from the dentist reminding me I was overdue for a visit. In other words, perfectly normal.

I looked at the old lady suspiciously. Well?

Mrs. Saunders ignored my glare and pointed at her kitchen counter. Be a good girl and put a spot of gin in this.

I had meant the question in reference to the mail, which she bloody well knew from that impish smile on her face. I shook my finger at her, but I walked over to the kitchen counter again, where a near-empty bottle of gin sat in the corner, under one of the dozens of crucifixes scattered throughout the hundred-year-old house. Next to the gin sat a bag of molasses cookies, an apple pie, and two jars of homemade raspberry jam, all neatly arranged like a pagan offering to the gin god.

I gave her a disapproving glare. I thought the doctor told you to lay off the sweets.

She swatted at my butt when I walked by her. Don’t start with me, missy.

I dribbled a few drops of the pungent booze into her hot drink. Gin latte. The baristas would not approve. While I gave her a hard time on occasion, I didn’t want to harp on her. No point to it. She had a great-grandchild my age. What did I know?

She tsked at me. Oh, that’s not enough for a baby with colic. Give me a proper shot’s worth, she chided me, swatting my butt again. When I jumped, she giggled with her hand over her mouth. You’ve been putting on weight. You didn’t get pregnant in Mexico, did you now?

Women don’t carry babies in their bums, Mrs. Saunders. You should know that, seeing how you’ve had thirteen of your own.

Only because birth control was illegal back when I was poppin’ out the youngsters. Now, top that thing up.

I shot her my best annoyed look and poured enough gin into her coffee mug to raise the liquid inside by a good centimetre. You’re not having any more.

She sipped at the beverage. Ah, that’s better. Latte, you said?

I nodded and put the bottle in the middle of the small kitchen table, circa 1970s, complete with polished chrome. It was my Christmas gift to her. I wanted to buy her a new one, but she insisted on this garage-sale table.

So, where is the rest of my mail? I asked accusingly.

She took another taste and smacked her lips. Gin makes everything better. I’m happy you’re back ’ome.

I knew she was putting me off, but I decided to go along with it for a bit. I smiled at her and stretched my rather short legs as best I physically was able and propped them up on the adjacent chair. It’s good to be back. Mexico was nice, though.

The old woman scowled, sipping her beverage. You young people travel too much. Until you came along, I hadn’t left the Peninsula in forty-seven years.

I smiled. Let’s drive into St. John’s this weekend and see your great-great-grandson. He should be crawling by now.

She waved off my suggestion, like she always did. In a couple of days, though, she’d bring it up again and ask if I wanted to go for a drive. It was her way and I loved her for it. I had nothing else to do anyway, other than dodge my mother’s voicemails over why I didn’t have a job yet.

I rifled through the mail again, just in case I missed something, while Mrs. Saunders talked about the latest gas prices (even though she didn’t drive), the cost of apples (even though she had no teeth), and the general gossip that circulates around a small town. 

I peered over at Mrs. Saunders and cocked an eyebrow. All right. Where is the rest of it?

A moment passed before she said, I burned it. I ran out of kindling and starting a fire is about the only good use for that foolishness. It poisons me to see that nonsense goin’ on.

I knew she’d taken it. It’s a crime to steal mail, you know. I should have Jeremy arrest you, I said, trying to keep my tone light. I wasn’t upset she burned the stupid religious tracts that kept showing up in my mailbox; rather, I was upset a

Reviews for Spirits Rising

[aryadeschain-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I'm not exactly sure of how I feel about this book. It's not bad at all, but also lacked to be as captivating as it intended to be. The characters are very... normal (Jeremy actually bothered me a little), as human as any character can be, but regardless of how much power and potential Rachel may or may not have, I still didn't feel as much empathy for her as I wished I did. It was good that she wasn't some sort of invincible super heroin, like what happened in Sarah Maas' Assassins series, but on the other hand, other than her paranormal powers, Rachel was approaching Twilight series' Bella Swan level (but less annoying). I find it demotivating to follow up through a book with character so... bland and insipid to some extend.
It would be unfair to state that the book sucks, though. In spite of the endless parts in which people keep chatting while there is chaos all around, some of the secondary characters are actually kinda interesting. David, for an instance, is so hateful that his blind devotion actually makes him a good character.

Anyway, this is an interesting kind of book to read in one sitting. It didn't hook me up, but it wasn't a complete waste of time.

[wolffaerie17 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Rachel Mills is what some people would call sensitive. She lives in Newfoundland much to her adoptive mother's dismay along with being unemployed. Rachel checks in on her elderly neighbor Mrs. Saunders on a regular basis. Rachel is secretly nursing a broken heart and unrequited love from her best friend Constable Jeremy Garratt. She took a month's vacation yet the heart wants what the heart wants anyway. When Manny O'Toole calls Rachel asking her for help little did she know or expect what happened next. Manny's basement was currently filled with Viking spirits that were totally solid. Rachel had many questions but very few answers about what to do. Rachel didn't enter The O'Toole home without Jeremy backing her up in case Manny's parents showed up. David O'Toole was none too happy to see Rachel standing in his driveway. Rachel tried to explain that what she does isn't witchcraft but isn't heard by David. Rachel needs to find a way to banish the spirits that have been called and a plan of action to do so. Will Jeremy learn the truth of Rachel's feelings? How does Mrs. Saunders help? Can Manny help Rachel? Can Rachel put the spirits to rest? Your answer await you in Spirits Rising.This book takes unique look at spirits and ghosts as whole. My absolute favorite character was Mrs. Saunders. She is out an out funny along with being super sharp. I found myself chuckling to myself everytime I read a part with her in it. As paranormal book, I have to say it was well researched anc creative. The author's approach was spot on. I look forward to the next installment.

[kmurray_69_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I very much enjoyed this novella. It was a quick read that I finished in a single day. I read quite a bit of paranormal/super natural literature and Spirits Rising was a refreshing change from the typical vampire/werewolf theme.

[libstaff2 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A pretty decent novella with great descriptions of Canadian landscapes and likeable characters. The writing could have flowed a little better; it felt choppy at some points.

[nolly_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A fun, quick read. Felt a little bit like a second book in a series, like we're missing the story of what happened when Rachel first came to the area and met Jeremy, before she fled on vacation to Mexico.

[falcon124_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A fast, fun read where spirits are called accidentally and have to be returned to their resting peace before they destroy a remote town. If you enjoy the paranormal romance books (like the Cassie Palmer series) then you'll probably enjoy this one (even if there's no actual romance, much to the lead characters annoyance :)If you're after a quick piece of escapist fun then this story is for you. While it's a novella, it feels more like the first chapter of a larger book rather than a first book in a series.

[mirrani_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Spirits Rising is an easy read that mixes up some fun and entertainment for the reader with a woman and her town facing an unusual situation: dead vikings are showing up all over.While the story was a unique one and somewhat like the Ghost Whisperer television show, I felt that I found myself wondering if this was an introduction to a series, an introduction to a book or the rough draft of something that pushed itself into a story that got published. No real technical flaws or anything of that nature, but the main character constantly reminds herself to "focus" throughout the story and I found that maybe the book needed to heed those words as well at some times. A little more elaboration would have made the special qualities of this book stand out even more.In particular, keep an eye out for the elderly neighbor, Mrs. Saunders, who is an absolute hoot and worth reading the story for.Note: Though this book was a free gift from the author, the content of my review was in no way influenced by the gifting. The book speaks for itself and my review would have been worded just this way even if I'd gone out and bought it. I also give bonus points for Text To Speech enabling on Kindle format.... but that also wasn't a factor in the above review.

[ljldml · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A quick, fun, and quirky read. The characters are great and interact well together. Think "The Ghost Whisperer" on steroids. Being able to communicate with spirits is not always a good thing, as Rachel finds out. There is an elderly neighbor named Mrs. Saunders, you will love her! She's a hoot. I would love a neighbor like her.I felt this book is a great beginning to a series. I look forward to more stories by Krista Ball. I enjoyed this book, I found it to be unique in many ways. Ms. Ball's writing style encourages you to read through the book without stopping, in other words, it is a quick, fun read.

[bella55075 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I liked this story. I loved the setting and the interaction with the characters. I especially loved the use of local history. Great read.

[rhonda1111 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Review Spirits Rising by Krista D. Ball 4 STARSSpirits Rising is book 1 of the Spirit Caller Series.Rachel can feel the supernatural. Thier are those in her comunity that call her a witch and demon worshiper.The teenagers know if they are drunk she will come and give them a ride home, rather than have them drive drunk. Manuel O'Toole called because their were a lot of people in his basement drinking and his parents will be coming home soon. He needs help getting rid of them. They were Vikings ghosts in the flesh and drinking.It was interesting short novel, that left a lot of strings for a more stories. Like who abanded her as a baby. The guy she likes is her good friend but he has a girl friend. Would like to see where the next novel would go.I was given this ebook in exchange of honest review from librarything.PUB 2012

[pamkaye · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Rachel can feel "the other side". So when young Manny O'Toole calls her for help, she can feel the spirits around his house. Manny unknowingly called the Native People and Vikings to this side. And Rachel must figure out how to send them back to their resting places. The story is good, the characters are likable, it is well written, and believable. I enjoyed it.

[sdramsey-298717 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I really enjoyed the Newfoundland setting in this supernatural novella; it's obvious the author has spent time there or done her research well. The story is brisk and well-paced and the characters interesting, especially the narrator/main character, who has a lot of personal life things going on. I liked her and want to know more about her, so I expect I'll be following this series. I also liked the way the author did NOT play to expected tropes in many supernatural stories these days, but put an original twist on things. I read the ebook version and found it nicely formatted on my Kobo (which is soooo important for ereaders!).

[fiverivers_1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Spirits Rising, by Krista D. Ball, has all the elements to make it an entertaining Canadian paranormal novel. Alas, for this reader, it fell far short of the mark.Ostensibly a story about a resurrection spell gone awry in the hands of a novice, the novel chronicles a mainlander's attempt to return the arisen hoards back to their rest.While the setting is engaging for any lover of Canadian literature, (St. Anthony, Newfoundland, the home of the UNESCO Heritage Site L'Anse aux Meadows), there is little by way of environmental description to illustrate this haunting landscape. In fact, there is little by way of any description to engage the reader, whether environmental, character or emotional landscape. The entire novel seemed hurried, perhaps as a device to create tension, but alas failed.There are some moments of delightfully sharp Newfoundland dialogue. The majority, however, tends to cliché, as do many of the characters. The arisen spirits of Vikings and Beothuk, which play an integral element in the story, are left almost entirely undeveloped and almost cut directly from the erroneous and stereotypical. The villains are villainous, the heroes heroic. And the story ends. Abruptly. I believe Spirits Rising is an excellent first draft which requires the touch of a developmental editor and a considered revision. Certainly there is much potential here. But for this reader the potential of the novel isn't realized.

[katyas_26 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Book Info: Genre: Urban FantasyReading Level: Young Adult to AdultRecommended for: Fans of urban fantasy, paranormal-based stories, those interested in the Native traditions and people of NewfoundlandTrigger Warnings: extremist Christian beliefsMy Thoughts: I must say that Mrs. Saunders was a hoot! I just loved her. I was also very interested in the Newfoundland history that was hinted at in the story. I was also amused by the sort of us vs. them attitudes expressed in this story, and by the narrator's wry assessment of the Pentecostal preacher, who kept calling her a witch. “For a person who believed in demon possession, angels of mercy, a guiding Holy Spirit, and a guy who was raised from the dead, he was rather closed-minded.” I've always sort of thought it was silly, too, the sorts of arbitrary lines that so many religious people draw between the possible and impossible in their minds.This is mostly fairly well edited, but I noticed some fairly major typos, such as “anthame” for “athame”. Of course, that's a sort of specialized knowledge, so perhaps the person doing the editing just wasn't aware that it was a real word in the community of pagans, so maybe it wasn't a typo so much as someone who didn't realize it was a real word. At least the misspelling is consistent through the book.This is the first book in a series, but it felt like somewhere in the middle, as a lot of the buildup and background is interspersed through the story like reminders, rather than the book providing a setup for the series by introducing us to the character at the beginning; it's more like we're dropped into the middle somewhere and just have to keep up until we figure it out. Fortunately it's fairly easy, but some people might feel a little lose when they first start reading. I enjoyed it so much that I will definitely be checking out the other available titles by this author, and watching for new stories in this series. You should too, if you like urban fantasy or paranormal stories. There's even a little romance, for those who like that sort of thing. Recommended!Series Information: This is the first book in the Spirit Caller series. Book 2, Dark Whispers, came out February 23, 2013.Disclosure: I received a copy of this e-book from the author through the LibraryThing Member's Giveaway in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.Synopsis: Rachel Mills has one wish in life: for the spirit world to shut up and leave her alone. She thought her move to a remote fishing village in Northern Newfoundland would help.Population: Twenty. What could go wrong?Instead of peace, however, she relocates to a land of superstition, the air alive with the presence of others.When a local teenager accidentally summons the spirits of the area, including those from a thousand-year-old Viking settlement, all supernatural breaks loose. As the spirits stalk her and each other, Rachel finds herself in over her head. With the help of Mrs. Saunders, her 93-year-old neighbour, Rachel has to put aside her own prejudices long enough to send the spirits back to rest, or risk being caught in the midst of a spirit war.

[fictionalcandy · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Rachel has just come back from a Mexican vacation to her home in Newfoundland. She’s beginning to think that this isn’t the place for her, after falling for a man already in another relationship. That’s not to mention that she is seemingly hated by her neighbors. If you found religious tracts on your door on a near daily basis telling you that you were going to Hell, you’d think you were unwanted too. She also serves as a designated driver for local teens, much to their parents dismay since they believe she is giving the children opportunity to drink. So when Rachel gets a call from Manny, she is ready to help him. She goes to his house thinking perhaps he had been drinking. Even worse, his dad is the pastor at the local church and clearly doesn’t like Rachel. But Manny (and everyone else in town) knows Rachel is special, she can sense spirits around her.When she gets to his house she finds mayhem. Mayhem in the form of Viking spirits come to life in flesh and blood…destructive flesh and blood. And since she is sensitive to the paranormal, it is up to her to fix the situation.This book had a lot of action and a bit of history. I found it a lot of fun to read. The characters were vivid and interesting to learn about. The plot was great. The action was exciting. The only downside is that there are definitely some unanswered questions to issues brought up in the story. Hopefully those will be addressed further in the series, as this is #1 in the Spirit Caller series. I also think that maybe some sort of prequel would be awesome, because as far as Rachel’s romantic story, it kind of feels like we are entering right in the middle of something that could be very interesting.All in all, I’d definitely recommend this book. It dealt with the paranormal in a way that we don’t see too often, Vikings and aboriginal Newfies. I’ve never been to Newfoundland, but the descriptions of the area were so vivid, I felt like I was already there.

[birgitwalraet · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Rachel heeft een speciale band met wat zijzelf "het Andere" noemt, de wereld van de geesten. Die gave is zowel een zegen als een vloek, en meteen ook één van de reden waarom ze zich in de outback van Canada is gaan vestigen, ver weg van alles en iedereen. Als de zoon van de lokale godsdienstfanaat een horde vikinggeesten oproept en haar om hulp vraagt om ze weer weg te krijgen, is het hek helemaal van de dam. Samen met haar stokoude hospita en haar beste vriend bij de Canadese mounties doet Rachel er alles aan om de rust te doen weerkeren. Het hoofdpersonage van het boek is prettig gestoord, met veel gevoel voor zelfrelativering en humor. Het boek is goed geschreven, de setting geloofwaardig door het slimme gebruik van plaatselijke referenties, de personages van vlees en bloed. Je leest het in één trek uit en dat is meteen ook de zwakke plek: het is zodanig kort dat je gewoon voelt dat er veel meer in zat. Het verhaal heeft te weinig om het lijf om een volwaardig boek te zijn, maar je bent wel meteen benieuwd naar het vervolg.---Rachel has a special bond with what she calls "the Other", the world of spirits. Her gift is a blessing and a curse. It is one of the reasons why she came to the outback of Canada, as far away from everything as possible. When the son of the local religious zelot brings a bunch of viking spirits back to our world and calls upon her to help him get them back to where they belong, all hell breaks loose. Together with her bone old landlady and her best friend in the Canadian mounted police Rachel has to do everything she can to get everything back to normal.The main character of the book is slightly eccentric, with a lot of self-mockery and humor. The book is well written, the setting very credible thanks to the smart use of local references, the side characters are of flesh and blood. You read it in a heartbeat and that is its weak spot: the book is so short you just know there could be much more to it. The story has too little to be called a book but you can't but look forward to the next episode.