THE HAUNTING OF CAMBRIA - First Chapter

I'm not usually into horror, but THE HAUNTING OF CAMBRIA by Richard Taylor is unexpectedly charming.

The first chapter works for me. It is a blend of tragedy and humor which, as I stated in an earlier post, is almost irresistible for me. The first line:

"Lily died the day we signed the escrow papers for the bed and breakfast."

The first chapter tells the story of how a young widower lost is wife of only a few hours, from what it sounds like. They did jump into bed too rapidly for my taste, but that was only after months of the man romancing the woman until she no longer wanted to resist. So at least they knew each other.

Once she dies, he is left with the bed and breakfast that they just purchased hours before. It was her dream to run the bed and breakfast. His dream, as he told her, was her.

It has some delightful and touching humor, such as:

"You have a career." (Lily)
"I have a job." (Theo)
"You have a condo."
"It's an apartment with pretension. It has a fireplace and a mortgage. It means nothing."

It's not laugh-out-loud humor, but it shows a light touch that is promising for the rest of the novel.