Reviewed by Lit Amri for Readers' Favorite

Animals, folklore or fiction. These are the causes of many so-called haunted places, and paranormal investigator Jack Barnes is confident that the derelict New Castle Asylum won’t be much different as he goes inside and sets up his equipment for the night. Yet, the place is evidently haunted by something that will be too much for Jack to handle. Worse, it follows him home. Jack needs to get rid of it quickly before it does more than just opening the kitchen drawers and the basement door.

In his fifties, protagonist Jack Barnes is introduced as an experienced, confident, cocky, and skeptical investigator. He’s not quite a character that I would root for right away, but he easily comes across as someone who’s interesting to follow about. So when this ‘debunked’ expert’s daily life is disturbed by weird incidents in his own home, I empathized with him but was also slightly amused with his bravado. His good friend, Parker, has more common sense about not crossing some ‘lines’, even though he’s just a self-confessed paranormal enthusiast.

Author Barb Shadow’s own experience in paranormal investigation is evident in A Step Into Darkness. Combined with her storytelling skill, this made the narrative solid. It’s engaging, descriptive with its vivid details and sensory effects. I felt that I was there in every scene, experiencing everything myself. The characters are easily relatable. A good ghost story is the one that keeps you up all night. Barb Shadow successfully does that with A Step Into Darkness. This is a great read and I look forward to the sequel.