Lexi does what she can to avoid touching people, because when she does, she sees how they'll die. It's an unpleasant ability, especially since she learned a long time ago not to interfere ath can't be cheated. And that's why, when she bumps into a girl outside an L.A. nightclub and sees that her death is violent and soon, she does nothing. But then the girl returns as a ghost who demands Lexi's help in catching her murderer. The problem is that the ghost, Jane, doesn't remember much from the night she died. Lexi, who's connected to a network of L.A.'s psychics and witches, has some help, but Jane isn't the first person to go mysteriously missing, and the city is tense. As their investigation intensifies, Lexi finds herself increasingly drawn to Jane while struggling to hide the fact that she knew about her impending death all along. Gritty and high-concept, this cross-genre murder mystery has plenty of appeal for horror and crime fiction fans, and the beginnings of a star-crossed f/f romance add depth.

A lonely teen must use her odd powers to track down a killer.Eighteen-year-old Alexandra "Lexi" Ivanovich can tell how and when someone will die with just a touch and has an affinity with ghosts. If she tries to save someone from their fate, it only delays the inevitable and can have horrible consequences, a lesson she learned the hard way. Lexi keeps people at a distance, including her de facto family members, who all work for a Los Angeles club, Elysium, whose owner, Urie Porchowsky, offers lifetime protection to youngsters with at least "one foot in the unknown." After one of their own goes missing, Lexi witnesses the gruesome murder of a local high school student named Jane, and her ghost is soon asking Lexi for help. The disappearances escalate, and Lexi must find the killer while battling her burgeoning feelings for Jane. Lexi and Jane's tentative (and unusual) relationship is sweet, actually overshadowing the murder mystery, and Berquist (Devils unto Dust, 2018) effectively tackles the destructive nature of grief and loneliness, but the worldbuilding is rather slight. Lexi, Jane, and most of the Elysium crew are presumed white, but some diversity can be found in peripheral characters.Moody paranormal fare that lacks the spark of Berquist's debut; consider this a sophomore slump. (Paranormal thriller. 14-18)