Readers unfamiliar with Alex Grecian are in for a treat. From his London police procedurals featuring Jack the Ripper to his gothic horror/fantasy novels, Grecian is a master wordsmith always capable of transporting you to another time and place.

ROSE OF JERICHO tells an otherworldly story that is both oddly familiar and distinctly foreign at the same time. The world went a bit off when ex-Union soldier Moses Burke captured and buried the Angel of Death in anger after his wife’s passing. Moses, who is also dead --- a victim of suicide --- has no idea what repercussions his violent act of revenge will have throughout the rest of the world. To put it mildly, the dead will not die any longer and will hang around persistently among the living. You can imagine the confusion this will cause.

"ROSE OF JERICHO is a delight from start to finish. It allows you to step into a world unlike anything you have ever seen, as well as one that seems just like home."

Rose Nettles; her companion, Sadie Grace; and Sadie’s young daughter, Rabbit, are on their way to their new home in the very haunted house known as Bethany Hall in Ascension, Massachusetts. Sadie realizes that something is amiss from a supernatural standpoint when she finds a wall covered in human scalps. As bizarre as that may be, it is nothing compared to what is waiting for them in the attic.

Their mission is to care for Rose’s ailing cousin, Clarissa Sinclair. So imagine how disappointed they will be when they realize that Clarissa is already dead. This is only magnified when people in the town square witness Clarissa’s son, Benjamin, being run over and trodden to death by a horse-drawn carriage. Benjamin, of course, does not die, which will make the household quite interesting. As they delve into all of this walking dead strangeness, they come across a rare herb, the Rose of Jericho. Among other things, it can raise the dead.

Because this is a novel filled with items that exist only in a unique fantasy universe, readers will accept all the oddity happening in Ascension and watch in wonderment as Rose tries to come up with a solution for their undead problem. She admits to having seen many strange things in her lifetime, but nothing quite prepares her for the many-eyed creature in the attic. To some, it’s a monster; to others, it’s an angel sent from above. Either way, it’s counting on Rose to straighten everything out and send some souls its way.

But none of this can happen until Moses and his small band of undead travelers make it to Ascension. Rose first needs him to right the wrong he caused by burying the Angel of Death in anger, and only then can they hope for things to return to some version of normal. Rose faces much resistance from the townspeople, who believe her to be a witch.

ROSE OF JERICHO is a delight from start to finish. It allows you to step into a world unlike anything you have ever seen, as well as one that seems just like home. As a lover of all things Lewis Carroll, I appreciated the many “Alice in Wonderland” references --- from Rabbit to Alice to Doorman, and much more. Alex Grecian is a pleasure to spend time with, and readers will not forget this wonderful novel any time soon.