Every now and again, I read a book that I can sum up in one word. My word for The Reckoners? Frustrating.

At the heart of the story lies an interesting setup. Rather than the more frequently seen vampires and werewolves, Durgin centers the book around Garrie, a young woman who has been communicating with ghosts since she was a child. Somewhat adrift after losing her ghostly mentor, Garrie still holds together a team of people with otherworldly skills who assist her in her ghost hunting and reckoning (explained by the author as manipulating ethereal breezes to bring a final reckoning to those ghosts who need it).

Just as she is feeling rather burned out, Garrie is approached by the mysterious Trevarr to handle a job at the Winchester Mystery House in San Jose, California. Though supposedly built to accomodate spirits, the house has become the center of some very unsettling ghostly activity. Trevarr knows the reasons behind the sudden upsurge in disturbances and must deal with it, but he also needs Garrie’s help. So Garrie and her friends head off to deal with ghosts in what ends up being quite the adventure.

The basic plot is a little offbeat and holds promise. However, the book just does not fit together well and manages to become a frustrating read very quickly. At first, I thought that the many mysterious references to Garrie’s mentor and Trevarr’s home would be explained and that the pieces of the puzzle would fit together. They don’t. As I read to the end of the book, I felt more like I had been working on a puzzle for hours only to find that someone had stolen the last few pieces. The failure to flesh out the plot also means that the action doesn’t always feel all that urgent or immediate, and it’s entirely too easy to just get bored, put the book down, and walk away.

In addition to the meandering plot, the characterizations just don’t work. We learn that Garrie has issues which appear to be related both to the loss of her mentor and to the strain of having been a reckoner from such a young age. However, we never really get to explore these issues. We are inside Garrie’s head a little bit, but not nearly enough for the journey to be truly satisfying.

On the other hand, readers don’t get inside Trevarr’s head much at all. When reading the book, we know he’s the hero and that he’s mysterious. While Garrie doesn’t realize it at first, we also know Trevarr comes from another world and has a familiar who appears in the shape of a cat. Beyond that, Trevarr is just a brooding mystery dude. He doesn’t do much to intrigue the reader, and I stopped wondering what his deal was about halfway through the book.

Given the lack of insight into what made the lead characters really tick, the budding romance never really feels all that real. The primary focus of the story rests on the action plot and the romance gets very little play. The few romantic scenes end up feeling rather forced, and the attraction between Garrie and Trevarr never seemed convincing on either side.

To go from anticipation to simply being bored is a frustrating experience, and this is exactly what happened to me as I read The Reckoners. The book has a few good scenes, but unengaging dialogue, frustrating leads, and a plot that just cannot hold a reader’s attention consistently made this far from a winning read for me.