Title: "Defending Angels"

Author: Mary Stanton

Pages: 308

Available: Booksellers and online

When you need a break from reality, take a trip out of the earthly realm by reading "Defending Angels" by Mary Stanton. Just don't expect to be mentally stimulated.

The first book in the Beaufort and Company mystery series, "Defending Angels" takes the reader on an eerie journey through enchanting Savannah, Ga., and into the haunting and mystifying spirit world.

The story's main character, Brianna Winston-Beaufort, or Bree for short, is a 29-year-old lawyer opening her first private practice.

From the moment she finds affordable office space, in the middle of a cemetery, it's one bizarre, if not unrealistic, incident after another. Her first case is an inquest into a mysterious death but the only evidence Bree's client has is the dead man's haunting claim he's been murdered.

If the story line alone isn't unfathomable, then take the huge cast of flat and stereotypical characters Stanton uses to advance the plot.

Among them are Petru, the Russian immigrant whose accent is not so much Russian as it is Hungarian, but it's only obvious in his pronunciation of one word. There's also Antonia, Bree's younger, less responsible starving artist sister, and Ronald, the effeminate window dresser who is more concerned with the decor and Bree's sense of fashion than he is with the case.

Somewhere in the middle of the book, Stanton gives us Sam, the hunky and emotionally unavailable police officer with a mysterious past, hinting at a potential love interest for Bree in later stories. In fact, the only believable characters in the entire book are Sasha, the golden retriever-mix dog Bree finds in the cemetery, and Archie, an indignant parrot.

The book itself reads more like juvenile fiction than it does a mystery, which is startling, given Stanton's writing experience. "Defending Angels" is her 33rd novel (19 have been mysteries).

Though she obviously spent time researching cosmology in preparation for this novel, her use of the phenomena is heavy-handed. That, paired with over-used descriptions such as "large oak trees draped with Spanish moss" and cliche phrases like "then the penny dropped," make it hard to believe such elementary writing would be the product of a prolific writer such as Stanton.

The dialogue amongst the characters is, however, very natural and enjoyable to read. This lends credibility to the story and its author, and draws the reader into the book. And when Bree, the corporate tax attorney turned crime-scene investigator, becomes a lawyer in ethereal courts, the reader needs every ounce of credibility he can eek out.

"Defending Angels" is an entertaining and easy read. Its over-the-top phenomena and anticipated characters give it a comedic flair despite its creepy cover graphics and murderous plot.

(With several years' experience writing technical documents and marketing material, Kristy Rose now freelances for magazines and designs Web sites. A stay-at-home mom, she lives with her husband and two young children in rural Bismarck.)