Medicine for the Dead

The Ulrich Files, Book 2

By: Ambrose Ibsen

Narrated by: Jake Urry

The Spirits of Exeter House are Restless

Facing tough times, private investigator Harlan Ulrich takes a job looking after a historic downtown building as a favor to an old acquaintance who's out on business. Settling into the elegant Exeter House for a week-long stay, Ulrich's apartment is beautifully furnished and situated on the top floor, giving him a great view of the city. At first, he thinks it a wonderful opportunity. He's got plenty of coffee, good books to read and the whole building to himself.

At least, that's what he's been told.

It turns out there are others there, in the seemingly empty building. Dark entities that lurk in its shadowed corners.

During his first night, strange things begin to occur. As he makes his nightly rounds, ensuring that the old building is free of intruders, Ulrich finds the place transformed. By day, Exeter House is a treasured local institution. By night, it crawls with the frightening souls of the hateful dead. Tormented nightly by a number of mysterious specters, it's all the investigator can do to hold onto his sanity.

Can Harlan Ulrich tap into the building's dreadful past and quell the spirits that walk its halls, or will he lose his mind trying? Join him as he seeks answers in Medicine for the Dead, a full-length novel of supernatural terror and suspense.

Medicine for the Dead is the second book in the Ulrich Files series by Ambrose Ibsen.

©2016 Ambrose Ibsen (P)2016 Ambrose Ibsen

Suspenseful mystery with the supernatural

I had previous read The Sick House which I enjoyed .Ulrich is an interesting coffee addict and persistent investigator that has to find the truth and kind of a softy. I loved the ghosts and the cat with a lot of twists and turns. Recommend the series to anyone who loves creepy ghosts and mysteries. This audiobook was given by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review via Audiobook Boom. Thank you!

second time around

this is the second time I've listened to this book. just as good as the first time.a good ghost story. I also liked the ending.

Another Awesome Collaboration

Great story from the wonderful wordsmith Ambrose Ibsen and great narration by the man with the perfect voice for horror, suspense and thriller novels, Jake Urry. I highly recommend the series. This is the second book but each story stands on its own.

You can really feel the fear

Any additional comments?

The narrator does an excellent job of conveying fear. I like this book was better than the last. I received this audiobook for free through Audiobook Boom for my unbiased review.

I loved the main character!

Medicine for the Dead was an interesting listen. Taking place in Toledo, Ohio, it tells of a private investigator who is 'house-sitting' the renovated historical building for a week. Pretty much as soon as he moves in, things start to happen. It becomes obvious that even though the Exeter House is fine during the day, at night the ghosts come out to play. Left with no other choice, because the police think he's crazy, Harlan Ulrich decides to try to find a way to soothe the spirits. It's as much for his sanity and safety as anything. Unfortunately, there's literally no one he can turn to for help. Even the bartender who has set up shop in the first floor bar would rather accuse him of being a drunk than believe a word he says.That's all pretty normal/expected, right?

Here's the kicker about Medicine for the Dead, and the part that really kept me listening: Harlan Ulrich is one of the most atypical private detectives I've ever read about. He's a complete teetotaler. Has a coffee addiction that is so bad it contributes to him getting evicted from his apartment. He has money problems, like many do, but it's not from gambling or blackmail or anything like that. Instead it's related to something else. Also, I know they say 'courage is doing something even though you're afraid', so technically Harlan is very brave. Technically. Really, though, dude is such a huge scaredy-cat that he quakes in his boots when confronted with the entities at Exeter House. He gulps, shakes, and outright just runs away from things. It had me cracking up because, let's face it, it's a lot more believable than the macho man "I ain't afraid of nuthin'" behavior that so many male characters in these types of books have.

The story moves moves quickly. The Kindle edition is only 139 pages long. The audio book version is about 5 and 1/2 hours long. Jake Urry has a distinctive voice with a naturally pleasing accent. His is one of the few voices I've heard where I can substantially speed up the playback of the audio book without grossly affecting the quality of his voice. I listened to most of Medicine for the Dead at 1.55x speed on Audible. Each of his characters were given distinct voices, and he was good at communicating the nervousness that Harlan frequently felt.

Overall, Medicine for the Dead made my car rides back and forth to work quite pleasing over the course of a week. I'll happily be listening to more of Jake Urry in the future, and wouldn't be adverse to picking up another book in the Ulrich Files.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book free from the narrator in exchange for an honest review.