Sandra Wickham is a fiction and nonfiction author, Founder of Feel Write Again, Mom, Special Olympics Coach and Special Needs Advocate.Her friends call her a Health Guru, Crafting Aficionado and Ninja-in-training.

She lives in Ontario, Canada with her son who has Down syndrome and their cat, Yoda.

Death Coach by Sandra Wickham

Amy knows better than most, death follows the dead. After a traumatic teenage experience, she has denied her ability to communicate with the dead. Until now.

When one of her coaching clients kills herself under suspicious circumstances, the voices demand to be heard. Her cousin, Carme, a teenager with Down syndrome and an expert in most things not living, helps Amy navigate the ghostly mystery.

Amy is forced do things she swore she would never do: speaking with the dead and recruiting the aid of a far too handsome meditation teacher who is also her online nemesis.

Amy will need to overcome her anxiety, past and deadly discoveries to save Carme's mom and keep her living clients from becoming dead ones.

CURATOR'S NOTE

I have known Sandra for years on the Canadian SFF scene—we've shared Table of Contents!—and when she published Death Coach last year, I bought it at once. I love Amy, the psychic investigator, but I adore her cousin Carme, a sassy teen who happens to have Down Syndrome, but definitely doesn't let that slow her down. Now, if only the two of them can solve these mysterious deaths, that may or may not be murders from beyond . . . – Margaret Curelas

 

REVIEWS

  • "Sandra Wickham has filled a world—one much like ours—with well-drawn, vivid, and relatable characters. Death Coach grabs the reader from the first chapter and ratchets the tension tighter to a fantastic finale. Full of interesting magic, spooky ghosts and a unique take on the afterlife, Death Coach is slick, fun, and has a heart of gold."

    – Chadwick Ginther, Author of the Thunder Road Trilogy and Graveyard Mind

  • "Spirits, magic and the supernatural spun into a fun and unique adventure! Full of realistic and lovable characters, be prepared. "Death Coach" will keep you up until you finish it. A thoroughly enjoyable paranormal novel."

    – Lori Pollock, Amazon reviewer

  • "Sandra Wickham's Deach Coach has everything: well-rounded characters who are a joy to spend time with, humour that brings light to some darker subject matter, and real stakes for the lovable cast without crossing into truly grim territory. Wickham deftly balances all these facets with a brisk pace and confident, breezy writing style sure to draw readers in. As a storyteller, Wickham makes a promise with every book about what she has in store—a journey that's as much about the human connections between the characters as it is about the paranormal happenings around them—and beautifully meets that promise with effortless ease. Readers are sure to find much to love with Amy, Carme, and the gang in this fantastic new paranormal mystery series."

    – Skyla Dawn Cameron
 

BOOK PREVIEW

Excerpt

I lowered the phone and stared at it in disbelief. It had to be some kind of mistake. A prank. It didn't make any sense. Mary had killed herself because of me? She'd been so happy the last several times we'd met, focused on a new career with a fresh outlook on relationships. Had her excitement been fake? A show? Had I missed it somehow?

Carme came to sit where Heidi had been. I told her everything from the side of the conversation she hadn't heard. The ringing in my ears flared, like I was sitting inside an airplane engine. The lavender smell sharpened, assaulting my nose and my stomach.

Carme played with her necklace pendant. "Should I cancel your clients for this afternoon?"

"No," I said too quickly, and she raised her eyebrows at me. "No," I repeated slower. "I'm okay. Really. I'm fine." Did I believe it? Was I fine?

Carme studied me like she didn't believe me either. "What about Heidi?"

I let out a long exhale. "I'll call her. Do damage control. See if she'll come in again."

How much had Heidi overheard? The accusation I'd killed Mary? Was I to blame for her death? Maybe Carme was right and I should cancel my clients for the afternoon. Maybe forever. A client I had coached for a better life had ended it. I needed space to think, needed to breathe. I also needed coffee and not just for the caffeine. It helped make the ringing in my ears go away.

"Okay, cancel those appointments," I told Carme, admitting to her and myself I needed time off.

Hands shaky, I sent Liam a text to see if he was around. He lived and worked not far, and, as my best friend, was always good about meeting me when I needed it. I could use some of his positive vibes right now.

Carme finished her calls. "All set," she said. "I rescheduled them."

"Thank you." My phone buzzed. Liam would meet us downstairs for his morning break.

A weighty smell of lavender surrounded me. The memory of a different smell, the one that preceded my stepfather's terrifying visits, made me grip the arms of my chair.

My heart thumped, my breathing shallowed and my body became paralyzed. This was not the same, I told myself. It couldn't be.

But it could be. Someone blamed me for their death; what better reason to come after me? My ears rang so badly, my whole head hurt. The scent of lavender clouded me, so thick I could almost taste it.

I got to my feet. "Carme, we have to leave. Right now."

There was no denying it. There was a ghost in the office and I was pretty sure it wasn't happy.