"A heartfelt but playful romp" with "deft prose," "plenty of tongue-in-cheek humor," and a "clever, imaginative world." -Kirkus Reviews
A dead drag queen. A cozy café. A shady deal-and an unexpected family.
Deceased drag queen Pearly Gates has the worst job in the afterlife: cosmic sanitation worker. When her soulmate leaves her, claiming she's incapable of growth, Pearly hatches a plan to win him back. By striking a deal to take over the caseload of a burnt-out spirit guide, she'll prove she's worthy of love-and redemption.
Her mission takes her to Thunderbolt Books & Coffee, a small-town café haunted by a 1920s burlesque dancer. There, she's tasked with guiding a grieving young widow, a terminally ill college grad, and a trans woman searching for purpose. As Pearly works her magic (and charm) to help them heal and connect, she begins to discover something she thought she'd lost forever-belonging.
Then she learns the café's owner is her soulmate reincarnated-and one of her charges is falling for them. Thrown into a love triangle she never saw coming, Pearly must decide: sabotage the relationship or be the good guide she promised to become.
Pearly Gates is a humorous, uplifting fantasy celebrating found family, self-discovery, and second chances-even after life's final curtain call.