Review by Cynthia Chow
Details at the end of this post on how to enter to win a copy of the book and a link to purchase it.
Even though she returned home to New Jersey to care for her father while he was in the hospital, Laura Meehan didn’t plan on moving back permanently to take over his paint and wallpaper business. But in the weeks since her father’s death Laura has inexplicably found herself living in a hotel while her adoring husband Roy Ryan begins their move from Baltimore to Cape May. While running the Breezeway Paint and Wallpaper store Laura runs into a number of her father’s regular customers and contractors, one of whom happens to be the cranky Ernie Colasco. After refusing to extend his credit line Laura has the even more uncomfortable customer interaction of later finding him dead in the back room, his head frappéd in the paint shaker. Since Sea Breeze Police Department Detective Hannibal Watson has little experience with homicides, Laura can’t help but wish that her father Amos – an Atlantic City police detective sergeant before retiring to run the paint store - was instead leading the investigation. Perhaps that’s why Laura thinks she has conjured up the ghost of her father, who is not only now haunting the paint store but talking to her just as much as when she was alive
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| Image Source Severn House |
The author, also known as Jeff Cohen, reaches back into his own past to depict a life growing up in New Jersey with a father who owned a paint and wallpaper store. The banter between Laura and Roy feels natural and built on a long relationship between two loving partners, both of whom know each other’s sense of humor and use of sarcasm. The ghost of Laura’s father serves as a very welcome presence in the novel, supplying both investigative and fatherly advice. Perhaps most intriguing is Laura’s response to seeing her dead father back in his store, first wondering if he’s but a much-needed figment of her imagination and subconscious, then finally accepting him until proven otherwise. This is a strong start to a new series by the very prolific author, who always delivers with innovative plots, witty dialogue, and extremely likable characters.
To enter to win a copy of All Spooked Up, simply email KRL at krlcontests@gmail[dot]com by replacing the [dot] with a period, and with the subject line "all spooked,” or comment on this article. A winner will be chosen December 6, 2025. US residents only and you must be 18 or older to enter. If entering via email please include your mailing address in case you win. If entering via comment please include your email address so we can contact you. You can read our privacy statement here if you like.Check out other mystery articles, reviews, book giveaways & mystery short stories in our mystery section in Kings River Life and in our mystery category here on KRL News & Reviews. And join our mystery Facebook group to keep up with everything mystery we post, and have a chance at some extra giveaways. And check out our new mystery podcast which features mystery short stories and first chapters read by local actors!
You can click here to purchase this book.
Disclosure: This post contains links to an affiliate program, for which we receive a few cents if you make purchases. KRL also receives free copies of most of the books that it reviews, that are provided in exchange for an honest review of the book.Cynthia Chow is the branch manager of Kaneohe Public Library on the island of Oahu. She balances a librarian lifestyle of cardigans and hair buns with a passion for motorcycle riding and regrettable tattoos (sorry, Mom).
Sounds interesting! Count me in!
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