On Flashback Fridays I will share with you
the books I was not able to review
when they were first released that have been screaming at me
from my To-Be-Read bookshelf.
A Corpse at the Witching Hour: A Food Blogger Mystery
Cozy Mystery
6th in Series
Setting – Connecticut
Publisher : Beyond the Page Publishing (October 6, 2023)
Paperback : 228 pages
ISBN-10 : 1960511394
ISBN-13 : 978-1960511393
Digital ASIN : B0CKM7LTGJ
Hope Early has to contend with ghosts, a fatal curse, and a decades-old family secret to catch a killer in the new Food Blogger Mystery . . .
When her best friend’s Aunt Issy falls ill, food blogger Hope Early agrees to help him hand out Halloween candy at his aunt’s house, which is rumored to be cursed. A murder-suicide took place there a century ago, and legend has it that a woman has died there every twenty years since—on Halloween. Hope doesn’t really believe in curses or ghosts, but when all the trick-or-treaters are gone and she discovers a woman’s dead body on the front lawn, she wonders if the curse might be real after all.
Then Hope and her friend discover a cache of love letters linking the dead woman to Aunt Issy’s husband years ago, and Hope is certain they’ve uncovered the motive for murder—and the police are certain Aunt Issy is their main suspect. Determined to prove Issy’s innocence and nab the real culprit, Hope starts shaking other branches of the family tree. But she forgets that Halloween isn’t the only day people hide behind masks, and if she’s not careful, Hope will come face-to-face with a ghoulish fiend who’s not afraid to kill again . . .
Includes two tasty recipes!
Dollycas’s Thoughts
Food blogger Hope Early’s blog is growing by leaps and bounds and it is time to expand into a new space if she can get past the terrifying thoughts that keep her from committing to the project. She needs a little more time before taking that leap of faith. Her friend Drew has just taken a leap of his own in buying the family homestead, Fenn House. It needs work but he is willing to put in the time especially if Hope is willing to help.
Hope had been looking to spend Halloween with her boyfriend Ethan and his two daughters but the girls will be spending the day with their mom. and Ethan as the chief of police will be working. So when Drew tells her his Aunt Issy isn’t feeling well and asks her if she wants to help him hand out candy at her house she really has no reason to say no, except that the house is rumored to be cursed. Legend has it there was a murder-suicide there a century ago and since then every 20 years a woman suspiciously dies there on Halloween. It has been 20 years so while Holly doesn’t believe in curses she is a bit nervous about herself and Aunt Issy, the females on the premises for the ghostly event.
It isn’t until after all the trick-or-treaters have gone home that Hope makes a shocking discovery. A dead woman on the front lawn. Who is she? Why was she here? Is the house truly cursed? Detective Reid is on the case but Hope believes his theory is flawed so she starts investigating putting both herself and Drew at risk. Will they be able to uncover the killer? Or will one or both be the killer’s next victim/s?
I am so happy that this series has found a new home. Hope is a wonderful protagonist and an admirable amateur sleuth. Her stories were nowhere near complete. Her relationship with Ethan and his girls is evolving now that their mother is out of rehab. Her Hope at Home blog is growing and her pets are adorable even though Princess is a little persnickety, Bigelow is a friendly ball of fur with floppy ears. Her BFF Drew is there for her no matter what and she for him but the friendship had a few bumps in this story. Ms. Sennefelder has created characters that are true to life with realistic ups and downs and a murderer thrown in to shake things up.
The author did a great job of world-building. Hope’s home and barn, Fenn House, and Osbon House, as well as every place in between, are all described in detail making it easy to envision each place clearly.
Ms. Sennfelder has crafted a multifaceted mystery with twists, turns, and a big surprise for one of the characters. Hope is on a mission and not even Ethan can keep her from digging into everything past and present in her effort to find the truth. Clues do start to come together but Hope finds herself at the wrong place and the wrong time when she realizes she is in the room with the killer. I will say I had my A-Ha Moment right when she had hers. I really enjoyed the takedown and the moments after. Another mystery is solved as well and that one I had pegged.
The end of the story ties up the lingering loose ends and sets up for some big changes coming in Book 7
A Corpse at the Witching Hour is a fast-paced twisty Halloween mystery with captivating characters. I am delighted that this series is continuing. I hope to read many more Food Blogger Mysteries!
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. Thank you to Beyond the Page Publishing and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC.
Your Escape Into A Good Book Travel Agent
About the Author
Debra Sennefelder lives and writes in Connecticut, where she lives with her family and slightly spoiled Shih Tzu. An avid reader across a range of genres, mystery fiction is her obsession. Her interest in people and relationships is channeled into her novels against a backdrop of crime and mystery. She’s the author of the Food Blogger Mystery series, the Resale Boutique Mystery series and the Cookie Shop Mystery series. When she’s not writing, she’s either baking or reading. To learn more, visit her on the web at www.debrasennefelder.com
Author Links
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Purchase Links
<Amazon – Barnes & Noble – Kobo – Bookshop.org
Also written by Debra Sennefelder
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Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Receiving a complimentary copy in no way reflected my review of this book. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.” “As an Amazon Associate, I earn a commission from qualifying purchases.”
While Toni Lotempio does not commit – or solve – murders in real life, she has no trouble doing it on paper. Her lifelong love of mysteries began early on when she was introduced to her first Nancy Drew mystery at age 10 – The Secret in the Old Attic. She and her cat pen the Nick and Nora mystery series originally from Berkley Prime Crime and now with Beyond the Page Publishing. They also write the Cat Rescue series from Crooked Lane and the Pet Shop series, originally published by Midnight Ink and rebranded last year as “Urban Tails Pet Shop Mysteries.” Book six in the Nick and Nora mysteries, A PURR BEFORE DYING, is released this February from Beyond the Page. There is also a new series, Tiffany Austin Food Blogger, coming out in April.
About the Author
