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theavidreaderandbibliophile's review
4.0
Haunted House Murder contains three entertaining Halloween themed cozy mysteries that are all set in Maine. They are well-written and engaging with developed characters. You can read one or all three. They can be read as standalone for those unfamiliar with the series. Death by Haunted House takes readers back to October 29, 2009 with Hayley Powell and her family. I do not know how Hayley put up with her husband, Danny. He is more of a child than her kids, but Danny was certainly entertaining. Lucy Stone is busy with work plus taking care of her house, hubby and daughter who is still at home. Then she agrees to watch Patrick. Lucy finds it challenging to keep up with a child under ten who goes to soccer and has homework. I could relate when she was trying to teach Patrick fractions (my father sat with me for hours trying to teach me). Julia gets roped into helping with a reenactment and finds herself in the middle of a real gunfire. When not looking for the killer, she is curious about the unusual problem at her mother’s house. She refuses to believe a ghost has suddenly appeared. I enjoyed all three cozy mysteries with the haunted house theme. They put me in the mood for Halloween which is such a fun time of year with the decorations and costumes. There are recipes included as well. Be prepared for a hauntingly good time with our three female sleuths in Haunted House Murder.
aspygirlsmom_1995's review
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
kimlb's review
3.0
This would have been a 2 star review if it weren't for the last story in the book by Barbara Ross which was great! The first two stories were very predictable and very similar.
kimdavishb's review
4.0
HAUNTED HOUSE MURDER by Leslie Meier, Lee Hollis, and Barbara Ross is the third anthology book the three talented authors have teamed up for. With three Halloween-themed novellas to provide short, goosebump-worthy reads, each author spins tales based on their much-loved characters from their long-enduring series. As you would expect, each novella has different characters and much different storytelling styles.
Leslie Meier writes a soft mystery intertwining a social issue. I like how she uses the grandson of the protagonist, Lucy Stone to increase the suspense. Lee Hollis takes the reader back in time to when the protagonist, Hayley Powell, has her young children at home. Halloween, especially when kids are involved, tends to not be quite so scary. Still the author manages to insert references to old-school horror movies and characters that had me chuckling. Barbara Ross ramps up the spookiness factor with a ghost tour in which she relates local ghost stories of Busman Harbor. As a longtime fan of the Maine Clambake Mystery series, I appreciated the peek into a different view of the town’s history and setting. I also appreciated her tale adhering to the title of the book by including a murder and not just a mystery. Despite the short novella length, Ms. Ross manages to make the story feel full length with good character development, a crime, great settings and Halloween flavors, and a complete resolution.
I was provided an advance copy via Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Leslie Meier writes a soft mystery intertwining a social issue. I like how she uses the grandson of the protagonist, Lucy Stone to increase the suspense. Lee Hollis takes the reader back in time to when the protagonist, Hayley Powell, has her young children at home. Halloween, especially when kids are involved, tends to not be quite so scary. Still the author manages to insert references to old-school horror movies and characters that had me chuckling. Barbara Ross ramps up the spookiness factor with a ghost tour in which she relates local ghost stories of Busman Harbor. As a longtime fan of the Maine Clambake Mystery series, I appreciated the peek into a different view of the town’s history and setting. I also appreciated her tale adhering to the title of the book by including a murder and not just a mystery. Despite the short novella length, Ms. Ross manages to make the story feel full length with good character development, a crime, great settings and Halloween flavors, and a complete resolution.
I was provided an advance copy via Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
kc_kinda_reads's review
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
1.75
bookwoman37's review
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I like all three authors included in this Halloween compilation but I did not care for all three stories. All the stories take place in small towns in Maine during Halloween. The first story featuring Lucy Stone did not have any mystery or scares. Lucy is taking care of her grandson during Halloween and is receiving no help. The second story features Hayley Powell and does include a murder. The third story was my favorite. Busman's Harbor is having a ghost tour for the Holiday with a stop at Gus's restaurant. Julia and Chris agree to help out. When there is a murder on the first night Julia sets out to solve it. The mystery was good and there were enough suspects to keep it interesting. Overall the book was a quick cozy read. Perfect for Halloween
tobyyy's review
3.0
This was a collection of three novellas. Overall, the book as a whole was a quick, enjoyable read. However, breaking down my enjoyment by novella:
Haunted House Murder, by Leslie Meier: umm. This was tied for favorite, but... y’all, there WAS NO MURDER. So it was disappointing. And misleading. Wtf, book.
Death by Haunted House, by Lee Hollis: this was my second favorite, but irritating because uh. So many assumptions that the MC made about her new neighbors. And her husband was irritating and also jumped to assumptions very quickly (he was honestly worse than the MC and pulled her into his delusional thinking).
Hallowed Out, by Barbara Ross: not a bad story but my least favorite of the three. Barely, though. I’m not entirely sure what made it my least favorite, though.
I’m definitely going to be looking for cozy mysteries by each of these authors. I may have also put in an order at Thriftbooks for some of the Christmas cozy mystery collections featuring Leslie Meier and other authors...
Haunted House Murder, by Leslie Meier: umm. This was tied for favorite, but... y’all, there WAS NO MURDER. So it was disappointing. And misleading. Wtf, book.
Death by Haunted House, by Lee Hollis: this was my second favorite, but irritating because uh. So many assumptions that the MC made about her new neighbors. And her husband was irritating and also jumped to assumptions very quickly (he was honestly worse than the MC and pulled her into his delusional thinking).
Hallowed Out, by Barbara Ross: not a bad story but my least favorite of the three. Barely, though. I’m not entirely sure what made it my least favorite, though.
I’m definitely going to be looking for cozy mysteries by each of these authors. I may have also put in an order at Thriftbooks for some of the Christmas cozy mystery collections featuring Leslie Meier and other authors...
clue2u's review against another edition
adventurous
inspiring
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
1.0