Reviewed by Mystereity Reviews on
Maddie has just bought a haunted grape press for her Paranormal Museum when she's accused of stealing it by a vintner that Maddie later finds dead. Coerced into investigating by her mother, Maddie puts catching a killer at the top of her to-do list, along with staging a room at a Halloween haunted house and hosting a Death Cafe at the Paranormal Museum.
I liked this, but I was a little disappointed. At the heart of this book is a good premise and an intriguing plot. The current day murders had a lot of twists and turns, and the story behind the haunted grape press (and everyone's reaction to it) was entertaining. I loved Maddie's room at the Haunted House (actually, I would've loved to see the whole thing!) and the descriptions of the custom Oujia boards she sells made me want to go out and buy one. As for Adele's new descriptions of her teas, I thought they were colorful and a bit corny, but pornographic? Nope. Harper needs to get out more.
Unfortunately, the murders weren't the focus of the book; the plots were largely buried under the weight of Maddie's love life, the town placing bets on whether Maddie will solve the crime, the Ladies Aid anarchy, the Death Cafe, and the terrifically annoying Det. Hammer whose purpose seems only to be a distraction and is a negative stereotype that makes police look bad (as if they need any more of that.)
Overall, this is a very cute and enjoyable series (and I still love the idea of a paranormal museum!) and this book was a good read but it would've been so much better if the focus was more on the mystery and less on all the other silliness.
Thank you to Midnight Ink and Netgalley, who provided an advanced copy in return for an honest review.
Reading updates
- Started reading
- 20 October, 2016: Finished reading
- 20 October, 2016: Reviewed
- Started reading
- 20 October, 2016: Finished reading
- 20 October, 2016: Reviewed