Over the last week, I indulged in several Halloween/Fall audiobooks. With beautiful weather, I spent a lot of time working outside and was able to listen to several seasonal cozy mysteries while working. Two were full length novels, the others novellas. All of the narrators were easy to listen to and had good pacing and expression. Clicking on the cover will take you to Goodreads to read the synopsis and add them to your TBR is they interest you.

Pumpkins in Paradise: TJ Jensen Mystery Series, Book 1Pumpkins in Paradise (The TJ Jensen Paradise Lake Mysteries #1) by Kathi Daley, Coleen Marlo (Narrator)

3.5 Stars:

This is the first book in the TJ Jensen Mystery series and it was enjoyable. We meet TJ, her family and her friends. When TJ’s friend Zachary Collins is found dead in his house, it is initially ruled a natural death. When TJ finds an open bottle of scotch, she has questions. Zachary has not had a drink in years, and then finding out that he has changed his will and sold his house to developers, she knows something is not right. It takes TJ some hustling and convincing to get the police to open an investigation, but with the help of the local doctor/coroner, he finally does. I enjoyed seeing how TJ interacts with her half-sisters that she is now the guardian of, as well as the guest at the lodge owned by her father. Throw in a local Halloween/Pumpkin festival for some holiday spirit and you have a fun cozy mystery.

Death of a Wicked Witch: A Hayley Powell Food and Cocktails Mystery, Book 13Death of a Wicked Witch (Hayley Powell Food and Cocktails Mystery #13) by Lee Hollis, Randye Kaye (Narrator)

3.5 Stars:

Halloween in Bar Harbor has plenty of haters, specifically Hayley’s husband Bruce and her best friend, Liddy. This outing has Hayley meeting the new pastor of the church and his wife, Ted and Trudy Lancaster. She owns a food truck that makes amazing subs and is quickly hired to cater the local Witch’s Ball. When Trudy is found dead in her food truck the night of the party, Hayley begins an investigation to find the killer. This story was not one of my favourites in the series. There was a lot of emphasis on Hayley’s family, specifically her daughter Gemma and her boyfriend Connor. We also had to deal with Bruce’s smoking and Hayley’s complaining, as well as the retiring pastor seeming to have a midlife crisis and being a bit too hands on with Trudy. The mystery itself had several suspects, a few twists and a rather loud reveal. The excerpts from Hayley’s column about previous Halloween’s were quite entertaining. One of my biggest complaints is having the recipes at the end of individual chapters can be annoying, especially when listening to the audiobook.

Haunted House MurderHaunted House Murder by Leslie Meier, Lee Hollis, Barbara Ross, Narrated by Eliza Foss

4 Stars: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

This was a fun anthology made up of three novellas: HAUNTED HOUSE MURDER by LESLIE MEIER, DEATH BY HAUNTED HOUSE by LEE HOLLIS and HALLOWED OUT by BARBARA ROSS. You can read this book as a standalone without reading the series and still enjoy them. All three of these stories deal with some kind of a Haunted House or Haunted Building. All of the mysteries are interesting and solved quickly without a lot of danger as we often have in full-length stories. I enjoy all three of these series, with their quirky characters, well-plotted stories and just enough twists to keep me guessing. I enjoyed Barbara Ross’ story, Hallowed Out the best. In that story there is a Haunted Ghost Tour that has a stop at the restaurant run by Julia Snowden and her boyfriend Chris. When one of the actors in the reenactment is killed, Julia snoops around until she unearths the culprit. All in all, a fun Halloween theme cozy story collection. A quick read that I thoroughly enjoyed!

Penned In: A Farm-to-Fork Mystery, Book 4.5

Penned In (Farm-to-Fork Mystery #4.5) by Lynn Cahoon, Narrated by Susan Boyce

4 Stars: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Penned In is a Halloween novella to keep us happy while waiting for the next full length novel in the Farm to Fork mystery series. In this story, Angie and her team are on one of their team building outings. This time, they are spending the night locked in at the Old Idaho Penitentiary, known as The Haunted Prison. Not my idea of a team building activity, but then, they are a lot younger than I am. Of course, there is a murder and being as they are all locked in, it has to be someone spending the night. This is a short, fun, locked room mystery that Angie and her team are able to sort out. As usual with Lynn Cahoon’s books, I was unable to figure out who the culprit was. I enjoyed watching the group investigate this murder in a very small and enclosed space. The reveal was great and unexpected. I would have loved this one to be longer, but it was enjoyable and an easy afternoon read. I was gifted a copy of this book upon request. The rating and opinions shared are my own.

A Very Mummy Holiday: Tourist Trap Mystery Series, Book 7.25A Very Mummy Holiday (Tourist Trap Mysteries #9.5) by Lynn Cahoon, Narrated by Susan Boyce

4 Stars: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

A Very Mummy Holiday by Lynn Cahoon is a Tourist Trap novella. I thought based on the title that this was a Halloween story, but it isn’t. Jill and Greg are on a mini-vacation with friends during Thanksgiving week, when they happen to find a mummified body in the sand dunes, thanks to Jill’s dog. Greg, who usually tries to get Jill to stay away from his investigations, actually encourages her to do some investigating or snooping online. It was great to see them working together instead of her having to sneak around. This was a good, well-developed story for a novella. There were a few suspects and even a rather dangerous and twisty ending. I was happy to see how this one turned out. It was a nicely paced story that I enjoyed as an afternoon read.