Cookies, Corpses and the Deadly Haunt is the first book in a haunting new paranormal cozy mystery series about house flippers living in the spirited world of Bohemian Lake. If you like haunted Halloween balls, murmurs of madness, and skeletons in the attic, then one-click this book today and meet Jack & Juniper’s ghostly guests.House flippers Jack & Juniper agree to lend and help prep … help prep their latest purchase—The Doctors House—an old Victorian mansion to act as the eerie setting for the town’s Halloween bash, they’re expecting to find missing floor boards, and pesky bats, not the ghostly specter of the murdered Doctors Wife.
But when the head of the council is found stuffed in a trunk in the attic, it appears history is repeating.
As June and the team, carry on with party preparations, they unravel a century of family secrets, whispers of lunacy—and the number one suspect goes on the run. But the victim’s family insists that the ball must go on, even with a killer on the loose. With Halloween fast approaching, June sees the woman in white and wonders if keeping the killer out was ever really a possibility. Now she’s desperate to unmask the killer before the Annual Halloween Bash turns into even more of a deadly haunt…
While the series is best enjoyed in order, each book is a complete mystery on its own. For those of you who are new to my books, the Bohemian Lake series is a world comprised of multiple sets. Each set focuses on a different Bohemian resident(s), although all of the books intersect.
For those of you who are new to my books, the Bohemian Lake series is a world comprised of three sets. Each set focuses on a different Bohemian resident(s), although all of the books intersect. You will note characters cross books all the time.
Bohemian Lake Reading Order:
Penning Trouble: Murder, She Floats,
Haunted House Flippers: Cookies, Corpses and the Deadly Haunt
Penning Trouble: Murder, She Slopes,
Haunted House Flippers: Candy Canes, Corpses and the Gothic Haunt
Bohemian Murder Manor: Gypsies, Traps & Missing Thieves
Bohemian Murder Manor: Make-Believes & Lost Memories
Haunted House Flippers: Crumb Cake, Corpses and the Run-of-the-Mill
Penning Trouble: Murder, Ye Bones
Bohemian Festival Fiasco: Nuttier than a Pecan Pie
Bohemian Murder Manor: Ouija, Death & Wicked Witchery
Bookish Adventures in Witch-Lit: Scandal & Gretel
Coming Soon!
Bookish Adventures in Witch-Lit: Hyde & Seek
Penning Trouble: Murder in the Catacombs
Bohemian Murder Manor: Ferris Wheels & Fortune Squeals
Haunted House Flippers: Black Cats, Corpses and the Pumpkin Pantry
Bookish Adventures in Witch-Lit: Night of the Living Well-Read
more
I was immediately drawn to that house. I loved this book! I love myself a good ghost story, not too scary, but a bit spooky alright! I really took to Juniper, who is very no-nonsense. Jack, well, his character needs to be developed more over the next few books, I didn’t really get to know him, but I’m sure that will happen. Wonderful story!
This is my first book of this series and I loved it. This is an entertaining and funny cozy mystery. I found myself laughing quite a few times while listening to this book. The characters are interesting and personable. The mystery has several red herrings and twists and turns. This is a great read anytime but especially near Halloween. I look forward to reading/listening to more of this series.
The narrator Ellora Sen-Gupta is great at bringing each character’s personality to life. She has great comedic timing. She is a wonderful storyteller making a great read even better.
I received a copy of this book at my request, and I have voluntarily left this review. All thoughts and opinions are my own and in no way have been influenced.
cosy-mystery, murder, romance, suspense, friendship, family-dynamics
Well plotted mystery with lots of suspense, red herrings, and twists. Juniper and Jack are business partners with a romantic past who renovate and resell houses, and this time it’s a Victorian with a ghoulish history in Jack’s hometown. A number of the townsfolk are beyond odd, there’s a new police detective in town, Juniper’s BFF runs a shop nearby, and then there’s that rising body count. I found this to be a thoroughly enjoyable mystery!
I need audiobooks and the narrator is really good at understated performance art.
I thoroughly enjoyed this story. The characters, particularly Juniper, are great! They are vivid, personable people. The story is full of red herrings and misdirects. It keeps you guessing until the end. A most entertaining, fun cozy mystery.
I am a cozy mystery reader and had the opportunity to read this book which is outside of my normal niche. I would classify this book as suspense/thriller mixed with a bit of humor and the unexpected. Kay is not your normal police officer being framed for crimes she didn’t commit. She has sass, humor, and her wits. Along with a little help from her friends, she experiments with many disguises and finds her inner outlaw all the while trying to find the real criminals. This is the first book in a future series of adventures that I feel readers will continue to want to read.
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book
My first read from author Rachel Stapleton and it won’t be my last. Extremely well written, the characters, well developed. I’m a character reader, I get into the characters. Who and what they are. Why they do the things they do. The things that make a reader get invested into the characters and thereby the book and this book has it all including *(spoiler) a HEA ending!
Great story!!!! This book was funny and a treat to read. The setting, an old Victorian mansion with a history of murder sets the stage for murder and Halloween fun. The mansion is being restored by Juniper and Jack’s company. A partnership of work and past love. Or recent love? The characters are well fleshed out and very real. You will love this story of mayhem and murder and Halloween antics.
It would have been better if the main character did not refer to herself in the third person and then switch to first person. It didn’t detract from the story but it was a bit annoying.
This is the 2nd book in a very enjoyable series. I love the characters and a little ghostly haunting always adds a twist. Juniper is finishing the remodeling of the Gothic Haunt – a taproom and inn. There have been several instances of vandalism and then her chef is murdered. She needs to meet the deadline to open for New Years Eve but now she has to solve the murder as well. This is a great story and I can’t wait for the 3rd book.
“Cookies, Corpses & the Deadly Haunt” earns 5/5 Haunted Houses!
I am always excited about getting involved with new a series from a favorite author, and this first book in Rachael Stapleton’s new Haunted House Flippers Inc. doesn’t disappoint: a dilapidated Victorian, a hundred-year-old murder, and a ghostly apparition? Everything to make it an engaging Halloween treat!
We are introduced to a delightful pair of house renovators Jack Young and Juniper Palmer who are ex-lovers and partners in Spirited Construction, a company best known for purchasing old “ghostly looking” homes, renovating to former glory, and flipping for a good profit. They have just purchased an old Victorian in Bohemian Lake, dubbed The Doctor’s House, rumored, possibly substantiated by unexplained events, to be haunted. Next, we discover the details surrounding the murder of the doctor’s wife who many say was by the doctor himself, and that this year’s Halloween will be the hundred-year-old anniversary of that tragic event. Then, with renovations underway, Jack and Junie have agreed to loan out the house and help with preparations for the Halloween Ball, the historical society’s grand fundraiser. The rumors of the house being haunted and the apparition having recently appeared may greatly improve the chances that this year’s Ball will be a better success than the past few. Last, when a body shows up in a mysterious trunk reminiscent of the hundred-year-old murder, Junie, Jack, a cast of friends, and a new detective work to find a killer uncovering secrets galore.
Along with a marvelous mystery in this page turner, this story weaves the ins and outs of renovated homes along with learning more about the history and dynamics in the relationship between Jack and Juniper—former lovers, but oddly still connected. Is there a redo in their future? I highly recommend this book, and am eager for another adventure. It is great fun that Rachael revisits the setting of Bohemian Lake (mentioned as Jack’s hometown) and some character and business connections from her Penning Trouble series which recently released book one “Murder, She Floats” and will soon release in November book two “Murder, She Slopes.” I highly recommend checking out those delightful books about local Private investigator ‘Lucky Penny.’
Cozy mysteries are great! This one is full of suspense, mystery, ghosts, a haunted house and a little romance. I really enjoyed the way the characters related to each other. Juniper has so many things going for her. Will she and Jack get back together? Will she wind up with the Detective? Who is committing all these murders and why? Could it be the ghost of the mansion?
The plot and the characters are well developed. This is a great story to read especially so close to Halloween. I highly recommend this book.