Lindsey prefers to keep her bakeshop’s Halloween decor light and autumnal, rather than gruesome and ghoulish. But everyone knows her lighthouse home is haunted. Some intrepid teens have even tried to break in to witness the resident ghost themselves. Dreading Halloween night, Lindsey reluctantly allows her influencer and podcaster best friend, Kennedy, to host a live ghost hunting investigation in the lighthouse, conducted by a professional team. Protective of her ghost, Lyndsey is understandably nervous about what they might uncover…

The segment is uneventful—until things take a terrifying turn. The team freaks out. As Kennedy joins the mad dash outside, she bumps into what looks like the prankster teens’ creepy clown costume hanging from a tree. But when Lindsey’s dog, Wellington, begins to whine, they make a grim the clown is no dummy. It’s a corpse.

Now Lindsey and company will need to keep their cool if they want a ghost of a chance to solve the murder—and see another Halloween…

4.5 stars

I listened to this audiobook, and Amy Melissa Bentley did a fantastic job of narrating it. I loved her English accent for Kennedy, the best friend of Lindsey, the main character.

This was my first book by Darci Hannah. I know this is book #4 in the Beacon Bakeshop series, but I didn’t feel like I missed anything by not having read the previous books. This story does work as a standalone. But now, I do want to go back and read the others.

I absolutely adored this cozy mystery. Is this the best piece of literature that I’ve ever read? No. Is this the best-written book I’ve ever read? No. But what made me round this book to five stars was how much I loved the feelings that I got while reading it – the characters, the mystery (that I wasn’t able to solve), and all of the cozy vibes and food descriptions. It was the entire package that made me give this a five-star rating. Plus, it is well-written and doesn’t feel cheesy like some other cozy mysteries.

This story is set in Michigan, so as a mid-Western gal from Ohio (Go Bucks!), I absolutely loved the small town feel. There are a lot of characters to keep track of, and it got a little confusing at times while listening to this book, but for the most part, I was able to tell who was who. But I loved the found family element, which is a favorite of mine, and how the community comes together to figure out who murdered one of their own. They are a close-knit town where everyone knows everyone, and they look out for each other, and I just wanted to be part of their community and live there while listening to this story. Did I say how cozy this book is? It’s SOOO cozy!!!

The story takes place around Halloween and into November, so this is the PERFECT Halloween read and gives all the fall vibes. There’s a fall festival, a pumpkin pageant, carving pumpkins, falling leaves, and crisp, cool air. So if you’re looking for a book to get you in the mood for autumn, this is the one!

But the real highlight for me was…the food descriptions!! This book will make you hungry and cause your mouth to water. You don’t just get food details, you get recipes and baking/cooking tips! They are amazing!! I think in the actual book, there are real recipes you can make at the end of the book.

The murder mystery is also fun to solve. There are quite a few red herrings before the big reveal, which I didn’t expect. (I can never figure out murder mysteries!) I also enjoyed the unique place Lindsey lives – in a lighthouse. We also get some supernatural elements, which I always enjoy, especially for a Halloween book.

This is also a very clean book – no language and no spicy scenes, which I really appreciated. It’s not labeled as Christian, but there are a few moments where the main character says some prayers, which was a nice touch that I enjoyed seeing. There are also two adorable dogs throughout the entire story that I love as well.

I can’t wait to read the others in the series now.

Highly recommend this one!!