Night of the Living Deed (A Haunted Guesthouse Mystery)

In this first book in the series, Alison has just bought a house in Harbor Haven, New Jersey with the idea of making it into a B & B type of guesthouse. When she sees 2 ghosts in her house one day she works with the ghosts to discover who killed them. How Alison, with help from her friends, discovers the killer makes for a great read. This is the only series by this author I haven't read and enjoyed this one and looking forward to reading the rest in the series.

I enjoyed the charactersA d the melding of spectral and practical interactions. The story moved along and didn't overload the reader with flowery descriptions.

Newly divorced Alison Kerby is determined to build a new life for her and her nine year old daughter Melissa so she buys a fixer-upper on the Jersey Shore and is converting it into a guest house. She can do the repairs herself but isn't expecting to encounter a pair of ghosts: that of the previous owner Maxie Malone and Paul Harrison, a private investigator who had been working for Maxie. They want Allison to find out who killed them but she needs to be careful - the killer is willing to strike again."Night of the Living Deed" is the nicely done first book in E.J. Copperman's new Haunted Guest House cozy mystery series. While the idea of ghosts in a cozy mystery is hardly a new one (the book reminds me a bit of Alice Kimberly's Haunted Bookshop series), Copperman adds some nice twists and touches to keep the book interesting and fresh. What really makes this book stand out are the ghosts - especially Maxie who might be the sassiest character (dead or alive) that I've come across in a book. Alison is also a good character - not as Sassy as Maxie but a bit snarky and prone to saying things without thinking them through. Outside of the ghosts (and who can see them), one of the most interesting parts of the book is reading about the repairs Alison is doing on the house. While the book is a cozy mystery and the paranormal aspects are benign (and humorous at times), there are some scary moments, particularly towards the end of the book. The mystery aspects are pretty well done as Copperman deftly mixes in the murders of Maxie and Paul with a more recent murder and death threats against Alison but the book could have used a few more suspects as it was obvious early on who the killer was."Night of the Living Deed" is a good cozy mystery and I look forward to reading more books in the series.

This book was hard to put down and a fun read. It had interesting characters and provided a few twists and suspense. I’m on to the sequel!

This is a paranormal cozy mystery. I admit that when I first bought it, I was intrigued by the premise of the book. I love mysteries and I often enjoy books with a paranormal theme. Shortly after, I asked myself, "What was I thinking?" This is why the book sat around for nearly two years before I bothered to pick it up and read it. Am I ever glad I did, as it exceeded my expectations!The premise of the book is simply. A divorcee, Alison Kerby, returns to her hometown, Harbor Haven, which is on the Jersey Shore, with her nine year old daughter, Melissa. There she buys a rundown, beach front, fixer upper, which she is renovating herself, with the hope of turning it into a year round guest house.The only fly in her ointment is that her house is occupied by the ghosts of the previous owner, Maxie, and that of Paul, the private investigator she had hired just before she died. Both are insistent that the official declaration of their deaths as suicides is wrong, and that they were, in fact, murdered. The only thing is that being that they are ghosts, they need Alison's help in finding out just who their murderer is.This book is simply hilarious at times with some engaging, quirky characters, and a wacky, intriguing plot with no shortage of potential suspects. This fast paced, highly entertaining book is the first in a series of haunted guest house mysteries, and I look forward to reading each and every one of them. I am hooked!

For me this is a difficult book to review.Allison and her daughter are starting over after a divorce. Allison has decided to take her fixer-upper skills follow her dream and buy a 100+ yr old home on the Jersey shore. Turning it into a guest house. There's just one little problem. Two ghosts live there. Shades of Topper? Not quite. And for me here is where the problems start.Allison is fixing up this house herself. Ok. She seems to be doing it at record speed. Really? And all of a sudden the ghosts of the murdered previous owner Maxie and the P.I she hired to protect her from threats show up and want Allison to find their killer so they can move on.Not only is Allison taking down the kitchen cabinets, sanding, refinishing and recharging. She is also restraining floors, painting all the rooms repairing walls, things like that in about a week and a half. By herself. Oh, forgot to mention, searching for a killer and getting her daughter ready for Halloween.The story line was interesting. Not really about money in the true sense.I felt I never got to know the characters and I no nothing of the area.Which is a shame for a first book because that's what a first book is about.On the other hand it I do want to read more books in the series and hopefully more ghosts will pop up.When I read other reviews most said fast paced. Maybe if you're a turtle.I liked the book. And since there are now eight in the series, maybe Allison's guest house is heavenly.

I liked this book. It's funny and sweet and exciting g. It's the story of a mother who is restoring an old house, her daughter and the ghosts in residence. This is the first I the series. Book two coming up for me!

Alison Kerby is carving out a new life for herself after her divorce by purchasing a rundown property on the New Jersey shore. She's always dreamed of returning to her home town and opening a guesthouse there, so when the ideal property became available she brought it straight away and moved in with her nine-year-old daughter Melissa. A head injury during the renovations leaves Alison with the ability to see ghosts, and she soon realises her guesthouse already has two residents. Paul and Maxie are stubborn, interfering spirits who won't leave Alison alone until she solves the mystery surrounding their deaths.I picked up this last summer as I love paranormal mysteries and this sounded like a unique premise. This book does suffer from 'first-book-in-a-series-itis' which dented my enjoyment slightly. There's nothing wrong with the book, but the detailed and meticulous way in which the world and characters are created means that the story takes quite a while (probably half to two thirds of the book) to really get going. This level of world building usually indicates a series that has the potential to run for a long time, and means that subsequent books need very little set up.The plot is packed full of twists and turns, most set up in incredibly subtle ways that don't show until you're thinking back with hindsight. I love when a mystery follows a path I didn't expect, and this one definitely did that with several 'what?!' moments scattered throughout the book.In terms of characters, the author has done a great job of collecting the usual cozy mystery cast - the cop, the journalist, the sleuth, the slightly nutty family member, the cute kid, the love interest etc. However the depth and detail of each character presented means that these aren't your cookie cutter characters. I like Alison, especially her snarky sense of humour, but my favourite characters are definitely the ghosts and I'm hoping they stick around for future books. I love how Alison has a dead PI helping her investigate, especially as I've not seen this before.All in all this was a great mystery to curl up with and I'm looking forward to  An Uninvited Ghost (Haunted Guesthouse Mystery)  out in April 2011.Plot: 10/10Characters: 10/10Ending: 10/10Enjoyment: 7/10Cover: 7/10Overall: 44/50 An Uninvited Ghost (Haunted Guesthouse Mystery)

Thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and look forward to the follow up loved the spooky characters and excellent story. Recommended.

Maybe not the greatest detective story or ghost story, but I really enjoyed it. The characters are likeable and it was fun. I have ordered the other two in the series and am looking forward to reading them. A lovely bit of excapism.

Story full of interesting characters living and not living. A good read fun and not taxing on the brain.. look forwardtonext book in series.

The first of a series by an author new to me, I enjoyed the story and will look forward to reading more by E.J.Copperman.