Halloween Cupcake Murder by Carlene O'Connor
Product Details
Web ID: 16960405A Halloween Treat
Tara is trying to get ready for the upcoming Halloween Mystery Tour by adding some decorations to her shop. She turns to the towns curiosity shop to meet her needs. When she soon learns that the proprietor of the shop was murdered not long after she visited the shop she knows she must figure out who the killer is before the police set their sights on her. Follow along and see if she finds a killer or if she ends up in jail herself! Christmas town is gearing up for the Halloween season, why should they only celebrate Christmas? Events are being planned and a candy corn-themed bake off seems to be a major event. When the owner of the towns newest bakery is found murdered everyone is wondering if the bake off has something to do with it. Mrs. Claus doesn't want the celebration to be ruined so she decides to investigate herself. Can she find a killer before the Halloween celebration is ruined? Salem is getting ready for their month long Halloween celebration and Lee can't wait. When a local bakery owner goes missing and his favorite cat is found a few days later people wonder just what could have happened. Lee can't help but start looking into this new mystery in hopes of finding out just what could have happened. Will Lee figure things out and be able to have a good story for the news or will everything remain a mystery never to be solved. A great trilogy for the Halloween season, each story unique in its telling!
Recommends this product
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Halloween themed cozy mystery novellas! Fun Read!
A wonderful collection of Halloween themed cozy mysteries! The reason I picked this book up was because of Carlene O'Connor and her Home to Ireland series. I saw that the first story in the collection is a novella for that series and I couldn't pass that up! Tara has moved from her home in the US to Galaway, Ireland to run an architectural salvage business and home decor store. Unfortunately, she seems to keep finding dead bodies! A wonderfully written cast of characters that are fun as well as lovable wrapped in great plots that keep you reading until you unravel the mystery. I enjoy my visit each time! However, the beauty of picking up a collection of novellas like this is that you get introduced to new characters and series as well. Liz Ireland's novella takes you to Christmastown which is a walk through all of the childhood stories, cartoons and movies about Christmas that we all enjoyed! You have elves, living snowmen, abominable snowmen, talking reindeer and so much more, but with an adult cozy mystery twist. Unfortunately, not all elves are nice and fun loving as Mrs. Claus finds herself having to solve murders more than she cares too! It was a fun read and an incredible walk down memory lane that made me giggle more than once! The third story was also from a new to me series and I think I have found a new batch of favorite characters! Carol J Perry's addition to the collection is a novella from her Witch City Mystery series and I am hooked! Lee works for a local news station and seems to find herself helping to untangle mysteries as she also tries to get her story! She is surrounded by an intriguing cast of characters that are realistic and relatable. I will definitely be going back and catching up on this series so I can be ready for new additions! All three stories use the same theme of Halloween and Halloween cupcakes are central to the story. It is fun to see how each author takes the theme and twists it into a fun and entertaining story with their own unique twists! Now to see if I can find a good batch of Thanksgiving or Christmas novellas to read!
Recommends this product
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Grab a Treat to Read with These Three Novellas
Kensington is back with another Halloween anthology for us, this time featuring three different authors. Up first, Carlene O’Connor takes us Home to Ireland as a trip trying to find Halloween decorations for Tara Meehan’s shop leads her to find a dead body. Our next stop is the North Pole with Liz Ireland’s Mrs. Claus. It’s the second Halloween in Santaland, and April Claus is dealing with missing candy corn, the themed ingredient for the bakeoff, and a murder in a bakery. Finally, we travel to Salem to spend time with Carol J. Perry’s Lee Barrett. The town’s favorite baker is missing, and Lee can’t help but get involved, especially when her visions show her where he might be. As if often the case with these anthologies, I only read one of the authors. I love the Mrs. Claus series, and this was easily my favorite in the book. The other two were good, although they did leave me with some small questions I wish had been answered. Still, they were good introductions to the characters, as I had no problem following who all the characters are. All three stories kept me guessing until sleuth figured things out. While there’s obviously a culinary theme to the collection, we only get one recipe at the end. If you are looking for some new series, this is a fun way to try three new to you authors. If you are already a fan of these series, you’ll enjoy these between books check ins.
Recommends this product
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Entertaining Halloween Cozy
Excellent anthology full of Halloween fun, dastardly deeds, mysterious villains, amateur sleuths, and cupcakes! I enjoyed all three books so much. And I found a couple of new-to-me authors. 1) Halloween Cupcake Murder by Carlene O'Connor: Tara is spending Halloween in her new home city of Galway. Things are going well until she goes to visit a curiosity store for some decorations for her own store.... And then the owner dies under mysterious circumstances. Tara will have to work quickly to solve this one before it's her last Halloween as well. 2) Mrs. Claus and the Cady Corn Caper by Liz Ireland: It's Halloween in Christmastown and everyone is getting into the spirit. Until someone takes things a little too far and one of the baker elves is murdered. Mrs. Claus has her work cut out for her solving this one (New author for me) 3) A Triple Layer Halloween Murder by Carol J. Perry: Halloween-time in Boston and the areas favorite cupcake maker has disappeared. Amateur sleuths Lee works with her police officer boyfriend to solve this one. Unless it's already too late. (New author for me) Many thanks to Kensington Publishing and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book. My thoughts and my opinions are my own and without bias or favor or expectation.
Recommends this product
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
So Much Fun!
I'm not usually a fan of novellas for the series I read because they don't really advance the storyline much but these were different, particularly the first one that really threw a whopper at me! All of these were solid mysteries and, if fleshed out, could have been a full book each but were perfect at this length. I enjoyed all three of them. They can be read as standalones but are better read in their place within the series because of the backstories for the characters.
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Good Book
Halloween Cupcake Murder by Carlene O'Connor; Liz Ireland; Carol J. Perry is a great collection of three cozy mystery novellas that have a holiday-themed connection with a sweet vibe. There are three novellas included within this book: HALLOWEEN CUPCAKE MURDER by CARLENE O'CONNOR MRS. CLAUS AND THE CANDY CORN CAPER by LIZ IRELAND A TRIPLE LAYER HALLOWEEN MURDER by CAROL J. PERRY My personal favorite was by Ms. O’Connor. I have read every book that she has written and I have enjoyed the previous books in the Home to Ireland Mystery series. The other stories were enjoyable as well, but I have not read any of the books in those respective series. I did love the Halloween themes throughout, though. I love cozy mysteries, anything Halloween, and holiday-themed cozies as well…so this was right up my alley. 4.5/5 stars
Recommends this product
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
I enjoyed one out of three!
Halloween Cupcake Murder by Carlene O’Connor, Liz Ireland, and Carol J. Perry contains three Halloween novellas. Cupcakes are the common thread between the stories (the thread may be looser in some than in others). Halloween Cupcake Murder by Carlene O’Connor is book 2.5 in A Home to Ireland Mysteries. I was able to read it as a standalone. I did not find the story engaging. I thought the story was slow in places which made the story feel long (I was beginning to think it would never end). Mrs. Claus and the Candy Corn Caper by Liz Ireland is book 3.5 in the Mrs. Claus Mysteries. I ended up skimming through this short story which seemed geared towards a younger audience. The final book is A Triple Layer Halloween Murder by Carol J. Perry. It is A Witchy City Mystery novella. It can be read as a standalone since the necessary background information is provided. I like the author’s writing style which makes the story easy to read. I enjoyed the Halloween atmosphere in Salem. I like the supernatural element and how it is incorporated into the mystery. The whodunit suited the length of the story. I did feel that the ending was rushed. I felt that Halloween Cupcake Murder was like receiving raisins when trick or treating instead of a candy bar.
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Fiction Lux Review
Halloween Cupcake Murder: This read reminded me of a Father Brown story. It was a quick and enjoyable read. Mrs. Claus and the Candy Corn Caper: I didn't care for this story. It took everything in me to finish it. A Triple Layer Halloween Murder: This was hands down my favourite story in the book. I feel like this could've been a novel in itself, I know I'd read the full length. The only issue I had was there were characters being called by the wrong name. Overall, this was a great and quick read, I enjoyed most of the book and I would definitely go back and reread again.
Recommends this product
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com