The Ghost and the Haunted Mansion (Haunted Bookshop Mysteries, No. 5)
by Alice Kimberly
List Price:
Our Price: $3.78
You Save: $4.21 (53%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $0.02 (click here)
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions
Book Summary Information
Author: Alice KimberlyEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2009-01-06
ISBN: 0425224600
Number of pages: 304
Publisher: Berkley
Product features:
- ISBN13: 9780425224601
- Condition: New
- Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!
Book Reviews of The Ghost and the Haunted Mansion (Haunted Bookshop Mysteries, No. 5)
Book Review: Unique Cozy Mystery Series
Summary: 4 Stars
Mailman Seymour Tandish, friend of bookstore owner Penelope Thornton-McClure, should be ecstatic when he inherits a mansion, but he isn't. For one thing, the police suspect he killed the elderly owner in order to get her estate. For another thing, the mansion seems to be haunted. Penelope is very familiar with ghosts - the ghost of 1940's private investigator Jack Shepard is often by her side - and she thinks she can help Seymour with his ghosts. But Seymour has other ideas - he wants to exorcise all the ghosts out of town - and Pen has to convince him not to do that, or she'll lose Jack forever.
Author Alice Kimberly (pen name for husband and wife writing team Alice Alfonsi and Marc Cerasini who also write as Cleo Coyle) has created a delightfully unique cozy mystery series. The supernatural elements are well done and the series is filled with strong characters starting with Pen who picked up the pieces of her life after her husband committed suicide and helped revitalize her aunt's bookstore. Jack is another great character, a typical 1940's private investigator who doesn't always quite get the innovations of modern times. Some of the best parts in this series are when Pen, through her dreams, is pulled into past cases that Jack investigated. Kimberly does a good job of not only creating Jack's past world, but the town of Quindicott where Pen lives and the townspeople who are all quite realistic.
Having said all that, I was slightly disappointed in "The Ghost and the Haunted Mansion". It had some great moments and I love the way that Kimberly adds more dimension to Jack in each book (in this book she does a great job of explaining why Jack disappears for long periods of time). The mystery itself is good with plenty of suspects and red herrings, but some suspects aren't fully developed and Kimberly gives away the identity of the killer too early in the book (and it's hard to believe the characters didn't catch on as early as readers do). The elderly woman giving away her estate to someone who is practically a stranger is a well worn plot device (although it was fun to read as Seymour tries to fit into his new neighborhood) and was a bit rushed as Seymour moved very quickly into the house. Finally, the scene where they confront the killer is another cliché and totally unbelievable. However, Kimberly does add a very nice twist at the end of the book.
"The Ghost and the Haunted Mansion" is not the best book in The Haunted Bookshop cozy mystery series, but it's such a good series it's still worth reading.
The other books in the series are:
The Ghost and Mrs. McClure (Haunted Bookshop Mystery)The Ghost and the Dead Deb (Haunted Bookshop Mystery)
The Ghost and the Dead Man's Library (Haunted Bookshop Mystery)
The Ghost and the Femme Fatale (Haunted Bookshop Mysteries, No. 4)
Enjoy.
Summary of The Ghost and the Haunted Mansion (Haunted Bookshop Mysteries, No. 5)
When the local mailman inherits a haunted mansion and demands an exorcism, bookshop owner Pen must act fast to save her favorite ghost? 1940s detective Jack Shepard?before it?s too late.
Literature & Fiction Books
Book Subjects
- Arts & Photography
- Biographies & Memoirs
- Business & Investing
- Children's Books
- Comics & Graphic Novels
- Computers & Internet
- Cooking, Food & Wine
- Entertainment
- Gay & Lesbian
- Health, Mind & Body
- History
- Home & Garden
- Horror
- Law
- Literature & Fiction
- Mystery & Thrillers
- Nonfiction
- Outdoors & Nature
- Parenting & Families
- Professional & Technical
- Reference
- Religion & Spirituality
- Romance
- Science
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Sports
- Teens
- Travel
Most talked about in Literature & Fiction Books
Little Womenby Louisa May Alcott
Scribner; Published: 1986-06-30; Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.49
Price in other shops:
The Killing Groundby JACK HIGGINS
HARPERCOLLINS PUBLISHERS LTD; Published: 2007; Hardcover; Book
Saving Fish from Drowningby Amy Tan
4th Estate; Published: 2005; Paperback; Book
Life Expectancyby Dean Koontz
Harpercollins Pb; Published: 2005-08-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.00
Constant Princessby Philippa Gregory
Touchstone/Simon & Schuster; Published: 2005; Hardcover; Book
Wolf of the Plains (Conqueror, Book 1)by Conn Iggulden
Harper; Published: 2007; Paperback; Book
Saharaby Clive Cussler
Harper Collins Pb; Published: 2005-03-21; Paperback; Book
Perelandra (Cosmic Trilogy)by C. S. Lewis
Voyager; Published: 2005-11; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.97
Price in other shops:
The Lord Of The Rings: Part 2 The Two Towersby J. R. R. Tolkien
Harper Collins Publishers; Published: 2001; Paperback; Book
Red Marsby Kim Stanley Robinson
Trafalgar Square; Published: 2001-06; Paperback; Book
Similar Books and other products
Decaffeinated Corpse (Coffeehouse Mysteries, No. 5)by Cleo Coyle
Berkley; Published: 2007-07-03; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.26
Price in other shops:
Latte Trouble (Coffeehouse Mysteries, No. 3)by Cleo Coyle
Berkley; Published: 2005-08-02; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.08
Price in other shops:
Holiday Grind (Coffee House Mystery)by Cleo Coyle
Berkley; Published: 2010-11-02; Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.18
Price in other shops:
Through the Grinder (Coffeehouse Mysteries, No. 2)by Cleo Coyle
Berkley; Published: 2004-10-05; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.00
Price in other shops:
On What Grounds (Coffeehouse Mysteries, No. 1)by Cleo Coyle
Berkley; Published: 2003-09-02; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $1.99
Price in other shops:
The Ghost and the Femme Fatale (Haunted Bookshop Mysteries, No. 4)by Alice Kimberly
Berkley; Published: 2008-05-06; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $1.89
Price in other shops:
The Ghost and the Dead Deb (Haunted Bookshop Mystery)by Alice Kimberly
Berkley; Published: 2005-09-06; Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.10
Price in other shops:
The Ghost and the Dead Man's Library (Haunted Bookshop Mystery)by Alice Kimberly
Berkley; Published: 2006-09-05; Paperback; Book
Best price: $0.01
Price in other shops:
The Ghost and Mrs. McClure (Haunted Bookshop Mystery)by Alice Kimberly
Berkley; Published: 2004-02-03; Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.00
Price in other shops:
The Ghost and the Bogus Bestseller (Haunted Bookshop Mystery)by Cleo Coyle
Berkley; Published: 2012-01-03; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.99