McKinley Mysteries, Book 11
by Carolyn Arnold
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GENRE: Cozy Mystery
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BLURB:
Beware of all that goes bump in the
night…
Sean and Sara McKinley are excited
about the haunted house they’ve set up as a Halloween charity fund-raiser, but
things take a ghoulish turn when the reporter covering their story is found
dead. With the media keeping mum about how she died, Sara’s curiosity is
piqued, and she convinces Sean to take on the investigation through their PI
firm.
But this case is not without its
challenges. The police are actively investigating it, as well, and it’s not
even clear that the woman was murdered. It will take a little cloak-and-dagger,
dress-up, and finesse for the McKinleys to get to the bottom of it, but they
aren’t the kind to give up.
As they troll for leads and work
through the skeletons in the reporter’s closet, they unearth a few suspects,
but they’ll need to carve out the whole truth if they’re going to find her
killer. If they do so fast enough, there might even be time for a little
trick-or-treating.
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EXCERPT
Chapter
2
SHOCKING
TURN OF EVENTS
IT
WAS NEARING SIX O’CLOCK in the evening, and Sean and Sara were home in their
media room on a large sectional couch, getting ready to watch their spotlight
on the evening news with some friends and colleagues. They’d left the haunted
house in the hands of some capable employees, who would be posted there until
closing at eight.
Jimmy
Voigt, their former sergeant when they worked for the Albany PD, also worked
for them at the PI firm. He was on the couch next to his girlfriend, Meredith,
for the viewing. Sara had told Sean more than once that it was a match made in
heaven. He was pretty sure he’d rolled his eyes every time. Not because he
didn’t believe in love—he was married to his soul mate—but he just found it
hard to picture his former boss whispering sweet nothings to a lady love.
Helen
was seated at the other end of the sectional, and Mia was on the floor at her
feet, still dressed up as a princess. She really was a good kid—as far as kids
went anyway. And it’s not that Sean had anything against children, but for now,
he and Sara had decided they weren’t going to have any. And honestly, it was
probably for the best, as they traveled a lot and solving crimes didn’t leave
much free time.
“I’m
going to be on TV.” Mia’s face lit up as she grinned. “I can’t wait!” She
seemed more excited about this than she had been at the announcement that pizza
was for dinner. Mia stared at the muted television. “That lady was so pretty.”
By
“that lady,” Sean assumed she meant Chloe Parsons. Sean had to agree that based
on appearances and initial impressions, she was good-looking. But he didn’t
understand why she took such issue with Susannah when she didn’t want to talk.
Mia
turned to Sara and flashed another smile. “You looked great, too.”
“Thank
you.” Sara returned the smile and swept her long brown hair over her left shoulder.
“Did you have fun today?”
“Oh
yeah. My favorite part was the mummy.”
“That
didn’t scare you?” Sara laced her voice with concern but couldn’t hide the
underlying amusement.
Mia’s
expression faded, and her eyes enlarged. She nodded. “I was, but I like to be
scared. And I love mummies!” She bounded to her feet and jumped onto her
mother’s lap. Helen let out a whoosh of air but quickly recovered.
“It’s
the other kind of mummy, though, sweetheart.” Helen ran a hand over her
daughter’s silky hair.
“Oh,
it’s almost time,” Meredith said, obviously getting swept up in Mia’s
enthusiasm.
Sean
looked at the digital clock on the cable box: 5:59.
“It’s
on!” Jimmy said, sitting up straighter.
Sean
turned up the sound and sank back into the couch, putting an arm around his
wife.
Mia
wriggled on her mother’s lap.
“Come
on, honey, back on the floor.” Helen’s voice strained with the desperation of
her plea.
Sean
smiled, not because of the woman’s discomfort but because he loved seeing how
excited Mia was.
“My
costume was the best. They have to show me!” The little girl’s eyes were wide
and fixed on the screen.
“You
are a beautiful little princess,” Sean said.
Mia
glared at him. “I’m not little.” She held up both hands, fingers splaying as
she counted them off. “I’m six.”
“My
apologies,” he said with a slight bow of his head.
Sara
laced her fingers with his, and he met her gaze, which said, You’re aren’t the
best with kids…
Message
received.
“Shh.”
This came from Jimmy, and when Sean turned to look at him, he shrugged. “You
want to hear it, don’t you?”
Sean
increased the volume a bit more.
“We
have some somber news this evening,” a chic reporter announced from the news
desk. Based on the set of her mouth and the sad look in her eyes, she wasn’t reading
from a script. “Your Source has just received word that one of our own has
died.”
Sara
tapped her fingers on the back of his, leaned in, and whispered, “I have a bad
feeling about this.”
He
didn’t look over at her, but his wife had this way of sensing things. He
wouldn’t label her clairvoyant, but she certainly had strong intuition.
“Tonight,
we say good-bye to”—the reporter, while she kept her tone modulated, was
clearly battling with her emotions—“Chloe Parsons.”
The
news was a sledgehammer to his chest, knocking the wind out of him.
THE BOOK IS (theoretically) ON SALE FOR $0.99 DURING THE
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AUTHOR Bio and Links:
CAROLYN ARNOLD is an international
bestselling and award-winning author, as well as a speaker, teacher, and
inspirational mentor. She has four continuing fiction series—Detective Madison
Knight, Brandon Fisher FBI, McKinley Mysteries, and Matthew Connor
Adventures—and has written nearly thirty books. Her genre diversity offers her
readers everything from cozy to hard-boiled mysteries, and thrillers to action
adventures.
Both her female detective
and FBI profiler series have been praised by those in law enforcement as being
accurate and entertaining, leading her to adopt the trademark: POLICE
PROCEDURALS RESPECTED BY LAW ENFORCEMENT™.
Carolyn was born in a small
town and enjoys spending time outdoors, but she also loves the lights of a big
city. Grounded by her roots and lifted by her dreams, her overactive
imagination insists that she tell her stories. Her intention is to touch the
hearts of millions with her books, to entertain, inspire, and empower.
She currently lives just
west of Toronto with her husband and beagle and is a member of Crime Writers of
Canada and Sisters in Crime.
Connect with CAROLYN ARNOLD
Online:
And don’t forget to sign up
for her newsletter for up-to-date information on release and special offers.
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My review:
3.75 out of 5 stars
Halloween is Murder by Carolyn Arnold is a cozy mystery
featuring husband and wife cops-turned-private investigators Sean and Sara
McKinley. An interview featuring their haunted house fundraiser goes awry when
the reporter who did their feature dies. The question of whether the death was
from natural causes prompts Sara to drag the “Pay It Forward Investigations”
staff into an investigation. Foul play or bad luck? Sara and Sean will find
out, one way or another.
This book is part of the ‘McKinley Mysteries’ series and is
a gentle mystery that showcases the interactions between the easygoing couple
and their staff, including their former sergeant, Jimmy, who is now their
employee. The mild competition between their employees, the awkwardness of
being on the other side of the badge in an investigation that they are only
tangentially involved in, and the lack of a definitive conclusion pointing to
murder make this a relatively low-key investigation, without a lot of
excitement.
I enjoyed the interaction between the McKinleys but I was
disconcerted to suddenly have Jimmy’s point of view pop up every so often as he
performed his share of the research. I get the feeling that those who are
familiar with the series are more comfortable with the dynamics between the
various employees of the agency and are used to the barbed comments traded
between folks, but I would have liked to get to know all of the characters in a
little more depth, with a bit less sniping and more camaraderie between a
couple of them. This can be read as a stand-alone story, but I suspect one
would benefit from having read other books in the series, in order to better
appreciate the dynamics.
Those looking for a sweet and mild cozy mystery featuring an
altruistic couple who are free to pursue whatever they want will undoubtedly enjoy
this seasonal story.
A copy of this story was provided to me for review.
