Dru’s Short Musing:
When his friend is murdered, Dee’s dad, Sam, wants her to find the killer.

Ellen Byron continues to bring a solid and well-plotted whodunit that I could not put down until the last page was read. The drama was nicely executed with crisp writing and a comfortable tone making it easy to follow along with what the author intended. All the elements in a mystery were displayed with a growing list of suspects, a train load of clues ready for us to decipher and a few red herrings to keep us in the game. As the story moved forward, the pacing increased as the suspect pool got shorter and the hints were leading us to the person truly responsible for this crime. Once again, the author delivered a bonafide and delightfully engaging tale that I enjoyed and I can’t wait to see where we go next with Dee, Jeff, Sam, Bud, and the other residents of Foundgold, California.

Series: A Golden Motel Mystery, Book 3
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Release: July 28, 2026
Format: Print, Digital, Audio
Purchase Link

Book Synopsis:
Dee Stern is starting to feel at home running her Golden Motel in the quaint California village she moved to, leaving behind her LA life as a sitcom writer. But a killer sees the town’s Halloween celebration as a golden opportunity to write a script for murder . . .

It’s October in Gold Rush country and all manner of tricks and treats are happening in the lead-up to Halloween. October also happens to be the birthday of Angus Sprockles, the man responsible for the town being designated a historic landmark, and the residents are celebrating his memory as well. His only living descendant, Moses Sprockles, runs the narrow-gauge railroad—once used to ferry lumber from the mountains to the sawmill, now a tourist attraction. The Sprockles Railroad is hosting a Halloween-themed fundraiser for the Historical Society.

But when a body is found on the tracks, it’s not a Halloween prank. It’s Moses himself, seemingly felled by a fallen tree branch. Dee’s dad Sam is convinced his friend is the victim of foul play and urges his daughter to apply her sleuthing skills. Dee’s train of thought leads her to suspects ranging from a former child star and one-hit wonder, the owner of a nail salon with her claws in everything, and even the mayor. When a self-proclaimed ghost hunter throws his hat in the ring and claims to know who did it, the investigation really goes off the rails. No matter how crazy things get, Dee is determined to blow the whistle on a runaway killer with a one-track mind.

FTC Full Disclosure – I received a digital ARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley.