Dru’s Short Musing:
When her customer is found shaken to death in her paint shop and Laura is on the hunt to find the killer with assistance from her father, who is dead.
This was a well-written drama with a comfortable tone making it easy to follow the path the author has set. The mystery was nicely executed with a small pool of suspects and clues splattered throughout as I navigated what was being said to whom and what can of paint would open clues that would lead to the identity of the killer. The scenes at the paint shop with her dad and at the psychiatrist office created a well-rounded interlude that moved the story forward. There were a few red herrings that were meant to throw me off but were done expertly and then the one strategically placed twist that brought it all together and I enjoyed watching it all play out on the page. This was a fun and enjoyable read and I can’t wait to see where we go next with Laura, Roy and her dad.
Series Name: A “Haunted Paint Store” Mystery, Book 1
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Release: November 4, 2025
Format: Print, Digital, Audio
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Book Synopsis:
Paint store owner Laura Meehan makes the discovery of a lifetime in her shop when she stumbles upon a body and . . . her dead father’s ghost! This brand-new Haunted Paint Store Mystery has Copperman’s signature wit, humor, and zaniness aplenty!
Dealing with her father’s recent death, Laura Meehan decides to move back to her New Jersey hometown and take over the paint and wallpaper store he opened after quitting his straining job in the police. Knowing that she is uprooting her own and her supportive husband Roy’s lives, she’s determined to continue her father’s legacy and keep the business alive.
But that doesn’t seem to be the only thing alive when Laura discovers that her store is haunted by none other than her deceased father! Either that or Laura has finally lost her mind and developed Ghost Traumatic Stress Syndrome . . .
When she discovers the body of the town’s deadbeat painter Ernie on top of all that, Laura is determined to find the culprit who’s rudely used her store as their murder scene, with the help of her ex-police detective father’s ghost—real or not, Laura might as well make use of his expertise!
It turns out Ernie owed a lot of money to a lot of people. Could one of them have reached breaking point and killed the freeloader?
FTC Full Disclosure – I received a digital ARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley.