The Thrill of the Haunt by E.J. Copperman is the fifth book in the “Haunted Guesthouse” mystery series. Publisher: Berkley Prime Crime, November 2013

Alison Kerby’s guesthouse is already crowded with spirits. The last thing she needs is a whole new batch of haunts settling in.

As Alison’s reputation as “the ghost lady” grows, so does her business—and not always in a way she’d like. Tourists may be flocking to her guesthouse for a chance to glimpse her resident spirits, but her special abilities are also bringing unwanted private investigation cases to her door. And she has no choice but to take a case when the local homeless man is found murdered under mysterious circumstances, just hours after asking for help in exorcising a specter.

If that weren’t enough to deal with, Alison’s other PI case soon turns fatal, as the mistress she was spying on for a jealous wife turns up dead as well. The cases seem like they couldn’t possibly be linked, but with a mountain of clues, motives and suspects—both living and dead—Alison will have to think fast before someone else checks out for good.

I love this series. What a great mystery that I could not put down because I had to know what happens next as the story progressed to an exciting conclusion that caught me unawares. The author did a brilliant job of keeping me glued to the pages with several twists and turns and some surprising twists that I did not see coming. With each novel, Alison becomes a more stronger heroine and in this one, she has outdone herself. Of course with her ghostly friends, you have to expect the unexpected and you see it in their interactions with Alison. Boasting a superb casts of characters that includes Maxie, Paul, Melissa and Loretta, a warm and comfortable setting and great dialogue, that was amusing at times, this is the best book yet in this wonderfully crafted and delightfully charming series and I can’t wait for their next adventures.