A Ghostly Undertaking (Ghostly Southern Mysteries #1)

by Tonya Kappes

Publication: 24th February 2015

Publisher: Harper Collins/Witness Impulse

Pages: 288

Genre: Mystery

Age Appropriate: Adult

Buy It: Amazon, Barnes & Noble

A funeral, a ghost, a murder…it’s all in a day’s work for Emma Lee Raines…

Bopped on the head from a falling plastic Santa, local undertaker Emma Lee Raines is told she’s suffering from “funeral trauma.” It’s trauma all right, because the not so dearly departed keep talking to her. Take Ruthie Sue Payne--innkeeper, gossip queen, and arch-nemesis of Emma Lee’s granny—she’s adamant that she didn’t just fall down those stairs. She was pushed.

Ruthie has no idea who wanted her pushing up daisies. All she knows is that she can’t cross over until the matter is laid to eternal rest. In the land of the living, Emma Lee’s high-school crush, Sheriff Jack Henry Ross, isn’t ready to rule out foul play. Granny Raines, the widow of Ruthie’s ex-husband and co-owner of the Sleepy Hollow Inn, is the prime suspect. Now Emma Lee is stuck playing detective or risk being haunted forever.

My Thoughts.

The first in an all new series, A Ghostly Undertaking is what I'd call a cozy mystery, a genre which I've been meaning to get around to reading at some point, and this book finally gave me the chance to and I really loved it.

The concept and synopsis is what drew me in initially, I loved the idea of murders being investigated by a funeral director and the ghost of the murder victim, Emma Lee has been different ever since she was hit on the head by a plastic Santa, now she can see the spirit of Ruthie Sue Payne the local town gossip who claims she was murdered, Emma Lee spends her spare time finding clues to the killer, all the while trying to prove her Granny who is the main suspect is innocent.

With a potential romance on the horizon with the local Sheriff, there is plenty to keep you entertained.

This book was so enjoyable to read, so enjoyable in fact that I read it in just one sitting, I just couldn't seem to put it down, I look forward to continuing on with the next book and the series as a whole.

Tonya is a new author to me and I want to at some point read all the other books she's released.

I recommend this to anyone who loves a good mystery with a paranormal aspect.

I give this 4/5 stars.

Tonya has written over 15 novels and 4 novellas, all of which have graced numerous bestseller lists including USA Today. Best known for stories charged with emotion and humor, and filled with flawed characters, her novels have garnered reader praise and glowing critical reviews. She lives with her husband, three teenage boys, two very spoiled schnauzers and one ex-stray cats in northern Kentucky and grew up in Nicholasville. Now that her boys are teenagers, Tonya writes full time but can be found at all of her guys high school games with a pencil and paper in hand.
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