Mayhem at a Halloween Wedding

By Emmeline Duncan

Book Overview

It s Halloween year-round in Elyan Hollow, Oregon, where Bailey Briggs sells the latest tomes of frights and fears at the bustling Lazy Bones Books when she s not uncovering deadly secrets and mysteries that haunt the town . . . There s more to celebrate this Halloween when Bailey s college friend Raven prepares to walk down the aisle in spooky seasonal style. As a bridesmaid, Bailey is overwhelmed helping with wedding preparations while the annual holiday festival scares up business for her bookstore. She also finds herself playing peacekeeper between fellow bridesmaids Colby and Ivy, whose arguments add even more conflict to the already simmering tensions within the wedding party between the groom s traditional family and the bride s bohemian parents. Trying to ease stress and enjoy the spirit of the season, Bailey arranges the bachelorette party on the night of the Halloween parade. Everyone agrees to join in the festivities and dress up in costume. But running into several people dressed as the Grim Reaper turns out to be a bad omen. An explosion rocks the route, causing a panic. When the smoke clears, Ivy is found dead, believed to be murdered and Colby is questioned by police after several witnesses report the very public clashes between the two bridesmaids. Narrowing down the list of suspects to prove Colby s innocence means Bailey will have to find a motive that drove a killer and keep her friend s wedding bells from becoming funeral knells . . .

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1496746163
• ISBN13: 9781496746160
• Release Date: July 2025
• Publisher: Kensington Publishing Corporation
• Length: 224 Pages
• Weight: 0.45 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.5" x 8.2"

Customer Reviews

Lost potential

I have no idea what happened with this installment of her series - it really felt like a first or second draft without much of an outline. The uncle was named Hudson in the first book and suddenly became Hunter? Jack was referred to as Jake at one point - the themes had been so well done and consistent across the last book but they felt off-handed and rushed in this one. Iftfelt like even the author didn't know whodunnit until the last twenty pages, and then it was a massive amount of exposition that really should've been spread throughout the novel to build suspense. Maybe I ended up with an ARC and it just isn't labelled? I know the author can write a decent mystery from the last one - this one could've been good, but it turned out to be a mediocre at best. Like, I could SEE the heart of it. It was there, but if felt more like a rambling get-the-thoughts-on-paper than a final, published draft.

Bailey does it again!

Never a dull moment for Bailey Briggs! It was nice to return to Elyan Hollow where Halloween reigns year round, though mostly in a fun and cozy way that I would love to visit, but only if I am not the one to come across a dead body, or end up dead myself. Yes, sadly there is another murder in this book, disrupting the parade (beginning to look like maybe they should skip the parade next year!) and Bailey is on the case again! While the bookshop is mentioned, it is not the focus this time around. Except for a bit with Rex and a mysterious dollhouse that I am sure will play a part in the future. But the wedding preparations were fun, especially as it is Halloween themed with zombies in prom dress (which would be totally awesome!) You meet some nice characters, but also some nasty ones (two guesses which ones end up dead! lol) and makes the story a nice little slice of life in Elyan Hollow (especially as Bailey is excellent at finding the murderer and keeping her friends safe and out of jail, as long as they are innocent.) It was a fun book to read, not as strong as the first one because I loved the bookshop and it took second place to the wedding in this story. Though I am looking forward to learning more about the tunnels, dollhouse, and maybe the mysterious Finn? lol