KAREN’S KILLER BOOK BENCH: Welcome to Karen’s Killer Book Bench, where readers can discover talented new authors and take a peek inside their wonderful books. This is not an age-filtered site, so all book peeks are PG-13 or better. Come back and visit often. Happy reading!
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INN THE BURIED SECRETS
Cozy Animal Ghost Mystery
BY RHONDA BLACKHURST
Blurb
The dead of the spirit world collides with murder of the living.
When Andie Rose Kaczmarek, owner of the famously haunted Spirit Lake Inn, hires a paranormal investigator, she never expects it to end in murder. Her sponsor in recovery, the unconventional Sister Alice, warns her against meddling with the spirit world-but Andie Rose is determined to uncover the truth. With her emotional support red retriever at her side, she pulls Sister Alice into an investigation that quickly turns dangerous.
While the sheriff’s department handles the official case, Andie Rose and Sister Alice conduct a little sleuthing of their own-careful not to step on the toes of handsome Spirit Lake detective Noah Parker. But when a shocking event inside city limits drags Noah deeper into the mystery, the stakes rise fast.
As Andie Rose digs deeper, political tensions surrounding the city’s election year churn the waters into a dangerous storm. In Spirit Lake, secrets run deep, ghosts may be restless, and someone is willing to kill to keep the truth buried.
INN THE BURIED SECRETS
Cozy Animal Ghost Mystery
BY RHONDA BLACKHURST
Excerpt
A cool draft rifled through the room, and I knew it wasn’t from the open window. Nevertheless, I lowered the window and locked it, double-checked the lock on the front door, and headed up the stairs to bed. My constant canine companion stayed right by my side. He, however, decided a bedtime treat was in order and planted his rump on the floor in front of the kitchen.
“Jade already gave you a treat, Aspen.” His pleading eyes told me loud and clear she hadn’t. “Liar.” I chuckled as he stayed rooted where he was, his head now cocked to the side. I laughed. “Fine.” I trotted to the canister in the kitchen containing dog biscuits and retrieved one of the three left. Spirit Lake was a dog-friendly town, and the furry companions had come to expect the biscuits when they were in town with their humans, so businesses bought them from us in bulk. I’d have to bake some more tomorrow.
Aspen took the biscuit gently from my hand and followed me to our apartment upstairs. When I unlocked my door, Aspen beelined for my bedroom, jumped up, and settled in with his biscuit.
“Aspen, you have a bed of your own, you know.” His aversion to anything other than gnawing on his treat let me know just how much he cared about what I thought.
The bell of an incoming text surprised me, and even more so when I didn’t recognize the number. Sister Alice only texted this late when she knew something she thought I should also know, like information that solved one of the crimes in the past. Even my new friend in town, the new owner of the bookstore, Book Den & Pen, had a time or two. But this wasn’t either of them.
I clicked on it—Andie Rose, Sam Bell here. Confirming I’ll be there first thing in the morning. 11:00 sharp—
Eleven? First thing in the morning? That was nearly the middle of the afternoon for me. Then I realized Sam’s business hours probably went into the wee hours of the morning, long after I’d already gone to bed. This first visit during late morning was only to get a lay of the land and see what he’s working with. If everything meets his safety requirements, he said he’d come back with his assistant late that night. I wondered what kind of requirements needed to be met.
“Lady Lucy,” I whispered into the room, “hopefully you’ll soon be on your way from this world into the one in which you belong.”
My bedroom door slammed shut, and Aspen barked from the other side. I shivered as a cold gust of air whipped through the room. What in the name of God just happened?
Aspen scratched against the door, and I rushed to open it. He brushed past my legs and surveyed the tiny living room and kitchenette, emitted a quiet whine, and stared at me as if for answers.
I shook my head slowly, still a bit shaken. “I don’t know either, Aspen. But I do know it wasn’t Lady Lucy.”
Sam Bell’s visit couldn’t come soon enough.
About Author Rhonda Blackhurst…
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Links to Rhonda’s websites, blogs, books, #ad, etc.:
Amazon: https://link.amazon/B0iyikfH9
Website: www.rhondablackhurst.com
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Special Giveaway: Rhonda will gift an ebook copy of INN THE BURIED SECRETS to one lucky reader who comments on her Karen’s Killer Book Bench blog. Happy Reading!
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