A really good book. At one point I thought i knew who the killer was but not sure, and I was right. ( )

Abby only wanted to help out a friend and pick up some pumpkins, but instead she finds the owner, murdered. She really doesn’t want to get involved trying to find the murderer, but she just can’t help herself. Her tenant and friend, Tripp, defends one of his friends, a homeless veteran who has become a person of interest in the crime. The murder victim was the town grump, and though many people disliked him, Abby wants to find out who hated him enough to kill him. The mystery is quite intriguing, and the characters, both the good and the bad, are delightful in their own way and well developed. The interaction between the characters was well written, and everything came together for an entertaining and interesting tale. Another positive aspect of the story was the careful and constructive way the author dealt with the problem of PTSD. ( )

Abby McCree is a young divorceé who inherited her late aunt's home in small-town Snowberry Creek, Washington. It's getting close to Halloween, and she's on one of the planning committees. But she has more on her mind -- her tenant, ex-Special Forces soldier Tripp Blackston, often has trouble sleeping and walks around, and she's seen him head to the park with a full backpack and come back with it empty. So on this night, she decides to allow her curiosity get the better of her and follows him, which isn't a good idea. Mostly because she's accosted by a man who sneaks up behind her and she soon discovers that he's Sergeant Kevin Montgomery, and a friend of Tripp's. Once she meets him and realizes he's having problems, she promises Tripp she'll stay out of it.

But the next day she's having coffee in town and sees him in an altercation with an ornery farmer, Ronald Minter, who accuses him of trespassing and stealing pumpkins from him. Before the altercation can get physical, Montgomery walks back into the park and the forest. But that's not all -- someone is carving pumpkins with very lifelike features and leaving them on peoples' porches around town. It's a puzzle no one seems to be able to figure out.

Then Abby is asked to take her elderly friend Glenda out to Minter's farm to get a box of pumpkins for the Halloween Festival, and she gladly agrees. Because it's raining, she tells Glenda to stay in the car and she'll get them. But she can't find Minter anywhere, so she checks to see if he's in his corn maze -- and he is. Dead. After calling the cops, Police Chief Gage Logan shows up with detectives from elsewhere, since it's their jurisdiction. After being questioned, Abby leaves and figures that will be the end of it. But little does she know that both she and Tripp will be pulled into the investigation, and it will get worse. Montgomery is suspected of the crime, and Abby doesn't think he's guilty. Will she be able to find a killer before an innocent man is arrested for murder?

This is the second book in the series and I enjoyed it immensely. Abby is a delightful character; she's strong, independent, intelligent, has a fierce sense of loyalty; yet she's also soft-hearted and at times a tad (shall we say) overly curious. She stands up for what she believes in, and doesn't back away from confrontations.

The dialogue is witty and fun, and there were many humorous moments along with the somber. It kept the story moving along at a rapid pace, and therefore I read it in one sitting (without even getting up for a new cup of coffee. High praise indeed). The townspeople are more involved in this tale, and we are seeing that Abby's friendship with many of them is growing. While as in any story there are unlikable characters, at least in this one there is a reason for them being around, and it only made it more convincing.

The mystery is, of course, the reason for the story, and it is quite intriguing. While of course we know Sergeant Montgomery isn't the killer, there is a lot of fun looking for the person who may be so. Since I read a lot of these mysteries, I was pretty sure I knew the answer, but it's the journey that is the most fun to see the reason why Minter was murdered. And it's one I don't think anyone could have discovered, yet finding out the identity of the murderer is rather sad. The reasons people kill will never cease to amaze me, even when those reasons are age-old.

In the end, everything comes together perfectly just the way it should be, and we are given a bit of a tease regarding the next book (but I will tell you that this book doesn't 'hold you hostage' because I absolutely detest authors who do that). This author, while new, is a welcome addition to the cozy genre and I eagerly await the next in the series. Recommended. ( )

I got the book for free, in exchange for my honest opinion by NetGalley.

I'm a sucker for any and all Halloween themed books. Whether it be horror, middle grade, or as this book falls into; mystery. Unfortunately, this story is a little played out. It's' the age old story, kind of like the "Boy meets Girl" story. We have a woman aged between 30-50 who is either single or married. She suspects or witnesses a crime, usually a murder, and inserts herself into the police investigation. The police tell her she's too nosy, but she ends up cracking the case. The next time crime comes to town, the cycle is started all over again. Add in a holiday and its a overused story.

Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not ragging on stories with this plot. One of the series' I enjoy reading has one of these plots. But execution is key. And this just fell flat for me. I know its an advanced copy, but the grammar left something to be desired. There were several times over the course of a single chapter that I had to read, re-read, and re-re-read, to understand the point. Overall, the words didn't mesh well together and it was clunky. While I'm an avid lover of curse words, I don't expect the books I read to have them. The author really went above and beyond to make sure the story was free of those types of words. That's fine. But I don't think those phrases were well-written. I'm backtracking and saying again, its clunky.

Some books and movies, you can guess the "Who-Dun-It?" before finishing, it didn't even take half the book for me to figure it out. It was fairly quick, and saw the plot twist coming from a mile away. It made reading the rest of the difficult as I just wanted to wrap it up and be done with it.

I just feel this is just another basic story that blends in with the rest. There's not really anything that sets this story from the hundreds of others with the same plot. If you haven't been turned onto a story like this before, its great. However, if you're like me, you may just want to skip this one. ( )

Death by Jack-O’-Lantern by Alexis Morgan is the second An Abby McCree Mystery. It can be read as a standalone for those new to the series. Abby McCree has been “volunteered” to help with the planning of the Halloween Festival. When Glenda’s driver bails because of the pouring rain, Abby takes her neighbor out to Ronald Minter’s farm to pick up the pumpkins for the festival. Abby finds the cranky farmer dead in a shed in the middle of the corn maze. When Tripp and his friend, Kevin Montgomery find themselves afoul of the law, Abby begins searching for the guilty party. I thought Death by Jack-O’-Lantern was easy to read with a charming town and a variety of quirky characters. Abby keeps getting herself “volunteered” to committees and projects (I think gullible is written on her forehead). When Abby is not helping others, she is whipping up baked goods that come in handy for bribes and to offer to police when they inevitably end up at her house. Zeke, Abby’s dog, is my favorite character. He is such a lovable and smart fellow. Gage Logan, the chief of police, is a good guy. He is a fair minded individual who cares about his daughter. I wish Gage was Abby’s love interest. The murder of Ronald Minter provided a couple of suspects along with misdirection and direct clues. I would have liked the mystery to be more challenging. It seemed like the author was pointing a giant neon arrow at the culprit. I thought the reveal was interesting and entertaining. There were some appealing aspects to the crime, and I appreciated that it was completely resolved. The pumpkin carving sculptures were a delightful addition to the story especially Gage Logan’s. I would have liked less repetition of case details (I got it the first time). Death by Jack-O’-Lantern is a cute Halloween themed cozy mystery with purloined pumpkins, copious cookies, a humorous hound and a vigorous volunteer enforcer. ( )