From Cleo Coyle: Some characters haunt you long after a book is done, especially when they’re ghosts. Here are 5 reasons why we think you’ll enjoy being haunted by the characters in our new Haunted Bookshop Detective Mystery, recently honored as a *Star Reviewed Library Journal Pick of the Month!
OUR FIRST GIVEAWAY...
Before we continue with today's Spotlight post, we'd like to tell you about the first of our two giveaways. CLICK HERE or see the link below to jump to the prize package giveaway we're running for our Cleo Coyle Newsletter Subscribers to celebrate last week's release of our new Coffeehouse Mystery...
Cleo's Eat, Drink, and Get Buried
Prize Package Giveaway
Winner will receive:
> A signed copy of Cleo Coyle's New Coffeeouse Mysery Eat, Drink, and Get Buried in it's beautiful first edition hardcover format
> A Sturdy, Canvas Coffeehouse Tote Bag
> A Set of Glossy Cleo Recipe Cards, and...

Now for the 5 reasons why we think you’ll enjoy being haunted by the characters in our new Haunted Bookshop Detective Mystery...
Reason #1 PENELOPE, THE BOOKSELLER
A young widow with a growing son and busy life, Penelope Thornton-McClure didn’t believe in ghosts. Oh, sure, she knew locals gossiped about her family’s shop being haunted, but she never believed it, not until one horrible night when everything went wrong and she was under a great deal of stress. That’s when he spoke to her. The Ghost. From then on, Jack speaks to Pen at will—his will, not hers—blowing in and out of her head like a blustery gale. Despite his troubled spirit, Jack has a wicked sense of humor, and…after everything they go through together, Pen is amazed at the strangest irony of all, one that uplifts her own spirit: The Ghost believes in her...
Reason #2 JACK, THE HARDBOILED GHOST
A tough PI with an acre of shoulders and an iron jaw, Jack Shepard lived a hard, whiskey-swilling life on the meaner streets of New York City. His death (in 1949) was no picnic, either. Gunned down in a Rhode Island bookshop while following a lead in a case, he found his spirit locked in the fieldstone walls of that bookshop, unable to communicate with anyone—until his breakthrough with the prim young widow. While he has little patience with being stuck in this “cornpone” backwater town, he can’t deny the auburn-haired bookseller has improved his intolerable existence. Yeah, the broad is one of those annoying “do-right, fair-play Jane” types, but he secretly admires her character. Now he feels lucky that his purgatory has come with an angel, a doll he can't stop watching or watching over...
#3 THEIR QUAINT RHODE ISLAND TOWN
Pen’s charming hometown of Quindicott, Rhode Island, is a character all its own. Not far from the Atlantic coast, it may be smaller and less posh than nearby Newport, but its residents are proud of its revived Cranberry Street business district and renowned Victorian B&B. Fresh ocean air, amazing seafood, and a neighborly community make it one of the area's most pleasant places to live—even if you happen to be dead...
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| Pen's Bookshop Cat "Bookmark" |
#4 THE QUIBBLERS IN THE BOOKSHOP
The "Quibblers" are a quirky group of folks who make up the local Quindicott Business Owners Association. They meet regularly in Pen’s charming old bookshop, guarded by mouse-hunter Bookmark, the cat. There's Fiona Finch, the fastidious co-owner of Finch Inn, who has a penchant for True Crime books and "happening to overhear" conversations between guests. Seymour, the outspoken mailman who moonlights as an ice cream truck driver, collects vintage pulp fiction, and likes to ghost hunt at midnight. And many more oddball characters, people Pen dearly loves—and her hard-boiled ghost barely tolerates.
#5 THE MYSTERY OF THE DEAD LIBRARIAN
Join our earnest bookseller as she teams up with her hardboiled ghost to catch the cunning killer of Dory, a beloved local librarian in our new release THE GHOST AND THE DEAD LIBRARIAN. We truly love our characters, and we hope you will thoroughly enjoy visiting their Haunted Bookshop world.
CLEO COYLE (cleocoylebooks.com) is the New York Times bestselling pseudonym for Alice Alfonsi, collaborating with her husband, Marc Cerasini. With more than 1 million copies of their books sold, Alice and Marc have gained an enthusiastic following. THE GHOST AND THE DEAD LIBRARIAN, a *Star Reviewed Library Journal Mystery Pick of the Month, marks the launch of an exciting new spin-off series in Cleo's beloved "Haunted Bookshop" world. Cleo also writes the long-running Coffeehouse Mysteries with its 22nd entry, EAT, DRINK, AND GET BURIED, just released and already a #1 Amazon Category Bestseller with more titles to come. Cleo’s novels have been translated into Spanish, Japanese, and Czech; earned starred reviews from Library Journal and Kirkus; received Best of Year selection honors from multiple reviewers; and have been recommended by Booklist as among the best culinary mysteries for core library mystery collections. Alice and Marc have also created bestselling tie-in properties for NBC, Lucasfilm, Disney, Fox, Imagine, Toho, and MGM. When not haunting coffeehouses, hunting ghosts, or wrangling their rescued stray cats, they cook like crazy, drink a lot of java, and write independently and together.
Enter to win an autographed copy of THE GHOST AND THE DEAD LIBRARIAN in its beautiful first edition hardcover format by leaving a comment on this post with your email address. If you win our random drawing, that's how we'll contact you, so don't forget to include your email!
Our favorite PI ghost is back in time for Halloween Season! Be sure to subscribe to our Free Cleo Coyle Newsletter so you don't miss the upcoming Haunted Bookshop parties and giveaways.
Good luck in our Eat, Drink and Get Buried
& Haunted Bookshop Giveaways, and...
Happy Haunted Reading,
Everyone!
~ Cleo
Comments open through
Midnight, Friday, Oct 2.
Be sure to include
your email address.













Preordered from Amazon. I can't wait until Tuesday.
ReplyDeleteWonderful! Thank you so much, Darlene!
DeleteI had no idea Jack was back! Can't wait to read his new adventure. ToniC44@gmail.com
ReplyDeleteHi, Toni - Jack is absolutely back, and we're thrilled and grateful to continue his cases (with bookseller Pen, of course). We hope you enjoy THE GHOST AND THE DEAD LIBRARIAN.
DeleteI am so into Jack and Pen. Hope I win but I am not waiting, preorder right now. Sally925@firefox.com
ReplyDeleteHi, Sally -- Cheers for the pre-order! Thank you! And good luck in the drawing, too. xoxo ~ Cleo
DeleteLooking forward to this book and can't wait to read this book looks and sounds like a excellent read and new adventure, perfect to read anytime.
ReplyDeletedon.stewart@zoominternet.net
Thank you, Crystal! It's a fun read with loads of banter between bookseller Penelope and her hardboiled ghost. Readers have been incredibly kind and encouraging for years on this series, and Marc and I are glad to continue the stories of Jack & Pen and the cast of quirky characters who inhabit Quindicott. Have a great fall season, Crystal, and happy reading!
DeleteYou're Welcome I hope I win your books 📚, tote bag and that Irish bone China mug I'm part Irish so that's perfect for me
Deletedon.stewart@zoominternet.net
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeletediannekc - It's a mystery what you said. Hmm....we'll put Jack and Pen on the case. :)
DeleteNice to see Jack and Pen back! makennedyinaz at hotmail dot com
ReplyDeleteThank you, Marcia! Glad to know you feel that way. We hope you'll get a chance to enjoy THE GHOST AND THE DEAD LIBRARIAN.
DeleteDoes the story take place in Woonsocket? I thought it was a quaint little town, last time I visited. johnlong83@rocketmail.com
ReplyDeleteHi, John -- We actually mention Woonsocket as a town not far from Quindicott, Rhode Island, which is where our story takes place. (Quindicott is a fictional town, but it's based on the same types of small towns in the region.) The entire area is a beautiful one, and "quaint" is the perfect way of describing some of the charming small towns in the area. Thanks for your comment and good luck in the drawing!
DeleteLooking forward to trying out this series. Love your Coffeehouse Mysteries (picked up Eat, Drink, and Get Buries yesterday) but I've never met Jack and Pen. KaStubr at gmail dot com.
ReplyDeleteHi, Kate -- Thank you so much for the Coffeehouse love, and Marc and I are delighted to know that you're up for meeting Jack & Pen. We hope you enjoy THE GHOST AND THE DEAD LIBRARIAN. It's the first of our spin-off series with Kensington. And if you're up for more Jack & Pen adventures, there are nine (9) previously published Haunted Bookshop Mysteries available now. But for sure there will be more Kensington Haunted Bookshop Detective Mysteries coming in the future. We're writing the new one now.
DeleteI need to catch up on this series
ReplyDeleteWskwared(at)yahoo(dot)com
We hope you do. The books are a lot of fun!
DeleteHow exciting! Spending time with Jack sounds like a great way to get ready for Halloween.
ReplyDeletekozo8989(at)hotmail(dot)com
Hi, Alicia -- Jack is Halloween ready, for sure! And the best part for cozy readers is that he's not a scary ghost. He's quite charming, as ghost's go. So...Happy Haunted Bookshop reading this Halloween Season!
DeleteThank you for another book about Jack and Pen! So excited to see this.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the chance to win. madamhawk at gmail dot com
You're very welcome, and thank YOU for the happy comment!
DeleteI love Jack! I'm about 35% done with my ARC & I can already recommend it! It's so good! christy41970 at Gmail.com
ReplyDeleteHi, Christy -- Oh, that's fabulous. Thank you!
DeleteJack is my favorite. Thanks for your writing which brings me hours of enjoyment. saubleb(at)gmail(dot)com
ReplyDeletetraveler -- That makes our day. Thank you!
DeleteI am definitely fond of Jack! Can't wait to read this book! Thank you and Marc for writing wonderful books. The stories keep me entertained!!
ReplyDeletejarjm1980(at)hotmail(dot)com
Hi, jarjm -- So glad to know you're a fan of Jack's. Marc and I hope you enjoy his latest case with Pen. THE GHOST AND THE DEAD LIBRARIAN has loads of Jack and Pen banter, and plenty of twisty surprises. Wishing you Happy Haunted Bookshop Reading for Halloween Season!
DeleteCongratulations on your back-to-back new releases, Alice/Cleo! I love that Pen and Jack are getting a spinoff series!
ReplyDeleteI don't understand your comment. "spinoff searies"???
DeleteThank you, Kim! And I'll reply to Libby in a separate comment...
DeleteReplying to Libby -- THE GHOST AND THE DEAD LIBRARIAN is the first of a "spin-off series" with our new publisher Kensington. The series of new adventures is called The Haunted Bookshop Detective Mysteries. This is both the first of a new series and (in the timeline) the continuation of the characters that many readers have enjoyed for years in our original Haunted Bookshop Mystery series. So, you can think of this as book #10 in the Haunted Bookshop universe or book #1.0 in our new line of Jack & Pen Haunted Bookshop Detective Mysteries with Kensington.
DeleteCan't wait to read it! lovetopaint@hotmail.com
ReplyDeleteGlad to know it, Susan. Thank you!
DeleteThank you for amazing chance to win a first edition hardcover copy of THE GHOST AND THE DEAD LIBRARIAN - a pure reader's delight! Would love to read, review and cherish it. <3
ReplyDelete2clowns at arkansas dot net
Thank you so much, Kay, that's wonderful. Good luck in the drawing and Happy Haunted Bookshop Reading for Halloween Season!
DeleteAlways a good time visiting with Jack. Thanks for the chance to win a copy of your book. cherierj(at)yahoo(dot)com
ReplyDeleteYou're very welcome, Cherie, and thank you for your kind comment! Glad to know you're a fan Jack's (and he'd be happy to know it, too).
DeleteI hope to meet Pen and Jack soon. Thanks for the giveaways. awanstromatyahoodotcom
ReplyDeleteHi, April -- I hope you get a chance meet Pen & Jack, too. They're a very entertaining sleuthing team. Good luck in the drawing and Happy Haunted Bookshop Reading for Halloweeen Season!
DeleteThis new book sound SO fun--congrats, Cleo! Hurrah!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Leslie!
DeleteThe new book sounds great, Cleo! Congratulations.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Edith!
DeleteExcited for the new books! khpinelake (at) gmail (dot) com
ReplyDeleteHi, Katherine -- We're excited that *you're* excited! Thank you so much for the kind comment, and we hope you get a chance to enjoy Jack & Pen's new case in THE GHOST AND THE DEAD LIBRARIAN.
DeleteCan't wait to read this!! Welcome back, Jack and Pen. It has been too long. egoehner(at) roadrunner(dot)com
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for the welcome back. Marc and I were thrilled to put Jack & Pen back to work on a new case, and even happier to hear from kind readers like you. Good luck in the drawing and we hope you get a chance to enjoy THE GHOST AND THE DEAD LIBRARIAN.
DeleteHurray! Jack is back and we are all thrilled.
ReplyDeletelibbydodd at comcast dot net
Thank you, Libby, we're thrilled, too, and grateful to kind readers like you who have helped keep him alive (so to speak!) for all these years.
DeleteHappy Haunted Bookshop Reading for Halloween Season!
~ Cleo
Thank you for the chance to win. Alam22@msn.com
ReplyDeleteYou're very welcome, Amanda!
DeleteLove Jack! jtcgc at yahoo dot com
ReplyDeleteThank you, Mary, he'd love you for saying that! xoxo
DeleteThank you for the Chance I cannot wait to read. Deborah deborahortega229@yahoo.com
ReplyDeleteI have been following you and would love to read your Jack Is Back books and other books in print form I hope I win that Irish blessing bone China mug perfect for my Hot Tea 🍵 I drink plus to boot I'm part Irish at that
ReplyDeleteHope I Win
don.stewart@zoominternet.net
I would love to read this!! I had read the first in original series years ago and really want to get back to this series. Thank you for the opportunity to win a copy!
ReplyDeletejeaniedannheim (at) ymail (dot) com