When her best friend’s Aunt Issy falls ill, food blogger Hope Early agrees to help him hand out Halloween candy at his aunt’s house, which is rumored to be cursed. A murder-suicide took place there a century ago, and legend has it that a woman has died there every twenty years since—on Halloween. Hope doesn’t really believe in curses or ghosts, but when all the trick-or-treaters are gone and she discovers a woman’s dead body on the front lawn, she wonders if the curse might be real after all. Then Hope and her friend discover a cache of love letters linking the dead woman to Aunt Issy’s husband years ago, and Hope is certain they’ve uncovered the motive for murder—and the police are certain Aunt Issy is their main suspect. Determined to prove Issy’s innocence and nab the real culprit, Hope starts shaking other branches of the family tree. But she forgets that Halloween isn’t the only day people hide behind masks, and if she’s not careful, Hope will come face-to-face with a ghoulish fiend who’s not afraid to kill again. I really enjoy this series. This one was a fun read and bonus.....it includes recipes!

Perfect for Halloween, or any time for that matter , and the characters themselves are funny , as well as recipes to give a try too as well.

This is the sixth book in the Food Blogger Mysteries by Debra Senefelder. This is not the first book in the series that I have read even though I have missed a few I was able to fall back into the series without feeling that I missed a major portion of the arcing story line. I was allowed to download it after the publication date by Netgalley.

I found it an entertaining Halloween-themed cozy mystery. Yes, Hope is irritating but it makes a good read.

I was given an ARC and these are my opinions.

A fun and fast paced mystery. I loved the backdrop of Halloween and fall. The ambience was cozy and warm. The characters were true to life and fully fleshed out. The plot was interesting and I enjoyed the multiple mysteries. This is the first book I’ve read from the series, but I’m intrigued enough to read more. I recommended this book strongly for anyone looking for a good murder mystery or fall time mystery.

I love this series!!! Hope is an amazing character and this series is so addictive. This is one of the best cozy mystery series I read. It also has some recipes to try. I cannot wait for the next book to see what all Hope and the gang get into next
I just reviewed A Corpse at the Witching Hour by Debra Sennefelder. #ACorpseattheWitchingHour #NetGalley
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Hope is a strong character, but her encouragement of Drew’s dramatics was a bit much. He needs to be a stronger character, and she needs to stop babying him like he was a little child. It took a murder for Hope to realize she didn’t know the people she considered her friends. It was intriguing and engaging.

Princess Fuzzypants here: One of my pet peeves with cozies is when the heroine is a candidate for a Darwin Award. The ones who belong in a really bad horror movie frustrate me. Hope does not fall into this category but I found her almost as frustrating in this outing as those oblivious characters.

She wants to solve the murder of someone very close to her best friend. All the suspects, however, happen to be very close to or related to her friend. As she goes about investigating, even though her boyfriend is chief of police, she is about as sublte as a sledgehammer. She manages to insult or upset every single one of them and that includes her best friend. When she does solve the murder, after putting herself in harm’s way, all seems forgiven by all and sundry. It truly took away some of the pleasure of what could have been a well structured mystery with lots of twists and turns.

The personality glitch could just be me. Others may not find it frustrating. But it means I have to knock my rating down a notch to four purrs and only one paw up.

This is the sixth book in the Food Blogger mystery series. I enjoyed this book, and the murderer was not obvious from the start. I haven’t read all the books in the series, and this was fine as a standalone story. I did, however have some trouble keeping track of all the characters and sometimes I had to go back to find out who the author was talking about. Because of this, I’m giving a three star rating.

Maybe if I had read more of the books in the series, I would have been able to keep track of the main characters better.

Hope Early, food blogger and amateur sleuth, is deep into recipes, remodeling, relationship challenges, and a murder in the sixth book in the series by Debra Sennefelder - A Corpse at the Witching Hour.

I began this book with much hope – for a new series to binge and anxiously wait for the next installment, to become so attached to the characters that I’m constantly wondering what will happen next in their imaginary world. And … while this is a light and fun read, it didn’t hit the right note for me.

I’m pretty good at believing the fantastical, but some of the setups in the mystery, the conversations, and the character development fell into the unbelievable category. Such as – why Hope seems to always be the one to apologize (for everyone’s behavior) or would a grown man be that self-absorbed and childlike (Drew)? (Maybe I’m lucky with the people I know.)

There is a lot of “telling” in the writing, rather than showing through the action and conversations. The pieces of the mystery do fit together, albeit a bit clunky with a not too-surprising conclusion.

I do wonder if I began with book one, would I have a different opinion? I will be testing that theory out shortly.

Special thanks to NetGalley for supplying a review copy of this book.
#ACorpseattheWitchingHour #NetGalley

In the sixth installment of The Food Blogger Series by Debra Sennefelder, A Corpse at the Witching Hour , Hope Early, helps pass out Halloween candy with her best friend, Drew, at his Aunt Izzy’s house. The house always has hundreds of trick-or-treaters due to the legend that a ghost causes a woman to die every 20 years on Halloween night. Hope is determined that no one will die on her watch, and even though Izzy is sick and bedridden, she watches her closely. Unfortunately, Hope discovers the body of a witch in the yard, and that woman has been murdered. Hope is quite nosy and has a reputation of solving murders in their small town, and investigates, especially since Aunt Izzy is the prime suspect.

Sennefelder does an excellent job of developing her characters. Hope, the protagonist, is likeable, and readers will also like the supporting characters: Ethan, the police chief and Hope’s boyfriend, and Hope’s best friend, Drew, whom she has known since they were children. The author also does a good job of telling the story, including ups and downs, and building suspense. As is Sennefelder’s style, the dénouement is a surprise and is at the very end of the book, so readers are on the edge throughout.

While there are dozens of references to food, the book only includes two recipes at the end, leaving readers wishing they could prepare more of the mouthwatering dishes mentioned at home. All told, however, this is a fun novel and a good installment to the series.

Special thanks to NetGalley for supplying a review copy of this book.

Hope is at it again, only this time Aunt Issy is involved and a ghost from the past has come home to cause trouble. After helping hand out Halloween treats, Hope finds a woman dead on the front lawn. But when a secret from a decade ago is brought into the present, Aunt Issy becomes the main suspect in the woman’s murder. Hope leaps into the middle of this investigation with her whole heart, and no one, not even her boyfriend is going to stop her from proving Issy’s innocence. As usual, Hope finds the evidence and has to piece the past together to figure out what happened. But with a murderer on her tail, it takes everything she has to catch the killer before the killer catches her.

This is a fun series, and I am happy with the latest installment. Yes, Hope is her usual irritating self, and everyone gets on your nerves a bit, but overall, this story is another hit. If readers enjoy Halloween and cozies that give the scary season a run for its money, this book is right up their alley.

This was such a fun cozy to read, It’s entertaining and kept me guessing until the very end, I highly recommend it.

In the latest Food Blogger Mystery, Hope manages to find yet another body, this time after a whirlwind night of handing out Halloween candy with Drew.

I enjoyed the mystery in this one, figuring out how everything pieced together, and there were some fairly dramatic developments. Unfortunately I find myself growing less fond of the characters, particularly Hope, as the series progresses. The way she keeps running around asking people for alibis would rub everyone the wrong way, and I think I personally would cross the street to avoid her. I'd love to see some character growth and development for her.

The book is getting high ratings so I may be in the minority here, and I'm still hoping to check out the next installment. Thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for the complimentary digital review copy of this title.

I always love this series! This was no exception! This has been my favorite of the series so far in fact. I always love catching up with Hope and her friends and that this one takes place at Halloween was an extra treat! When Hope finds the body we immediately know things are about to take a turn. I thought I had the culprit figured out a couple of times but I was actually surprised by the end!

I loved the incorporation of the letters and the extra little mysteries that were expertly weaved into this story! Debra always does such a great job of tying all the loose ends together! I will recommend this one to all my cozy sleuthers!

A good cozy, entertaining and solid. i had fun and the story kept me guessing
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

This book was so fun and cosy. The perfect book to read snuggled up while it’s raining! I had so much fun reading this and enjoyed it a lot. 3.5

Release Date: October 6, 2023
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When her best friend’s Aunt Issy falls ill, food blogger Hope Early agrees to help him hand out Halloween candy at his aunt’s house, which is rumored to be cursed. A murder-suicide took place there a century ago, and legend has it that a woman has died there every twenty years since—on Halloween. Hope doesn’t really believe in curses or ghosts, but when all the trick-or-treaters are gone and she discovers a woman’s dead body on the front lawn, she wonders if the curse might be real after all.

Then Hope and her friend discover a cache of love letters linking the dead woman to Aunt Issy’s husband years ago, and Hope is certain they’ve uncovered the motive for murder—and the police are certain Aunt Issy is their main suspect. Determined to prove Issy’s innocence and nab the real culprit, Hope starts shaking other branches of the family tree. But she forgets that Halloween isn’t the only day people hide behind masks, and if she’s not careful, Hope will come face-to-face with a ghoulish fiend who’s not afraid to kill again . . .

This is the 7th book in the #foodbloggermystery series. I’ve read all the books and starting this one was like a hug from an old friend. Drew is an amazing friend and co sleuth. Halloween night and the previous murder were the perfect way to celebrate spooky season. I like the other characters in this series and usually love how tenacious Hope is, but in this book she seemed a little overzealous to me. She was not stopping until she got answers, no matter how many toes she stepped on or who she hurt. I prefer a little more subtle sleuthing, but I still enjoyed the story and the mystery.

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions and thoughts are my own.

#acorpseatthewitchinghour #foodbloggermystery #debrasennefelder
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Thoughts: This is my first read of this series. Normally, that can lead to problems because you’re missing what came earlier, but I had none of that here. Yes, reading the earlier books in the series would probably help know the relationships between the characters better, but I didn’t feel like I lost anything in the story. I pretty much knew who the villain was from the outset, but that didn’t lessen my enjoyment of the story. The building of the curse was well-done and perfect for the story.

Recommendation: Recommended.

Disclaimer: Disclosure of Material: I received a final and/or advanced reader copy of this book with the hope that I will leave my unbiased opinion. I was not required to leave a review, positive or otherwise, and my opinions are just that… My Opinions. I am posting this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”

I received a free copy of, A Corpse at the Witching Hour, by Debra Sennefelder, from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This is book 6 of 6 in the Food Blogger Mysteries. Food blogger Hope Early has a mystery to solve. This book has it all murder, love, deceit, lies, and so much more, a really nice book, and a nice series.

We’re still going strong in the Food Blogger Mystery series, it had everything that I was hoping for in a sixth book in this series. It worked with the other five books in this series and I never thought the characters didn’t belong in the world. Debra Sennefelder wrote this perfectly and glad I was able to read this again.