A good book. Well written with great characters and a good plot. The storyline flows and the mystery is enjoyable. I highly recommend.,

This is a fun conclusion to a fun series. I like Melanie quite a lot and enjoy her page time. Liza is ... well she's a lot. I usually adore grandmother/granddaughter relationships but Liza can be trying at times with her insistence on investigating this murder despite everyone else's reluctance and the occasional peril. The main mystery was entertaining with lots of possible suspects. I do love when the murder victim is one that pretty much everyone wants to murder. There is also a background mystery that has been around since the beginning of the series that is nicely resolved in this book and the series ghost makes a few appearances. This isn't the most memorable cozy series but it is good on audio and appears to be concluded so if you like a cozy with a little bit of ghostly action this might be one to pick up.

Since I hadn't read the first two in this series, I found it a bit difficult to follow at the beginning. The idea of a haunted B&B isn't exactly original but it was entertaining to an extent. I think I would need to read the first two installments before I would go further with this series.

In Be Our Ghost, the third book in the Merry Ghost Inn series of cosy crime novels, controversy comes to Sully’s Landing in the form of a hot-shot real-estate developer who is looking to build a tacky arcade in the centre of the otherwise tranquil and picturesque town. Like most of the locals, Melanie and her grandmother Liza, owners of the Merry Ghost Inn B&B, are not in favour of his plan. It shouldn’t come as much of a surprise to hear that the developer is murdered quite soon after he arrives in town, but what is surprising is that Doug, a good friend of Liza’s, is soon identified by the police as the prime suspect in the killing. Convinced of Doug’s innocence, Melanie and Liza (and possibly the laughing ghost that haunts their B&B) determine to clear his name by catching the real killer.

Be Our Ghost is a lot of fun. The concept of the B&B being haunted, and of the ghost seemingly using whatever means at his disposal to assist Melanie and Liza, works well and, despite being an unusual premise, doesn’t detract from the murder mystery. It’s definitely a quirky story – the central characters are nicely eccentric too – but the plot surrounding the killing is well thought out and convincing. Readers who have followed the series from the beginning will be pleased to know that a bit more is revealed about Liza’s and Melanie’s backstories, and for Melanie in particular, some very interesting information about a mystery close to her heart comes to light.

I did not finish - I have tried reading this book on multiple occasions and just could not get into it.

A pleasant storyline with lots of banter between the characters. A very realistic world with all the mystery you can muster.

This is the 3rd in the Merry Ghost Inn series and is just as cute as the previous 2. Orville didn't seem to be in it as much, but I still enjoyed it. I enjoyed the idea of Liza possibly having a romance!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this book, which I voluntarily chose to review.

This is the third book in The Merry Ghost Inn series and it keeps getting more intriguing with each installment! It can be read as a stand-alone, but you get to know the main characters better by starting with book one. I love Liza’s character because she dives in to anything before thinking of the possible consequences and doesn’t take no for an answer. I wish there was more of Orville and paranormal activity going on since their inn is haunted by him. My favorite thing about this series is that Kate Kingsbury includes a recipe from the Merry Ghost Inn at the end of each book!

This was my first book although it is the 3rd book in the series. I was able to enjoy this book as a stand-alone mystery even without the backstory of relationship and character development from previous books. I do plan on reading the previous books in this series. The characters are great. I love the relationship between Melanie and her Grandmother Liza. Also really love how Melanie feels about her dog. If my dog was lost I would feel the same way Melanie did, I would be very worried too. Another wonderful character is the assistant Cindi, she is unique and true to herself. The mystery is well plotted and has several red-herrings along the way.

I voluntarily agreed to read a copy of this book supplied by NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own and in no way have been influenced.

Be Our Ghost by Kate Kingsbury is the third tale in A Merry Ghost Inn Mystery series. Melanie West and Liza Harris own the Merry Ghost Inn in Sully’s Landing, Oregon. Jason Northwood, a developer, wants to build an arcade in town with video & pinball machines, karaoke, a bar and much more. Northwood would need a variance from the Planning Commission and city councilors to proceed with his plan. The day after Northwood held a special event for the people who will vote on his request, he is found dead from a stab wound to the heart. Doug Griffith was vocal against Northwood’s project and had a history with the developer which puts him at the top the police’s suspect list. Liza and Melanie with help from their resident ghost, Orville set out to prove Doug’s innocence. Then their dog, Max vanishes from outside the bakery only to reappear several hours later with a warning note attached. This just makes the duo more determined to catch the guilty party. Melanie and Liza are out asking questions when the brakes give out on their car. Thankfully, they drive into bushes instead of over the cliff. When Liza goes missing, Orville provides a pivotal clue. Can Melanie get to Liza in time?

Be Our Ghost is a lighthearted cozy mystery. Melanie West and Liza Harris own the Merry Ghost Inn which is haunted by Orville. I enjoy the paranormal elements and would love to have more ghostly interactions. I am also curious to know more about Orville. I do not understand why Melanie criticizes Orville nor do I like it. There are many cozy moments with cooking, eating, gardening and chatting. Tea is consumed in large quantities. I was happy that Liza and Melanie actively investigated the murder. They questioned various people around town, but they need to work on their technique. There is misdirection and pointed clues. Readers will have no problem solving this whodunit before the reveal. I wish we had been given better closure on the case instead of supposition (what they think happened instead of facts). The ladies are told numerous times to stay out of the investigation which they do not heed (you would think they would be a little wary). Melanie is also searching for her mother. They finally have a lead and Melanie is hopeful. I could have done without the numerous descriptions of Cindi Metzger’s clothing and the lamenting on her tardiness. She wears unique outfits each day which are described in detail. There is a Blueberry French Toast recipe at the end of the book. I am giving Be Our Ghost 3 out of 5 stars. If you are looking for an ethereal and easy to read cozy mystery with a supernatural element, then Be Our Ghost is for you.

Be Our Ghost is the third book in a cozy mystery series featuring Melanie and her grandmother Liza. Unfortunately, I didn't like this one as much as the first two and while it wasn't a boring book or uninteresting, there were just too many things that bothered and distracted me throughout.

First of all, I really do enjoy Melanie as a main character but I am not yet sold on Liza. I get that the author is trying to make Liza come across as sassy and scrappy and all that, but sometimes it rings a bit false and I was not always impressed by her personality. She could be a bit rude and obnoxious, and to be honest, I could do without her comments on someone else's dress style and habits. Perhaps a bit too much time was spent on discussing their assistant's clothing and bad eating habits and it got old, fast. I do like how the two interact with each other though, and you can tell that Melanie really cares about her grandmother and is willing to do anything for her. But I really wish she would stand up to her once in a while!! And that ex of hers. Yikes!

Melanie and Liza own the Merry Ghost Inn which even comes with its own resident ghost. I enjoyed the paranormal element but as of yet have learned almost nothing about Orville and why he is there which has been a bit frustrating. I would definitely enjoy more ghostly encounters and would love to learn more about him. While the tease was interesting at the beginning, it kind of gets irritating as the story moves along and you find out pretty much...nothing. There are a lot of moments in the kitchen working on various recipes and things, but there was very little interaction with the guests. And you would never know they were running an inn by their behaviour, that's for sure. Melanie and Liza took off at a moment's notice to investigate and to do other things, sometimes leaving an assistant behind, sometimes not. I actually began to wonder how they actually ran the inn if they were never there. I think less details about breakfast and more interactions with their guests would make this a bit more realistic.

The investigation was interesting but I feel like the duo needed to work on their approach with people when it came to investigating as the way it was written it was fairly easy to figure out the murderer. And I know that if Liza approached me the way she approached some of the people in this book, I would be a bit upset as well and tossed her on her backside out the door. Sometimes age is not an excuse for rudeness. And while the attempt was made to misdirect and twist things around, it didn't really work on me. That being said however, it was definitely interesting meeting the people in this world and I would like to meet a lot of them again as I sense some interesting stories on the horizon.

Be Our Ghost is one of those books that, while enjoyable on a superficial level, was a bit of a letdown in other areas. I think having paying guests stay at a haunted inn and then having no interaction with them whatsoever in the book is a bit of a letdown. While I understand the main mystery was not focused on the inn this time out, it really makes no difference; no ghostly activity at the inn means no ghostly haunted inn. I also had a harder time accepting Liza and her personality in this one; I just couldn't get past her abrasiveness. I did really like a lot of the other characters though, so I hope to see more of them in future installments of this series. Would I recommend this series? I think so, and there is so much potential here that I am still interested seeing what happens next.

Princess Fuzzypants here: I almost gave up on this book. I became so frustrated with one of the characters that it was destroying any pleasure with the story. When a character does things that are so fundamentally stupid and dangerous, even after serious threats to life and limb, I roll my eyes in despair. It is a fine line an author treads where the heroine or in this case heroines are in danger without qualifying for the Darwin Award. It seems like I’ve read a few of these lately.
At least granddaughter Melanie is aware that they are taking too many chances but Granny, Liza, appears oblivious. Even if Liza has no concern for herself, she comes across as pigheaded when she puts others in danger. Yes, I can understand why she feels threatened by the killer of a prominent developer. She simply seems blithely unaware or unconcerned. It irks me as the reader and it detracts what could have been an enjoyable read.
Putting aside that major complaint, the story was interesting and it had its moments including an exciting finish. I found the side stories of both Melanie and Liza compelling. Both are in the early stages of romance as well as trying to find out what happened to Melanie’s mother and Liza’s daughter who simply disappeared when Melanie was a child. There was enough there to keep me reading but not enough to save it.
Three purrs and one paw up.

Be Our Ghost is the third book in the Merry Ghost Inn Mystery series by Kate Kingsbury. I have only read the first book in the series, and somehow missed the second. I feel like I was able to pick up the characters and larger story pretty quickly and think that newcomers to the series will be able to jump in fairly easily.

Melanie West, her grandmother, Liza, and their beloved sheepdog/wolfhound mix, Max, are rapidly getting the hang of running their charming bed-and-breakfast inn on the rocky Oregon coast. Not that business goes without a hitch when your hostelry boasts its own laughing resident ghost, you’d better be expect the out-of-the-ordinary. But Melanie and Liza take it all in stride…until a hotshot real estate developer arrives in Sully’s Landing, touting his plans to build a tacky amusement arcade smack dab in the middle of the tasteful cliff-side town. No one in Sully’s Landing can stand the gaudy developer, but it’s still a shock when he ends up murdered. It’s even more shocking when Liza’s friend, Doug, emerges as the chief suspect. Melanie and Liza put on their sleuthing caps yet again and set out to clear Doug’s name. They nearly check into accommodations six feet under when, en route to the crime scene, their brakes give out and they narrowly miss plunging over the cliffs to the beach below. Meanwhile, the merry ghost who haunts the inn tries to help by dropping clues for Melanie to find, but her mind is otherwise preoccupied when the killer kidnaps Liza and holds her prisoner. Now, it’s up to Melanie to piece together the ghost’s clues, save her mother, exonerate her friend, keep her guests happy, and make sure Max gets his walkies.

Be Our Ghost is an entertaining cozy mystery with a splash of paranormal and some interesting secondary stories. I thought the mystery, and the involvement of Doug was very engaging and entertaining. I enjoyed the exchanges between Liza and Doug. I though the closer look at the town and the community was very well done and the details of the players were revealed slowly and in fun ways. There were neat little hints and clues as the story progressed, that left me thinking about several possibilities for the guilty party. I do have to admit that I was a bit bothered by the amount of time poor Max spent stuck in a car. Regardless of the weather I think that leaving animals or children unattended in a car is generally a bad idea. I felt like the romance between Melanie and Ben is unnecessary, and it felt thrown in there because some romance seems expected. However, I would have been fine without that ingredient to the story since there was more than enough going on already. It was not badly done, but just felt like it was included because it as 'supposed' to be there rather than being important.

Be Our Ghost is a good cozy mystery with a little bit of everything. Fans of the author and the series will not be disappointed, although I felt that there was some more potential here.

Everyone wants the benefits of progress but sleep towns also want to keep their small town feel and a new high rise hotel most certainly will not fit in for the town of Sully's Landing on the Oregon Coast but who is so against it that they would kill the real estate developer. Thankfully neither Melanie West or her English Grandmother Liza are suspected but their friend and tavern owner, Doug is the number 1 suspect. Melanie suspects that Liza is more concerned than she is letting on and makes it her job to help get to the bottom if for no other reason than to keep Liza out of harm's way. Melanie will have her hands full as partner of their B&B The Merry Ghost Inn, home to Orville the resident laughing ghost who has been known to throw a clue their way when needed. So many possible suspects, so many possible reasons and they might just be desperate enough to harm anyone who asks too many questions. Great story and I really liked the extra personal mystery that Melanie tackles on her own apart from the murder. I look forward to the next installment.

The third book in the Merry Ghost Inn Mystery series by Kate Kingsbury is Be Our Ghost. Things are going well for Melanie and her grandmother Liza at the Merry Ghost Inn. The possibility of a tacky arcade being built in town has most other residents angry. Still no one expected the developer in charge of the project to be murdered. When Liza's friend, Doug, is named as the main suspect, Melanie and Liza are on the case. The ghost is a background story line in the book. There is an ongoing story from the previous books, but it is explained enough that first time readers will not be lost.

I had no trouble with dipping into this third book in the Merry Ghost Inn series. The background was fairly well sketched out, and the characters were well defined. In this installment, Liza and her granddaughter Melanie involve themselves in the murder investigation of a local real estate developer who wants to build an arcade on the main street. The main suspect is Liza's friend Doug, and this is the reason they get involved, to clear his name.

And in this one, the police are very properly investigating and telling Liza and Melanie, several times, that they need to stay out of it. Unlike some cosies, where the MC withholds information, sneaks around, etc.

It's a gentle mystery, with a very light ghost aspect - some laughing on the part of Orville (the ghost) which apparently happens when they are getting warm to a clue. Despite their talk about him, and the fact that the B&B draws guests who want to stay at a haunted B&B, they are startled and a bit frightened every time he laughs, and there doesn't seem to be any ghostly activity that allows their guests to feel like they're at a haunted B&B - the ghostly stuff happens when they're all out of the building. So, it's a bit flat in that respect.

It was enjoyable enough. Certainly the characters are quite good, although I did figure out the murderer at about the halfway mark. Regardless, I know I've got the first in the series on my Kindle, so going back to the beginning eventually will help fill in a few questions.

This book came across as too simplistic for me. A town in an uproar because Jason Northwood has plans to put in a gaming arcade in the center of town. Yes, we are talking pinball machines, something that has not happened, or been profitable, since the late 70’s. Why would an author use a premise that is so outdated, even if she is trying to keep the subject matter “clean” and non-offensive, there has to be something else that would work besides wondering if property values will fall or if adults will actually “kiss”.

You are going to have to force yourself to stay awake while reading this slow moving, and rather dull in places, book. Of course Jason is going to be killed and of course Melanie and her grandmother, owners of the Merry Ghost Inn, jump into the middle of the investigation since grandmother Liza Harris is rather taken by one of the main suspects.

Thankfully, a subplot that has run through the books involves Melanie’s missing mother. Since this is the third book in the series, the usual make or break point for a cozy mystery series, the author has tied up that item which has been dangling and will leave the read with a needed conclusion or could possibly be the leaping off point for the next round.

“Be Our Ghost” is a cozy mystery set in a small seaside town.

Melanie and her British grandmother, Liza, run a Bed and Breakfast that is said to be haunted by a friendly ghost. One morning, as they are finishing breakfast, a young reporter friend drops by to share some surprising news. The local bigwig developer was murdered after a town meeting. He was wanting to get approval for a project which would change the character of their quaint town. It was well known that their friend Doug was the most outspoken in his views against the project. When Liza finds out that he is the main suspect, she decides to clear his name.

Liza and Melanie work to solve the mystery, with a little help from their resident ghost of course.

I’m a big fan of cozy mysteries, and was looking forward to this one after reading so many positive reviews. Unfortunately, it just wasn’t for me. I thought the beginning was weak, the conversations seemed unnatural and forced, the characters were either bland or rigid stereotypes. I did appreciate the small town vibe and the story was interesting.

2.5 ⭐️

Melanie West and her grandmother, Liza, are settling into running The Merry Ghost Inn on the Oregon coast. Business is going well, and their resident ghost is known to laugh and insert himself into situations.

But then a real estate developer arrives in Sully’s Landing, intending to build a tacky amusement arcade smack dab in the middle of the tasteful cliff-side town. No one is happy about it, so when the developer turns up dead there are plenty of suspects…and one of them is Doug, who runs the pub inside the hardware store. Doug is a particular friend of Liza’s and she is ready to investigate and clear his name.

In the process, Melanie and Liza face dog-nappers, car wrecks and a killer who is determined to remain a secret, and just might kill Liza to remain so.

The third installment in the Merry Ghost series is just as entertaining as the first one. As I was reading this one I realized I hadn’t read the second one, but that didn’t keep me from knowing what was happening in this book.

Despite being warned off by the police, Melanie and Liza are determined to find the killer and clear Doug’s name. Their investigation is good, and the fact that the Orville, the ghost, drops clues as it proceeds adds to the story. I like the way Melanie and Liza play off each other. Their relationship is deep, since Liza raised Melanie after her mother disappeared years ago. They work well together, and the relationship adds to the emotion in the book.

I have to admit at the end I was shaking my Kindle and telling them to call the police instead of wading into the situation. But I still liked the ending, even if I had figured out whodunit by listing to Orville’s clues.

The ending of the book left me wanting to know when book four will be out, so the reader can be let into what is happening in the search for Melanie’s mother. This is definitely a fun series that provides hours of reading enjoyment.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley.

Be Our Ghost is the third book in the Merry Ghost Inn Mystery series. In this addition, we meet up again with Melanie West and her quirky grandmother Liza, and their small town of Sully’s Landing, which is currently in an uproar. A real estate developer who wants to build an arcade in the middle of town, which rubs many of the locals the wrong way, winds up dead. And the number one suspect is their dear friend, and they’ll do anything to clear his name.

It was so much fun reading another Melanie and Liza mystery. I really love this series. Every book so far has been delightfully amazing, and this one was no different. The characters were all still interesting and enchanting, and I love the developing relationships between everyone. They all seem to be getting closer and more open with each other, and I just loved seeing that.

The pacing did seem a bit off with this addition. It felt rushed in some places and really slow in other places.

The mystery itself was very engrossing and well-done. There were plenty of suspects, and some of the clues were very unique and the red herrings really got me. Expect lots of twists and lots of unpredictable moments.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book! If you liked the first two books in the series, then you’ll love this. It ended on sort of a cliffhanger in regard to the mystery surrounding Melanie’s missing mother, so I can’t wait to read book four. Bring it on!!!