Headless at Halloween by Beth Dolgner [Review]

Headless at Halloween (Nightmare, Arizona #5.5) by Beth Dolgner
Format: ebook
Source: borrowed through Kindle Unlimited
Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Date read: April 16, 2025

Nightmare, Arizona
1. Homicide at the Haunted House
2. Drowning at the Diner
3. Slaying at the Saloon
4. Murder at the Motel
5. Poisoning at the Party
5.5. Headless at Halloween - Paperback | Kindle
6. Clawing at the Corral
7. Axing at the Antique Store
8. Fatality at the Festival
9. Terminated at the Trailhead
10. Body at the Bakery

Beth Dolgner
| Website | Amazon |

Synopsis (Goodreads):

Tricks, Treats, and Trouble in Nightmare, Arizona

Who knew libraries could be so dangerous? When Olivia Kendrick gets her new library card, she also gets a new murder mystery to solve. No one liked Pete Bennett, but someone disliked him enough to leave his headless body stashed among the library’s Halloween decorations.

As Olivia and her supernatural friends at Nightmare Sanctuary Haunted House enjoy their busiest nights of the year, she is determined to find out who wanted to kill the meanest man in the small town of Nightmare.

It turns out to be a very long list.

From a dilapidated RV park to a makeshift haunted house, Olivia collects clues and unearths sinister secrets. Even while she’s handing out candy to trick-or-treaters, Olivia is busy unraveling the real Halloween trick…

Thoughts on Headless at Halloween: Olivia has an unparalleled ability to be in the wrong place at the wrong time when it comes to finding bodies. Or maybe it's the right place since she tends to help solve the mysteries. Either way, she's the lady on the spot when a body is found at the library.

To be fair, she isn't actually the one who discovers the body, but she is in the library and she gets a first look at it before the police get there.

Then the sleuthing begins. Olivia has a fair amount of suspects since the victim was an individual with a chip on his shoulder. In fact, he was kind of a jerk to plenty of people around town for all he only spent a couple months a year there.

Following the clues, Olivia does her thing and helps the police (Officer Reyes sees an awful lot of her considering she's only been in town a few months herself) figure out who did the deed. Then Olivia gets to enjoy celebrating Halloween knowing justice has been served. GOOD STUFF!