I so enjoy these seasonal trilogies of cozy mysteries! Catching up with old favorites like Leslie Meier's Lucy Stone brings back so many memories. Barbara Ross is always a breathe of Maine air with her Clambake heroine Julia Snowden. I have read Lee Hollis off and on but Hayley's newspaper column at chapter changes threw me off for a few minutes while I adjusted to her time line. I must look up this series and give it a try.

The three authors did a lovely job of introducing you to their characters or adding another adventure for their followers. Halloween Party Murder, Death of a Halloween Monster, Scared Off are a great short story combination.

Welcome to the wonderful world of cozy mysteries. This trio knows how to set a scene, create a character, make you feel like you’re right there next to them solving crime. Settle in for the day or night and read this fantastic page turner.

This book was a bit different. It was a collection of three short books in one. That's not that unusual. What was unusual was that it was three stories about Halloween that all took place in Maine! Apparently, Halloweens can get pretty wild up there in Maine. While all three stories were good, the third was the best. The first story was a bit predictable. The solution to the third story challenged the imagination a bit. But, overall, the writing styles were good and the characters were intriguing.

I love the Leslie Meier series and it was great to read the short stories by the other two authors. I found a new series I want to read (Lee Hollis). This was a great book for between the main books and I look forward to the next Leslie Meier book!

I very much enjoyed this trio of novels all centered around Halloween and its traditions. The writers were able to successfully weave the elements of this holiday into the cozy mystery setting. Great reads all around!

This book is just plain fun. Three stories in one means that you can get through a whole story in a short time. One of them kept me guessing until the end, I had one figured out by the end, and one ending was totally unexpected. That's a pretty good assortment for one book.

I always enjoy these novellas from Leslie Meier and Lee Hollis. I have only read a few novellas in these collections by Barbara Ross but never a full cozy.

The title of the book is also the title of the Lucy Stone novella - 3 stars.

In this story, Lucy and her friends are helping plan a Halloween party thrown by the new couple in town, which will benefit the friends' Hat and Mitten Fund to help bring warm clothes to needy kids. Lucy builds a tentative friendship with Heather, the wife, who eventually winds up dead in a bathtub full of fake water during the Halloween party.

I found this whodunit a little on the nose in terms of piecing together clues and the rather obviousness of the whole thing. I used to enjoy the Lucy Stone mysteries but there seems to be a hint of bitterness that has crept in behind the stories and I mostly just read these novellas now instead.

The second story, Death of a Halloween Party Monster by Lee Hollis was my favorite. Five stars.

**I strongly advise devoted readers of Lee Hollis' Hayley Powell series to read their newest book Death of an Italian Chef, prior to reading this story as it establishes the groundwork for this novella. However, if you are not already a reader of Hollis then you can enjoy this story even without reading the series.

Hayley is opening her new restaurant, Hayley's Kitchen, by hosting a big Halloween bash to taste test her menu items. When a guest turns up dead after the party ends, Hayley realizes there is a murderer among the few that remain and has to puzzle out the mystery. This one was a good headscratcher. I always enjoy these mysteries and am always hungry when I finish them with all the delicious recipes included.

The third story Scared Off by Barbara Ross was good - 4 stars.

In this story Julia Snowden is summoned by her 13-year-old niece to pick her up from a Halloween party that got significantly out of hand. The tenant of the family who is "hosting" is murdered during the party and people say she floated down the stairs like a ghost. As the police are tying to piece together who was at the "party" and what may have happened to the tenant, they discover that this nice old lady was not quite so nice. Now it seems like they have too many suspects.

Julia is a good amateur sleuth. I have read a few of these novellas and I would definitely consider reading the rest of Ross' clambake series eventually. I do enjoy her easy to read writing and the ability to get immersed in the stories.

I would recommend this book to anyone who loves cozies or is a fan of any or all of these authors.

I was familiar with two of the authors of the short stories. I enjoyed all three stories in the book. It is perfect for Halloween. The mysteries were easy to guess, but for short stories, I didn't expect much.. I would read more by these authors in the future.

I want to thank the authors, the publisher, and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this book.

One book with three authors each writing stories set at Halloween in Maine - what a better way to stage three different murder mysteries. Halloween parties can be scary, but fun. When someone ends up dead, though, the excitement and merriment comes to an abrupt end.

In these books, set in cozy little towns in picturesque Maine, relative amateur sleuths are the ones to try and determine ‘whodunit’. There are so many possible suspects (sometimes friends) that the sleuth in put in sticky situations, as they pry into private lives.

I liked these ‘cozy mystery’ stories set at Halloween, and will read more by these authors. My only criticism for these stories is that the ‘mystery’ is resolved too quickly at the end. Otherwise, the characters were likable and the stories were fun reads.

This book was a trio of short, cozy mysteries. Loved them all. The stories, by different authors, were all set in Maine. Each had a different setting and plot, but all were easy to read, and thoroughly enjoyable. I especially liked the second story, by Lee Hollis, had some nice twists and turns. Overall great book.
I received an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

A fun little trio of mysteries. Great introduction to these authors and their characters. Might be less interesting for those not familiar with the first in the series or other stories of these characters.

This is a collection of three novellas. I love when these authors write holiday novellas. The first is by Leslie Meier and features her sleuth, Lucy Stone. This one features her neighbors we met previously. They are throwing a Halloween party and the wife is murdered and the husband becomes the prime suspect.

The second novella is by Lee Hollis and features Haley Powell. Haley throws a Halloween party where someone is found murdered and the killer is still there. No one can leave until they figure out what happened. I loved this concept and the laugh out loud moments it produces.

The third and last novella is by Barbara Ross and features Julia Snowden. Julia gets a call from her niece to come pick up her and her friend from a party. When she gets there the police are there and she learns that the kids saw a "ghost" which is really the dead body of the woman living upstairs.

I loved all three of these novellas. The only thing I recommend is reading Lee Hollis's novella after reading her latest installment of the series, Death of An Italian Chef. That book sets up the novella. You don't have to read it first but it does help. I received this book from netgalley and Kensington publishing in exchange for an honest review.

I always enjoy these holiday-themed cozy anthologies that Kensington releases every year. True to tradition, this one has three short Halloween stories by Leslie Meier, Lee Hollis, and Barbara Ross that all star their most popular characters. You don't need to have read any of the full length cozies by these authors to enjoy these stories; in fact, if you haven't, this is a good way to get a feel for the characters and the author's writing style.

Leslie Meier's story picks up after a previous short story about her new (and slightly eccentric) neighbors. The new neighbors go out of their way to open their home for a big Halloween bash fundraiser when tragedy strikes. Lucy struggles to believe new neighbor Ty is guilty of the crime but has to report on the situation without bias. There is an election subplot that takes away from the story.

The second story in this anthology is Lee Hollis' Death of a Halloween Party Monster. This one is a little lighter in tone and at times comedic. It includes several recipes and some of lead protagonist Hayley Powell's food column excerpts which are fun. .

The third and my favorite is Scared Off by Barbara Ross. During an out of control party on Halloween night, a bunch of teenagers claim they see a ghost fly down the stairs and then disappear. The "ghost" later turns out to be the dead body of the upstairs resident, an elderly woman who people knew but knew very little about. Julia does some sleuthing of her own to help the police figure out who this woman really was and how on earth anyone, dead or alive, could fly down a set of stairs. This mystery had me stumped and I enjoyed the character interactions and coastal Maine setting very much.

Overall a solid cozy anthology for mystery lovers or those who just want to get in the mood for Halloween.

I love this grouping of authors - all three write series set in Maine so all of the books have a coastal feel to them. While each story is short, the authors are able to develop interesting plot lines and the Halloween theming makes this book extra cozy. I hope Kensington keeps these books coming with the same set of authors!

Thank you NetGalley for the advance reader copy of Halloween Party Murder by Leslie Meier, Lee Hollis and Barbara Ross in exchange for an honest review. In the first story by Leslie Meier, I liked reading the way the topic of men and women in the world today and how they are in business. It shows you that you never know what will happen next in life and it is best just to roll with it. In the second story by Lee Hollis, it took place in Maine about a new eatery. It was a story with a lot of twists and turns and was the first I read by Lee Hollis. It brought back many Halloween memories and there were many good recipes. In the third story by Barbara Ross, it was about a clambake in Northern Maine, on an island. This story encouraged me to get more books by the author. It was a very interesting story.

Kindle Copy for Review from Kensington Books and Net Galley.

I received a free, advance copy of this book and this is my unbiased and voluntary review.
You will get to read these three stories Halloween Party Murder by Leslie Meier, Death of a Halloween Party Monster by Lee Hollis and Scared Off by Barbara Ross. Halloween stories to get you into the spirit of things. It is a trio of enjoyable cozies.

Halloween Party Murder a haunted house for charity turns into a drug overdose for one of the couple throwing the party as the other is accused as the killer. Lucy Stone will once again step into action.

In Death of a Halloween Party Monster a movie costume party goes deadly as Hayley will to figure which of her guests is the killer. Someone did not like the dead person costume.

Scared Off a teenager sleepover turns deadly when an elderly third floor tenant ends up dead in the backyard dressed up as a ghost. It will come down to figuring which invited guest did the deadly deed.

Another good cozy. I am becoming a huge fan of the cozy mystery genre due to books like this. You can read this as an escape from the everyday in a weekend. Really good mysteries.

Halloween Party Murders is a great collection of short cozy mysteries. I really enjoyed each one. The characters were great, the mysteries were solid, and it had just the right amount of Halloween fun. The cover is perfect as are the recipes. It makes a great addition to any cozy mystery library.

Halloween Party Murder is an excellent trio of Halloween-themed cozy novellas that fit in perfectly with one another and their own respective successful cozy mystery series.

I am a huge fan of all three series and have read every book of each of the three series of books, so of course I was excited to see another holiday-themed book was added this year. In the past there have been Christmas, Fall, Halloween, and Thanksgiving-themed selections, and I have adored each one. I love cozy mysteries, and holiday-themed stories really hit the spot.

1. Halloween Party Murder by Leslie Meier is a great addition to my beloved Lucy Stone Mystery series. I loved it!

2. Death of a Halloween Party Monster by the awesome duo of Lee Hollis is a great addition to the hilarious Hayley Powell Food and Cocktails Mystery series. The wit, banter, sarcasm, and wonderful character cast always makes me chuckle. I loved it!

3. Scared Off by Barbara Ross is an excellent addition to the perfect A Main Clambake Mystery series. Great story!

I love all three cozy mystery series, these were excellent additions, and the Halloween stories really put me in the Fall mood, and I am cooking up some pumpkin muffins in my kitchen as we speak!

5/5 stars

Thank you NG and Kensington for this wonderful arc and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion.

I am posting this review to my GR and Bookbub accounts immediately and will post it to my Amazon, Instagram, and B&N accounts upon publication.

Halloween Party Murder is the perfect anthology to kick off the start of spooky season! Grab a pumpkin spice latte and settle in the with new stories from some of the best heavy hitters of the cozy mystery genre: Leslie Meier, Lee Hollis and Barbara Ross! Each author's short mystery features a halloween party as the inciting incident to a murder which was such a fun way to kick off the crimes. These stories were the perfect length to read in each sitting, but were long enough to give fully developed characters and settings and even throw in a red herring or two. I have read Meier and Hollis before but was new to Ross and can't wait to read more of her work after this one. In the tradition of cozy mysteries these books add on to the story, but also stand independently you don't need to have read any of the other books in the series to enjoy these. Pick up as a treat with no tricks about how divine these mysteries are!