One thing I've noticed in reviews of this book: there is a cliffhanger mentioned. I wouldn't necessarily call it that, since the main mystery in Book 1 (this is a new series) is resolved, but there are larger issues that will be addressed (I assume) in future stories. So reading this book won't leave you on a true cliffhanger.

This story starts with Cordelia watching her neighbor, Jake, as his dead body lies on the snowy, Boston sidewalk. Cordelia lived across from Jake when she was alive, but now she's keeping a vigil over him until he's found. Cordelia has only been dead a few months herself, but she still hasn't entirely figured everything out. She knows she can disrupt electronics like crazy, and she can move some things but not everything. She also knows the woman who moved into her old unit, Ruby, drives her a bit crazy but the fact is that Ruby is alive and Cordelia is dead and they need each other to find out what happened to Jake.

This book is classified as a cozy mystery and I'd say that's accurate. There are definitely parts that are cheesy but this story never takes itself too seriously and remains a light-hearted and easy read.

Cordelia's character is really the star of the show. She has a moral code and she desperately is trying to do good, even though she's no longer alive. She's navigating the afterlife without any direction and everything is trial and error, which can lead to some hilarious situations.

In the beginning, Ruby's character is a little hard to like. She's written as very "Gen Z" or "Gen Alpha", and she comes across as just boneheaded. You can easily see why she drives Cordelia a bit crazy. That said, as the story deepens, we see growth in her character and I ended up admiring her tenacity.

If you're looking for an easy read, with a few well-intentioned ghosts, and a mystery in Boston, this will be the one for you.

I was wrong, so very, very wrong. After chapter one I thought there was no way I was going to like this book. I'm so happy that my feelings were way off base. I went down a complete rabbit hole in this cozy, murder mystery with a ghostly vibe.

Ruby just moved into Cordelia's apartment and she's pretty certain Cordelia is still there even though she is dead. Shortly after moving in her neighbour is found dead in front of their building. Now Ruby must find a way to communicate with Cordelia in order to find the killer because the police have zero interest. They have deemed it a mugging gone wrong. Cordelia is determined to help Ruby solve this case and to keep her safe.

I absolutely loved the ending and didn't see the who dunnit until it was revealed. Now we must wait to see if Ruby and Cordelia can solve what truly happened to Cordelia or if what they've been told is the truth or a cover up.

**Received ARC through NetGalley. Voluntarily reviewed**

This is the first in a new series by Olivia Blacke. I so enjoy the Record Shop Mystery series that I had to give this series a try.
Ruby Young is a 20-ish year old that has recently moved into an apartment inhabited by the previous owner, Cordelia Graves. Cordelia died in the apartment a few months prior. Their neighbor Jake Macintyre, is shot and killed in an apparent mugging gone wrong outside their building. The police are too willing to accept it as a robbery gone bad. Cordelia feels otherwise. She and Ruby team up to prove the police wrong.

I enjoyed the unique premise and the story of Cordelia trying to get Ruby’s attention and communicate with her.
My only regret is the next book isn’t ready for me to read immediately. I enjoyed this story.

Netgalley gave me an advanced copy of the ebook and am not required to leave a positive review.

A perfect spooky ghost story to read on a cozy night in.

Cordeliia and Ruby investigate the death of their neighbour Jake, after a robbery gone wrong. The catch, Cordilia is dead. Together this duo uses both their strengths to figure out what happened to Jake.

Thank you Minotaur Books and NetGalley for the eARC of A New Lease on Death! All opinions in my review are my own.

I really enjoyed Olivia Blacke's previous series, The Record Shop Mysteries, so I was excited to start her new paranormal cozy mystery one!

A New Lease on Death is such a fun read! I like how it is told from both Coredlia's and Ruby's point of views. It's funny in the beginning to see how they have to learn to interact with each other. We got a lot of Cordelia's backstory in this book so I am hoping that we learn more about Ruby in the next one!

The mystery itself is well-paced and starts in the first chapter. A New Lease on Death is a strong start to this new series and after the way this book ends, I am anxiously awaiting the next one!

While this book was unique and somewhat funny, I found it to fall a little flat and be corny. With that being said, I am interested in finding out more about Cordelia.

I really like it when ghosts help living people solve murders. I think every homicide unit should consider paranormal assistance. Can you imagine how many cold cases would finally be solved?

Well, maybe. I guess it isn’t necessarily that easy for a ghost, as we witness in A New Lease On Death. They have certain advantages, but it still takes an entire novel for a case to be resolved.

This was a mixture of cute and tedious. I liked the mystery aspect, as well as some components regarding the relationship building between Ruby and Cordelia, but that wasn’t enough to win me over to the cozy mystery genre. I did find the story annoyingly repetitive, and I was regularly bothered by Cordelia’s judgments of Ruby. It was almost enough to prompt an “Okay, Boomer,” although Cordelia wasn’t actually a Boomer. “Okay, Millennial” just doesn’t have the right ring to it, though. I hope that I never look at people younger than me the way Cordelia did.

The story is fairly light, although serious subjects do surface (like murder, obviously, alcoholism, domestic violence, and suicide). It always baffles me how such sensitive topics can find their way into a genre known as cozy, but I suppose it all has to do with the tone they’re presented in. I do struggle when these situations are taken lightly, and A New Lease On Death wasn’t the exception.

I felt confident that I knew who the killer was before I even hit page 100, but I was mistaken, so I’ll give the novel points for not being predictable. The reveal did surprise me, but it also irritated me for reasons I cannot hash out without spoiling the story. I’ll just say it has to do with what I noted in my previous paragraph. The superficiality and insensitivity of it made me cringe.

This is the beginning of a series, and the author aimed to keep the reader hooked with her cliffhanger ending. Since I wasn’t in love with this one, I won’t be lured any further into this series, but I was also frustrated with the supposedly shocking final line since it was an already evident detail throughout the book.

I think, more than anything, that I am not a member of the right audience for books like this. It was a mistake for me to accept the widget, but I apparently forget who I am sometimes.

I am immensely grateful to Minotaur Books and NetGalley for my copy. All opinions are my own.

A New Lease on Death by Olivia Blacke is a solid start to a new cozy mystery series. With multiple point of views , one of them being a ghost, said ghost and her much alive roommate play amateur detectives to figure out the truth behinds their apartment neighbors death. A range of character personalities and typical cozy mystery type antics makes this an enjoyable one.

This book was so much fun. A really lovely cozy mystery. I thought it was well structured and I liked the dual points of view, especially since one was from a ghost. I really liked Cordelia and Ruby’s relationship, I think they are really good for each other. I can’t wait to find out what happened to Cordelia herself so I’m looking forward to the next one!

Be sure to look out for this entertaining ghost mystery! Quirky characters, cozy mystery, and ghosts. Perfect spooky season read!

And the ending allows for a potential series!

I really enjoyed this one!

Rating: 3/5

ARC provided by NetGalley

Publishing date: 10.29.2024

Short and sweet cozy mystery. Not too much depth to it, wish they had solved both murders in this one instead of dragging it to the next to start a series. I don't think this was really my thing, everything was a bit too see through (buh-dum-psst! It is a ghost book!)

This was a fun cozy mystery told from multiple POV with some comedic shenanigans. The recently departed Cordelia hasn't really departed, she still lingering in her apartment with the new tenant, Ruby. Cordelia thinks she's committed suicide, but doesn't remember it. When their neighbor is killed they both decide they need to catch the killer.

I loved the dynamic between both main characters. Cordelia take the eccentric Ruby under her wing to help get her life on track and try to keep her safe. Cannot wait to read the next installment.

I received this advance review copy from NetGalley & the publisher for my honest review.

This was an entertaining quick read for a fun paranormal cozy mystery. I would say this isn’t my normal genre so it took me a bit to get into it, but overall I had a lot of fun with it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Minatour Books for the ARC.

This book is about a woman (Cordelia) who everyone thinks has committed subside. The apartment manager doesn't even clean out the apartment before renting to someone new (Ruby). Cordelia is a ghost who manages to be involved in Ruby's life still. Another neighbor is shot and killed too. Cordelia doesn't think it's just a mugging on wrong, but murder. It's rather comical how the two work at figuring out what actually happened.

I like this book. I enjoyed how Cordelia and Ruby end up working together for the common good. I would read more in this series as this book ended on a cliffhanger.

Thank you to Olivia Blake, NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Publish Date: October 29

"Death is only the beginning in Olivia Blacke's A New Lease on Death, a darkly funny supernatural mystery that introduces an unlikely crime-solving duo.

Ruby Young's new Boston apartment comes with all the usual perks. Windows facing the brick wall of the next-door building. Heat that barely works. A malfunctioning buzzer. Noisy neighbors. A dead body on the sidewalk outside. And of course, a ghost.

Since Cordelia Graves died in her apartment a few months ago, she's kept up her residency, despite being bored out of her (non-tangible) skull and frustrated by her new roommate. When her across-the-hall neighbor, Jake Macintyre, is shot and killed in an apparent mugging gone wrong outside their building, Cordelia is convinced there's more to it and is determined to bring his killer to justice.

Unfortunately, Cordelia, being dead herself, can't solve the mystery alone. She has to enlist the help of the obnoxiously perky, living tenant of her apartment. Ruby is twenty, annoying, and has never met a houseplant she couldn't kill. But she also can do everything Cordelia can't, from interviewing suspects to researching Jake on the library computers that go up in a puff of smoke if Cordelia gets too close. As the roommates form an unlikely friendship and get closer to the truth about Jake's death, they also start to uncover other dangerous secrets."

An apartment haunted by someone named Cordelia? The Angel fanatic in me is appeased.

My thanks to Net Galley and St Martin s Press for allowing me to review this arc.

I really enjoyed this. 20 year old Ruby Young moves into an apartment where the previous owner Cordelia kills herself. When Ruby s neighbor Jake is found dead, Ruby finds herself teaming up with the ghost of Cordelia to solve Jake's murder.

Fun, easy, light mystery read. Recommend!

Fun story with some delightfully quirky characters. I enjoyed the chemistry between the main character and her resident ghost. I can't wait to see what mystery they solve in the next book (this has to be a series!)

what an ending! i cannot wait for book 2! while i always love comedic mysteries, i wasn’t expecting to enjoy this book as much as i did. i was worried the ghost aspect would make it too corny or unbelievable, but everything was so well-written and i had so much fun with this book! the characters were great, everything tied together so well, and it was the perfect october read!

Cordelia and Ruby have become roommates, though Cordelia is dead and Ruby does not exactly know she is there. But when another apartment renter ends up dead on the front stoop, Cordelia sets out to find his killer and enlists Ruby to help.

I thought this book was adorable. I have never read anything with this premise before and I really enjoyed this type of cozy mystery!

Thank you NetGalley for an arc of this book in exchange for my honest review.

2.5 stars rounded up to 3 stars. Thank you to netgalley, St. Martin's press/Minotaur for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion. Unfortunately, it just didn't grasp my attention for long and it took forever for me to get back to in order to finish the book and leave a review.