first of all, thank you Netgalley for introducing me to this new book series!

Breeze through this book right from the start. it is all that you expect on a cozy mystery, the atmosphere of the small town , the familial relationship is comforting to read. especially Lou and her grandmother it’s really special really. although one thing that this book nails the most, it is the atmosphere.where you’re immersed on this town where ghosts tour are the norm where vengeance are hiding in plain sight and finding the real perpetrator can be convoluted at times.

p.s : can’t wait for book two!

A great start to a new series! Wonderful characters in an incredible setting. This book will keep you guessing until the end.

This story, of a spook tour operator who can really see dead people, is a most entertaining mix of ghost story and whodunit.

When she literally trips over the corpse of a rival ghost tour operator and finds herself the prime suspect of a murder investigation, Lou Thatcher has to become a sleuth in addition to being a ghost whisperer in order to clear her name. This is a small-town community, and when her school rush becomes the leader in the investigation against her, it does all get to become very personal.

The ghost of her erstwhile rival is also keen on finding out who killed him.

In the mean time, Lou has to take on the care of her sixteen-year-old brother who has absonded from home, and a stray puppy, as well as keeping her grandmother out of harm's way. There is a feel-good factor to all this, where strong community ties offer support where needed: good news for those readers who may be dismayed by unremittong bleak and horror. The heroine of this story does get to understand what maters most in life as the story unfolds: in this tale, dead people tend to stay fettered to their immediate surroundings, and don't just fade away into the Light once their earthly issues are resolved.

As a whodunit, the reveal does surprise, although possibly the character of the murderer could have been built up a little more: hiding in plain slight.

Overall though, a most entertaining read.

I was not sure how I would like this, but I Loved this. Not usually a paranormal fan, but Ava Burke did a remarkable job of adding in ghosts, while still keeping the plot cozy mystery. I was hooked from the start. Lou its a great main character, and her ghost friends truly were enjoyable. Highly recommend for all cozy mystery lovers. Looking forward to the next book.
I received an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I want to ťhank Netgalley and the author for gifting me the ebook. I was very excited to reas this book because I love a goos mystery and throw ghost in there and I am set! I think the book was strong the beginning-late middle, but after that it just kind of gor boring for me. I love cozy mysteries but I wish these authors wouls stop throwing liberal woke subjects in them...it just makes me roll my eyes.

I’ve read books by this author before under her alternate name Amber Camp. I found them to be mildly enjoyable but this book was so much more interesting! I really loved the sense of atmosphere in the spooky and historic town of New Orleans. The fact that the main character Lou can see ghosts only added to it, and didn’t feel cheesy at all like it can in some other cozies.

The family dynamic, while untraditional, was really heartwarming and I enjoyed Lou and the other main characters a lot. The mystery was decent but it did feel like the ending came out of nowhere with Lou having no clue despite having the ghost of the victim to help. My one gripe would be that one of the so called love interests was a total jerk and were meant to believe it’s because he cares.

Overall though I found this cozy mystery to be very enjoyable and will happily add this one to my collection when it comes out!

Thank you to #Netgalley and Crooked Lane Books for this early advanced copy!

I love this first book in Ava Burke's new series and can’t wait for the next one.

In Haunting and Homicide, we are introduced to Tallulah “Lou” Thatcher. Lou lives in New Orleans. She’s a Ghost Tour Guide with a bit of an edge. She can see and talk to ghosts, so her tours tend to go viral. This leads to a rival tour guide spying on her and accusing her of cheating. One night while following her, he gets stabbed in the back. She is the only witness and becomes the main suspect. Everything points to her, especially when the murder weapon turns out to be a ritual dagger from her shop. Now Lou has to find out who really did it before she ends up in jail.

If only that were her only concern. Her younger brother also chooses to run away from home at this time, showing up at her door looking for shelter. She is ready to do this, knowing what her Mother and Stepfather are like. So her Nan and she take him in and prepare for the battle to come.

Maybe with the help of her spirits and family, she can solve this before she becomes part of the tour.

I can’t wait to read more by Ava Burke. Thank you to Netgalley, Ava Burke, and Crooked Lane Books for this ARC. This is My Honest Review.

So I got this book off of NetGalley because I love paranormal cozies, and I loved this one. This was an adorable fun cozy with ghosts, murder, family, and a cute little puppy.

I enjoyed the main character Lou and her fumbling investigation of her rival Ghost Tour Leader Adam. I loved the fact that Lou wasn't perfect with investigating right off. She didn't know how to interview people, got angry, and fumbled her way around. It made me laugh and feel anxious for her and made the entire t thing feel real.

i Can't wait to get a hard copy when it comes out and to hopefully read a second book in the series sometime soon!

"Haunting and Homicide (A Ghost Tour Mystery #1)" by Ava Burke is the first book in a new paranormal cozy mystery series. Set in New Orleans, Lou Thatcher is a ghost walk guide and tour company owner. Her tours are extra exciting because she actually can see ghosts so she knows where to get actual sights and even has some odd the ghosts playing along to give her tour guests a bit of a show.

That's where the mystery comes in. A rival tour owner thinks she's faking all the sighting and gets stabbed in the back trying to follow her for proof. So, now she can still see him and gets wrapped up solving what happened to him. She wants to help and she wants to clear her own name, mostly the later. I have to say I didn't suspect the actual culprit until right before the reveal.

On top of a newer business and being a suspect, her teenage half brother ran away from his dad and her mom, coming to Lou and her grandmother asking for their help. Lou's mom and step dad are a real piece of work. I hope they don't give her constant problems now that her brother has been allowed to stay with her, grudgingly by his dad mostly.

Haunting and Homicide is the first book in a new series by author Ava Burke. I was not previously familiar with this author, but the book description and setting had me intrigued. I was not disappointed. This is a very solid start to a new series. I very much enjoyed the characters, both the living and the paranormal. Each one had a part to play in moving the story along. The book itself had a good pace with plenty of plot twists that had me turning pages to see what would happen next. As I mentioned, the location and the paranormal element were both a big draw for me in deciding to read this book and I was not disappointed. I am looking forward to seeing where the author takes the characters and the series in future books.

I received a free copy of, Haunting and Homicide, by Ava Burke, from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Tallulah Thatcher or :Lou as she is known, can see ghosts, when her rival is killed she can see his ghost too, can she solve his murder, and clear her name? An intriguing read.

This is the first cozy that I have read with a ghost tour heroine in it. I really enjoyed that aspect about it. It was refreshingly original. I love cozies, I mostly read cozies, however, it is nice that the main character is something other than a baker, chef, store owner, etc. And I really enjoyed that Lou has a gift, the gift of seeing and being able to talk to ghosts. I thought that was really neat.

And another thing that I really enjoyed about this book was Lou herself. She's spirited (pun intended lol), strong willed, protective of her friends and family, loyal, and hard working. She protects Bryce as if she was his mother, the way a mother should. Nan and Ron were a very nice addition as well. I spent a lot of time wishing that I could get a Nan hug lol. Bryce is a good kid. What he did may have been reckless, but I also thought it was brave. Sometimes it takes more guts to stand up to the people who are supposed to love us than it does total strangers. At the end of the day, you have to do what's right for yourself, nobody else.

I've read and seen a lot about New Orleans through books and movies and I wish all the time that I could visit it, at least once. This book really made me feel like I was there, the haunted parts sure lol but still there. I thought the story was really original and I just loved Lou's snark. She really has a lot of tenacity and grit in her character. I admire that a lot.

She may not have been super great at amateur sleuthing, but it was enough to get the job done and that is what counts at the end of the day. I loved meeting all of the ghosts, that was really cool. It made me feel so bad for Adam. I felt his loneliness and his despair. Overall, a very good start to the series. I look forward to reading the next book. I recommend!

Thanks to Net Galley, the publishers, and to Ava Burke for the ability to read and review this book. All opinions are mine and are completely honest.

This is a captivating supernatural cozy mystery set in the heart of the bayou. The story revolves around Lou, a paranormal expert who leads ghost tours infused with history and spectral encounters. What sets Lou apart is her unique ability to see and befriend ghosts, who enrich her tours in unexpected ways.

Everything takes a chilling turn when Lou's direct competitor is found murdered. With suspicions looming over her, Lou must rely on her ghostly friends to unravel the mystery and clear her name. The plot twists and turns kept me guessing until the very end, making for an exhilarating read.

Overall, "Haunting and Homicide" is a delightful blend of mystery, paranormal intrigue, and Southern charm. I can't wait to delve into more books by this author. Highly recommended for anyone who loves a good ghostly mystery!

Thanks to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for allowing me to grab a digital ARC of “Haunting and Homicide”. I really enjoyed this book!

A great new series centered around Tallulah Tharacter , a tour guide in the Historic Garden District of in Louisiana. Among Ms. Tharacter’s many talents is the ability to speak with the dearly departed. This gift may help her business but a rival tour guide doesn’t appreciate her staling the spotlight. When the rival tour guide is murdered Tullulah must clear herself with a little help from her ghostly friends .

This has the potential to be a great series and I am looking forward to the next installment.

A good start to a new cozy mystery series. Lou has the ability to talk with ghosts, so is the perfect person to run a ghostly tour in New Orleans. When she stumbles over a dead body, of her stalker and fellow tour guide who disbelieved she could talk with ghosts, she is forced to help solve his murder, since she is prime suspect for obvious reasons. Doesn't help that Adam is cranky at being newly dead, and is not sure who killed him either. Good story and writing, and found it fun to read. Would recommend.

What a cute cozy mystery. I like the family dynamics as well as the ghost aspects. Looking forward to reading more in this series.

Lou runs a ghost tour and shop in New Orleans. Lou has a secret - her tours are authentic because she can see and interact with ghosts. When a competitor is killed after arguing with her, Lou is the main suspect which makes clearing her name asap important. Good thing she can talk to the victim's ghost.

First book in a cozy mystery series, full of likable, sympathetic characters - the living and the dead. Engaging mystery, fantastic descriptions with a real sense of place. Complicated family drama, a new adorable puppy, and a bit of romance make this a great fast-paced read. I loved that Lou, who can talk with ghosts, is terrified of puppets.

I really enjoyed this book. Loved the characters, both living and dead, each one had their own story and contributed to coming together to make this a great read which I finished in the early hours of the morning. The style was different to my normal read and was very American, it is based in Louisiana after all, so it added to the flavour and atmosphere of the story and gives the reader a feeling of being there. Looking forward to reading more from this author and will be recommending to others.

Lou, Tallulah, can see and talk to ghosts. She runs a ghost tour and tourist shop in New Orleans and lives with her young at heart gran. She has a crush on her friend's brother Dylan who is also a police officer. Events throw her into his path when a rival, who turns out to have been stalking Lou, is murdered and she stumbles across the body. She then talks with Adam's ghost who is understandably aggrieved by his new circumstances, but enlists Lous help to hopefully tack down the killer. This is nice and cosy reading. Neither motivating or overly compelling. The characters are rather bland and the story stereotypical and uninspiring. I read it just to get to the end.

An enjoyable first book in a potentially fun supernatural cosy crime series.

The characters were engaging, setting was good, great read.

Though I did shudder at them letting the "wormy" dog lick their faces. Hope he didn't share them.

Finally - I know I was reading an ARC of this book, but the continuity and general editing was appalling. Because it was an ARC, I've not let it affect my rating.... but please tell me there is a decent final edit before it's big day. I would hate for shabby editing to ruin an otherwise great book.