Dear ,

Wow. My readers must really hate pumpkin spice. After the last newsletter, I lost ten people! I would much rather you unsub than get news you won't use though, so please remember there is an unsubscribe link at the bottom of every email.

If you'd prefer to receive release announcements only, you can subscribe to that list instead here: https://sendfox.com/lp/1xwkd9 Just make sure you also unsub from this one, so you don't wind up on both lists. 😊

There were so many wonderful teas recommended by people. I'm slowly making my way through the suggestions. I have to say, I may have been tipped off to a hidden gem. Harney & Sons Earl Grey Supreme was a delicious surprise and is a perfect fit for those brooding, foggy fall/winter mornings.

Other top recommendations where chai and spice related. Some of you are die-hard fans of black or green tea too. Perfectly sensible. Thanks to everyone who responded. ☕ Get those recs for hot chocolate ready. The season will be upon us before you know it!

I received a few questions about the upcoming book, Creeper In The Sleeper, too, so I thought I would post the intro for you to preview at the end of this email. Please tell me what you think!

Also, if you're looking for something slightly spooky to read leading up to Halloween, you might like one of the following free para-cozy stories:

Magic and Mystery

Channeling Ghosts for Beginners - Prequel

by Izzy Wilder

Corrupted in Corpus Christi

The House Sitters Cozy Mystery Series Book Zero

by Scarlett Moss

Until next time,

Katie O'Keene ☆

Preview

CREEPER IN THE SLEEPER

On their way up the hill, Cameron tripped and fell knee-first into a stump. “Ouch!” she sobbed and pulled up the leg of her sweatpants. “I hate you for doing this to me!”

Lindsey crouched down and dusted the grass away from her friend’s leg. “It’s not even bleeding,” she said not-so-sympathetically. “Stop being a clutz and come on.” 

The 43-year-old interior designer-turned-medium was in desperate need of some natural healing and was determined to take her best friend along for the ride. It was late enough in the season to avoid crowds, but still early enough to avoid getting frozen. Lindsey tugged her fleece jacket tighter around her and trudged on.

She and Cameron both deserved some rest and relaxation after the tumultuous spring and summer they’d shared. It was a wonder Lindsey hadn’t already cracked. She would have without the help of her new friends.

In fact, they were the ones making this trip possible. Donna Crane was keeping her black cat Jasmine occupied at her store, The Apothecary, and Miranda Mosheen was keeping an eye on the boys.  

Well, technically, Cameron’s sons were staying with her ex-husband, Dan, at her place until she and Lindsey returned. He didn’t realize the new mirrors in their house also acted as a supernatural baby monitor, of sorts.

If he found out, if he believed it, it’s not like Dan was in any position to complain. Just a few months earlier, he’d left the boys on their own in Chicago. She wasn’t quite sure what her bestie was thinking by relying on him again. Miranda would have been happy to take them. She had a sneaking suspicion Cameron and her ex were becoming more than friends again.

A sneaking suspicion? Lindsey snorted. She was starting to sound just like Cameron’s mom, Belinda. The woman was less of a Dan fan than ever. Cameron narrowed her eyes at her.

“What are you laughing about? You don’t have any pranks up your sleeve, do you?”

Lindsey’s eyes popped open. “Pranks?!” The last time they’d gone camping, Lindsey had put frogs in Cameron’s sleeping bag. It had also been nearly 20 years ago. “Is that why you’ve been holding out all these years?” 

Cameron swatted the air nervously and looked over her shoulder at the grass. “No. It’s just one more thing to look out for.” 

Lindsey laughed. “At least we won’t be sleeping outdoors,” she said, holding out her hand.  

Their friend, Rod, had lent them his Super Sleeper travel trailer for the weekend. It was big enough for a queen-sized bed, entertainment system, heat and AC, and a deluxe waterjet tub with ambient lighting. Not quite the get-up she expected him to have. He was more the rugged construction worker-type. He’d surprised her by saying he’d bought it with his daughter in mind. 

In the four years they’d known each other, she had never known Rod even had a daughter. Now she was sleeping in the bed he’d purchased for her? There was too much for Lindsey to shake off for one weekend, so she succumbed to the urge of not thinking about any of it and settled for enjoying herself instead.

“I’m so ready for a soak,” Cameron sighed as they arrived at their camp site. She was about to pull open the camper door, when Lindsey stepped in her way.

“What? We just walked to the car and back. Come on, we did not come here to stay indoors when the weather is so amazing!” Lindsey grabbed two waters from the cooler and handed one to Cameron before taking the trail that led away from the river and into the woods. She waived for her friend to follow. “ Let’s get out in the woods, get our blood moving!”

“But,” Cameron yelled after her, “I’m already sweaty!”

Lindsey didn’t stop to wait. The forest beckoned to her. The dusty trails, the towering trees … the sour smell of death on the breeze? Lindsey rambled to a stop. Roughly fifty feet from where the woods closed the path off to the rest of the park, she could see someone lying perfectly still, face-up, in the dark. 

Dealing with dead things wasn’t anything new for her. She saw ghosts wherever she went. It was the body that left her frozen in her tracks.

“Cameron, stop!” she called back.

“Okay. Okay,” her best friend laughed, jogging to catch up. Lindsey turned around and put her hand up.

“No, stop! I mean it. There’s something … dangerous.”

Cameron froze and peered into the woods. The light filtering in through the trees wasn’t bright enough for her to see the body from where she was, but she’d been involved enough in Lindsey’s last case to understand her friend’s warning was serious. She took a few steps backward. “Let’s go back,” she said.

Lindsey shook her head. “You go back. I need to check this out.”

“We should let the police—”

“I need to make sure there’s nothing the police shouldn’t find first.” Lindsey gave her friend a knowing look. Cameron shut her mouth and nodded. “Why don’t you

go back and wait in the camper?”

Cameron’s face twisted in disbelief. “And leave you here in the woods with … whatever is out there?!”

“A body,” Lindsey said sadly. Cameron’s jaw dropped. “Let’s just hope there’s only one.” 

😲