Ghost at Work

Ghost at Work by Carolyn Hart

Meet Bailey Ruth Raeburn, a ghost who hopes to have a flair for solving mysteries. While in Heaven, she is asked by the Department of Good Intentions to go back to her earthly roots in Oklahoma and lend a helping hand to someone in “dire straits”. And boy does Kathleen Abbott need Bailey’s help. Kathleen is the wife of the rector of the local Episcopalian church in the town in which Bailey Ruth grew up. And Kathleen has just discovered a dead body on her back porch! (62)

I love the fact that Ms Hart has made her ghostly main character sassy and a bit headstrong. As a paranormal book lover, I truly appreciate the fact that Ms Hart doesn’t make all the ’ghostly’ happenings easy to explain. I’m show more very tired by all the books that make one suspend disbelief to the nth degree. This was very refreshing and cleverly written.

This cozy has some red herrings and enough very plausible suspects, to keep the most diehard mystery lover guessing right up until the very last chapters. Very well written and believable characters, the plot progression is tight and strong, given the short timeline and an exciting conclusion to this first in a new series of books.

So Ms Hart…just exactly when do we get the next book??? I want to make sure I have the date circled in red on my calendar!*Grin* show less

Opening Sentence: ‘…Incandescent dashes of pink and gold spangled the fluffy white clouds that arched over the entrance to the Department of Good Intentions…’

Many years ago Bailey Ruth Raeburn and her husband died on their cabin cruiser during a storm, and now the both reside in heaven. As lovely as eternal life is, Bailey wants to be more useful so she decides to see if she can join the Department of Good Intentions. She is recruited on the spot and sent down to earth to help someone who has just got into big trouble. That someone is Kathleen Abbott, a pastor’s wife; she has just discovered a body on her porch and is wondering what to do. There are rules for the heavenly emissaries but Bailey hasn’t any time to be trained, show more so all she has is a copy of the rules in her hot little hand when she arrives. She manages to break most of them in her first few hours on the job.

It doesn’t take Bailey very long to find out that the victim, Daryl Murdoch, is not quite the upstanding citizen and dedicated church member he appears to be. It seems there is a rather long list of people who have good reasons to want Daryl dead; including Kathleen and her pastor husband, Bill. Bailey slowly begins to narrow the suspects down and the suspense builds amongst the laughs until all is revealed at the end.

Bailey is a likeable, charming, rash and impulsive character, she has more powers than a mere ghost so she can appear quite solid at times – and is invisible the next, which is useful for listening in on police interviews. She can also eat – which she does rather a lot of. Initially Bailey helps to move the body and hide the evidence and then as she follows the investigation to deflect suspicion away from Kathleen and Bill. She sometimes forgets that if she is invisible, the things she are holding are not, mobile phones, guns and cups of coffee sail through the air to the horror of those witnessing the phenomena.

Ghost at Work is the first book written by Carolyn Hart in the Bailey Ruth series. It is humorous and creative with a believable plot and real characters. There is a second book in the series titled Merry, Merry Ghost – so guess what is going on my Christmas reading list. show less

Bailey Ruth Raeburn has been dead for quite some time and while she is enjoying her time in Heaven, she wants to do more with her life (so to speak). She joins the Department of Good Intentions with the hope of helping someone on Earth who is in trouble. She is soon sent to her hometown of Adelaide, Oklahoma to help Kathleen Abbot, a pastor's wife who has found a dead body on her porch and is afraid her husband will be accused of murder. Soon Bailey Ruth is up to her pretty neck not only with murder but trying to master those darned Precepts that Wiggins insists she follow.

"Ghost at Work" is a delightful cozy mystery by Carolyn Hart. Bailey Ruth is a great creation - as impulsive, reckless, and well meaning as a ghost as she was while show more alive. Her interference can be a bit too much - she often acts without thinking - but it's done with good intentions so it's hard not to like her. The book is worth reading just for Hart's portrayal of Heaven and I love the way Bailey Ruth gets to pick her outfits. Hart has a lot of fun with Bailey Ruth's turning up in current times and having her be bewildered by things like cell phones and computers. All of the characters are well done especially Bailey Ruth, Wiggins, and Kathleen's daughter Bayroo. The supernatural aspects are well done and at times quite humorous - Hart seems to have had a lot of fun writing the book. The mystery aspects are well done, with plenty of suspects and the identity of the killer will come as a surprise to most readers. The motive for the murder is believable and sad.

"Ghost at Work" is a nicely done humorous paranormal cozy mystery and I look forward to reading more books in this series. show less

Bailey Ruth Raeburn is a ghost with a mission for the Department of Good Intentions. She returns to earth to help the rector's wife, Kathleen Abbott, when she finds a dead man on her back porch. Kathleen wants to protect the good name of her husband, the pastor (and herself). Daryl Murdoch is the victim and lots of people have good reasons to want him dead. Bailey Ruth helps her by moving the body and continues investigating to find the real killer.

This book was an absolute joy to read. The characters are endearing, the plot is well developed, and the mystery was not a given. This is a hilarious cozy mystery with lots of action and suspects. I can't wait for the next one!

A pleasant cozy. Bailey Ruth Raeburn has already died and gone to heaven. After a while of almost boring wonderfulness, she enlists in the heavenly rescue squad to return to earth and help people in trouble. Her first assignment is to go back to her hometown of Adelaide Oklahoma to help her grand niece Kathleen Abbott who is afraid she or her husband, the rector at St. Mildred's episcopal, will be accused of murder. After all, there is a dead body on the back porch of the rectory.

Bailey Ruth didn't have time for training in heaven before she undertook this assignment. Her continual violation of the "heavenly precepts for emissaries" lands her in hot water with her heavenly mentor Wiggins as she tries to intercept evidence, interview show more suspects, and find out who dunnit while keeping herself invisible. Her appetite for good home cooking keeps getting in the way, and her need to help constantly has objects flying through (or suspended in) the air as she whizzes, whisps, and zooms from spot a to spot b, all the while forgetting that while she may be invisible the bag of evidence she's just scooped up isn't. Neither can the corporeal objects melt through solid walls or doors. Her antics to overcome these difficulties are truly amusing.

All in all, Hart presents us with an endearing character, a solid plot, lots of good suspects, and a fairly surprise ending. I'll be looking for another of these to see if Bailey Ruth can learn how to do this job in a more efficient manor and whether she'll be able to get off probation and become a full-fledged emissary. show less

Ghost at Work by Carolyn Hart is the delightful first installment of a new series by the author of the Death on Demand series and the Henrie O series. Bailey Ruth Raeburn has been in heaven for an unknown period of time, along with her husband, Bernie Mac, after a tragic boating accident. At the opening of the story, Bailey Ruth goes to the Department of Good Intentions where she meets Wiggins, the supervisor in charge of sending emissaries to earth to help those humans who find themselves in trouble. Bailey Ruth is sent back to Adelaide Oklahoma where she used to live to help the wife of a local pastor who has found a dead body on her back porch, something which is sure to cause trouble and suspicion for her spouse.

What follows is a show more fun cozy mystery using lots of charm and wit, with Bailey Ruth seeking to find answers to who killed Daryl Murdock, a local businessman with any number of enemies. The story is told with plenty of laughs as Bailey Ruth adjusts to the world she left behind. Cell phones and computers were not part of her world when she was alive, so she has much to learn. Bailey Ruth has trouble following the Precepts, those rules given to emissaries sent to earth to help humans in trouble. Her supervisor Wiggins is a bit of a stickler for following the Precepts, causing him to have to make several appearances to help Bailey Ruth keep on track.

I enjoyed this witty story, a well written mystery. I found Bailey Ruth’s ability to be here, there and everywhere, unseen, an interesting plot device. This story had good character development and clever plot twists. I would highly recommend this book to those who enjoy cozy mysteries. show less

If you like cozy mysteries and like friendly ghosts this is a light-hearted mystery for you. The mystery has more body than many of the cozys I’ve read, the suspects are well-fleshed with motive and opportunity The ghost is there to help and not be seen but she just needs to act and forgets what the consequences could be.
An enjoyably fast read. I am already checking the library for more of this series.