cover image Ghost Times Two

Ghost Times Two

Carolyn Hart. Berkley Prime Crime, $26 (304p) ISBN 978-0-425-28373-8

In Hart's charming fourth Bailey Ruth Raeburn novel (after 2015's Ghost to the Rescue), red-headed, fashion-conscious ghost Bailey Ruth has been so successful with her unorthodox methods of helping troubled souls that Wiggins, director of Heaven's Department of Good Intentions, decides she's just the emissary to persuade the late Jimmy Taylor, who recently drowned in a kayak accident on Oregon's Snake River, to mount the golden staircase. But Jimmy refuses to abandon his troubled, still-living girlfriend, Megan Wynn, who has a chance to become a partner in a new law firm, a move that her manipulative boss, Doug Graham, opposes. Graham tells Megan that if she leaves his firm, he will fire her secretary, leaving the woman and her sick child with no health insurance. When someone bashes in Graham's head, Megan becomes the prime suspect in his murder. Bailey Ruth teams with Jimmy to clear Megan's name and free all concerned to get on with their lives%E2%80%94and afterlives. Replete with relatable characters, this cleverly plotted tale will keep readers guessing until the end. Agent: Deborah Schneider, Gelfman Schneider Literary Agency. (Oct.)