Publication Date: October 7, 2025
An unforgettable heroine is faced with an unbelievable crime in this snarky, charming locked-room mystery that asks: would you rather be snowed-in with a ghost, or a murderer?Â
A grand country estate.
On her last day as a detective, Midge McGowan is given the retirement present from hell: a ticket to a haunted house tour. She’ll have to spend a weekend ghost-hunting in an isolated mansion with a group of misfits, including a know-it-all paranormal investigator and a has-been pop star.
A puzzle that can’t be solved.
The guests soon realize that the house has a mind of its own… and that they might not be the only ones there. An eerie figure appears on the property, and then the unthinkable happens: someone is murdered in a room that’s been locked from the inside.
A ghostly weekend they might not survive.
When a blizzard cuts the group off from help, the house’s own dark secrets begin to surface, and Midge can’t shake the creeping sense that they are walking into a nightmare. Could a ghost really be responsible? Or is the culprit one the guests, who have somehow, impossibly, endeared themselves to Midge?
As a retirement gift, Detective Sgt. Midge McGowan receives a misspelled party banner and a trip to a haunted house.
Reluctantly forced on the trip by her live-in partner, Bridie, Midge dreads the whole thing. With the tone set, author Emma Mason continues to entertain readers in Murder Most Haunted.
The cast of characters is an eclectic mix, including a podcast host, a doctor, and a pop star. The author does an excellent job building the tension by forcing the characters to give up their phones and orchestrating a blizzard to keep them stranded at Atherton Hall.
The snarky dialogue illustrates Midge’s acerbic wit as the storyline delivers unexpected twists. It is much more than just a story about a potentially haunted house.
Murder Most Haunted brings a solid level of spookiness and suspense to showcase a powerful conclusion.
Emma Mason is a former Detective Constable with Thames Valley Police. She now lives in Dorset with her husband, children and parents. She writes and works as a design consultant, creating virtual reality training for the defense sector. Murder Most Haunted is her debut novel.
