THE GHOST GOES TO THE DOGS by Cleo Coyle

August 21st, 2026

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The Ghost Goes to the Dogs, May 2023
Haunted Bookshop Mystery #9
by Cleo Coyle

Berkley
Featuring: Penelope McClure; Jack Shepard, PI
336 pages
ISBN: 0425255492
EAN: 9780425255490
Kindle: B0B8GC8YHT
Mass Market Paperback / e-Book / audiobook
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"This book might be my favorite one so far!"

THE GHOST GOES TO THE DOGS
Cleo Coyle

Reviewed by Annie Tegelan
Posted May 2, 2023

Mystery Cozy | Mystery Paranormal | Mystery Book Lover

Jack and Penelope are back in THE GHOST GOES TO THE DOGS, the newest installment of the Haunted Bookshop Mystery series by Cleo Coyle. If you’re a fan of all things four-footed and furry, then I think you’ll love this book. The presence of the dogs added so much fun and intrigue to this book. As a dog lover myself, I enjoyed seeing how a lost dog happens to lead them into trouble.

What’s interesting about this book is that Jack’s plotline also provides an additional story that adds to the mystery that Pen is trying to solve. So using his experience and his knowledge, she is able to figure out what truly happened to the dog’s owner. It’s almost like having two stories rolled into one, which is kind of amazing and unique.

Needless to say, THE GHOST GOES TO THE DOGS was well done and fun to read. I always enjoy Cleo Coyle’s books, but I have to say, this one might be my favorite of the series so far.

Learn more about THE GHOST GOES TO THE DOGS

SUMMARY

A stray dog leads bookseller Penelope McClure and her gumshoe ghost on a chase for a cunning criminal in this brand-new entry in the "UTTERLY CHARMING" (Mystery Scene) Haunted Bookshop Mysteries from New York Times bestselling author Cleo Coyle.

Pet Mystery Week brings brisk business to Penelope's Rhode Island bookshop, but a real mystery comes barking at her door when a lost dog turns up in a panic. Pen and her son Spencer follow the furry fugitive to a wooded area where the dog's owner lies unconscious. Mrs. Cunningham is a warm-hearted widow who volunteers at the animal shelter and runs Buy the Book's pet lovers book club. Why would anyone shoot such a sweet soul?

The police believe it's an accident, a shot by a careless deer hunter, but Pen remains skeptical. To straighten out this doggone mess, she whistles for the ghost of PI Jack Shepard, an expert in hounding as well as haunting. Jack has a dog story of his own, a case from the 1940s that may help Pen sniff out clues to her present predicament. Yet even with Jack's hard-boiled help, Pen may not be able to stop the killer from striking again or letting this whole case go to the dogs...