ARC Review: All Spooked Up by E. J. Copperman

Read time: 3 minutes

Book Blurb:

Laura Meehan returns to her New Jersey hometown to run her late father’s paint and wallpaper store, uprooting her life and her husband Roy’s to honor his legacy. But her fresh start turns eerie when she finds her dad’s ghost haunting the shop—or is it just her grief talking? When the body of Ernie, the town’s deadbeat painter, turns up in her store, Laura teams up with her father’s ghostly expertise to catch the killer. With debts piling up, could one of Ernie’s creditors have snapped? A quirky, paranormal cozy mystery brimming with wit.

Let’s talk about the book:

I picked up All Spooked Up hoping for a zany cozy mystery with a ghostly twist, but it felt more like slogging through a corporate memo. A policeman named Hannibal Watson should’ve been a playful nod, but instead it pulled me out every time I read it. That moment set the tone for much of my reading experience: clever ideas that never really found their footing. The murder body drops fairly early—about 10% in—but instead of diving into the mystery, the story stalls.

The bulk of the narrative is spent on the main character’s disbelief about her father’s ghost. She knows she’s seeing him… but also insists she can’t be seeing him… and then a therapist even advises her to “just accept it.” Meanwhile, she frequently comments on how wonderful her husband is, especially how supportive he was in quitting his job so they could run her late father’s struggling paint shop. Logically, I couldn’t help but wonder why both of them would abandon steady jobs to take on a barely-thriving business.

What surprised me was just how little sleuthing actually went on. Her father, once a sharp police detective, doesn’t contribute much beyond shrugs and cheap shots at his son-in-law. Laura, meanwhile, spends her energy sparring sarcastically with Hannibal Watson, flattening him into the butt of jokes rather than a functioning detective. Honestly, I didn’t understand what Watson had done to deserve being the butt of so many remarks, other than stand around looking frustrated.

The mystery’s resolution comes out of nowhere, with clues and connections conjured like a bad magic trick. It’s a slow crawl to a rushed, nonsensical end. The premise has undeniable charm: a haunted paint store, family legacy, and paranormal cozy energy. But the execution felt scattered, weighed down by skepticism circles and side-commentary rather than a satisfying mystery core. I finished this ARC out of obligation, but I’m not itching for the sequel.

Would I recommend it?

Not really. While I admire the offbeat premise, All Spooked Up struggled with pacing, logic, and character dynamics. The humor and ghostly setup didn’t balance well with the actual mystery, and the rushed conclusion left me more frustrated than entertained. I won’t be picking up the next in the series.

What do you say?

Do you stick with a cozy series if the first book doesn’t hook you—or do you cut it loose early? I’d love to hear how patient you are with series openers that don’t quite land.

Where to pre-order your copy

Release date – 4 November 2025
Amazon CA
Goodreads
Follow E.J. Cooperman’s author page