Cozy mysteries are my book candy. When I need something sweet and light, I run right to my favorite cozy writers. I've been reading a lot of horror and hard-hitting thrillers lately, and needed a good palate cleanser. Rose Pressey is one of my favorite cozy authors. Her books never fail to be entertaining and fun, with just a splash of supernatural spookiness.

Fashions Fade, Haunted is Eternal is the 7th book in the Haunted Vintage mystery series. Cookie Chanel owns a vintage clothing shop, It's Vintage Y'all, in Sugar Creek, GA. While I don't really care about fashion, vintage or otherwise, Cookie also sees ghosts. In fact, one of her best friends is....well, dead. Charlotte Meadows, former socialite, now hangs around the shop and helps Cookie choose vintage outfits and solve mysteries. That isn't the strangest thing about Cookie's life though.....the spirit of her deceased grandmother lives inside Cookie's cat Wind Song. Since the cat can't talk, the grandmother gives advice using a Ouija board. Occasionally other spirits stop by...mostly to ask Cookie to help solve their murders. Just par for the course...

This time around it's fall and Photographer Tyler Fields is shooting pictures for the upcoming October issue of Fashion & Style magazine. Cookie helped pick out some vintage outfits for the models so she's watching the photo shoot at the local Sugar Creek Cemetery. Tyler is a bit rude, yelling at the models and acting like an ass. Just as Cookie meets a new spirit named Minnie from the 1920s, a gunshot rings out. Tyler Fields will never be rude again. Who killed the photographer? Cookie and her spirit pals are on the case!

This series is just fun to read. The characters are cute and work together well at amateur sleuthing. What Cookie can't ferret out, her spirit buddies generally can. That's one of the perks of working with ghosts that nobody else can see or hear. I like the lovely feline Wind Song....especially since it's also Cookie's grandmother. I don't think I would like it if my cats could talk to me using an Ouija board....I think all they would do is complain. :)

This newest book has some nice character development and sweet moments as well. The end was heart-warming for a couple of reasons and was a great closer for the story. I was also pleased to read a teaser chapter at the end of the book from a new Rose Pressey series -- The Haunted Arts & Crafts Mystery Series -- coming soon from Kensington. I will definitely be reading the first book in that series as soon as I can get it! :) Rose Pressey never disappoints....I love the mix of humor and mystery in her cozies. She develops her background theme quite well with info and tips on vintage fashion and where to find good deals on vintage items. The background theme doesn't over power the mystery or the characters though....just adds a nice flair. The supernatural elements aren't over-done, but just the icing on the story. This series is enjoyable and always well written. It's great as a fun palate cleanser when my brain gets its fill of horror and crime drama. :)

I will definitely keep reading this series! Can't wait for book 8!

**I voluntarily read an advanced readers copy of this book from Kensington via NetGalley. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.** ( )

Another great book by Ms. Pressey ( )

Fashions Fade, Haunted is Eternal is the 7th book in the Haunted Vintage mystery series. Cookie Chanel owns a vintage clothing shop, It's Vintage Y'all, in Sugar Creek, GA. Not only that, but she sees ghosts, and the spirit of her grandmother is in her cat, Windsong. All in all, a normal business woman, not. Charlotte Meadows is her ghost friend, a former socialite who now hangs around the shop and helps Cookie choose vintage outfits and solve mysteries. Windsong, also helps solve mysteries, but uses a Oujia board to communicate. Once again, Cookie and her cohorts stumble onto a murder and can't let it go.

Cookie has been hired to supply vintage clothing for a photo shoot. While working in a local cemetery, there is a gunshot and the photographer is found dead. He was the epitome of high strung artist, constantly shouting at the models and had a large number of people who did not like him. This of course, made it very hard to determine who hated him enough to kill him. As Cookie is checking out the dead body, another ghost pops up named Minnie from the 1920s. The investigation begins. Who killed the photographer? Cookie and her spirit pals are on the case!

This is a fun series and this book carries on the light hearted fun, humour and banter. At least Cookie's best friend Heather can finally see and communicate with the ghosts, but most other people think Cookie is a bit eccentric and she has to find ways to talk to the ghosts without anyone thinking she is talking to herself, unfortunately it doesn't always work. Cookie, her spirit frends and even the cats work well together solving the crimes. Charlotte is sassy and bossy, offsetting Cookie's sweet, not always smart personality. What Cookie can't ferret out, her spirit buddies generally can. The mystery is a bit quicker moving that in the last book and I still wonder sometimes why Cookie takes the chances she does. Her love interest, Detective Dylan Valentine, is one of the most patient men ever. He puts up with Cookie ignoring him a lot of the time, yet is always there when she needs him. I enjoyed the new characters in this book, Minnie, a rather sweet and naive ghost and another cat with the spirit of the deceased in him. They added another dimension to the story. The ending was great, but I do not want to spoil it for you. Rose Pressey never disappoints, with her mix of humour, mystery and sass in her cozies. There are tidbits about vintage clothing and living as a spirit at the beginning of each chapter, but you do not have to like vintage to enjoy this book or series and the paranormal elements do not overpower the mystery. This series is enjoyable and always well written. The publisher, Kensington, generously provided me with a copy of this book upon request. The rating, ideas and opinions shared are my own. ( )

Fashions Fade, Haunted is Eternal by Rose Pressey takes us back to Sugar Creek, Georgia. Cookie Chanel owns It’s Vintage, Y’All and has been hired by Tyler Fields, a photographer, to style models for a fashion shoot for the Halloween issue of Fashion & Style magazine. The shoot is taking place at a local cemetery where Tyler has been snappish all day and Cookie saw him get into an argument with a man who has been lingering in the background all day. Cookie is surprised when a ghost dressed in fashions from the 1920s appears next to her and her ghostly friend, Charlotte. Minnie Lynn is wearing the pearls that Cookie recently acquired at an estate sale. Before she can react to the spirit, a shot rings out which sends Cookie running towards the sound. A model runs past her stating the photographer is dead. Cookie finds Tyler lying next to a headstone and he has taken his last shot. Detective Dylan Valentine, Cookie’s boyfriend, arrives on the scene and Cookie fills him in on all the details. Dylan, thankfully, knows better than to warn Cookie not to delve into the case. Cookie is back at her shop when her friend Heather pops in. To their surprise, Heather can now see Charlotte and Minnie. Cookie’s first order of business is identifying the man that Tyler was arguing with at the cemetery. Krissy Dustin, one of the models from the shoot, is a talkative woman and provides a suspect in Tyler’s possessive ex-girlfriend. Cookie goes back to examine the crime scene in more detail and a helpful cat leads her to a clue. Cookie soon discovers that the cat is no ordinary feline. Cookie, with the help of her spirit friends, Grandma Pearl (aka Wind Song) and her new feline companion, sets out to dig up Tyler’s killer.

Fashions Fade, Haunted is Eternal is an entertaining and lighthearted cozy mystery. Cookie Chanel is a quirky young woman who dresses in vintage fashions plus drives a beautiful classic car. Her best friend, Heather Sweet, owns Magic Emporium which has helpful books for Cookie plus a Ouija board when Grandma Pearl needs to converse. Minnie Lynn was a fun addition to the book. The witty repartee between Minnie and Charlotte will have you in stitches. The way Cookie walks around town talking to the ghosts, I am surprised the whole town is not aware that she can see and talk with spirits. I like that Dylan is now aware of Cookie’s secret. Dylan Valentine is a good man and the perfect suitor for Cookie. He understands her and accepts her (does not want to change her). I like that nothing seems to phase Dylan. The mystery is straightforward and is a cinch to solve. Cookie goes around asking questions, listening in on conversations, and does a little catfishing to garner information. The ending is romantic and heartwarming (readers will love it). It was the perfect ending for Fashions Fade, Haunted is Eternal. Fashions Fade, Haunted is Eternal is the seventh book in A Haunted Vintage Mystery and it can be read alone. Rose Pressey has an engaging, casual writing style which makes her stories a pleasure to read. Her characters are likeable, and the setting is charming. The town is filled with friendly residents who understand and accept Cookie’s quirks. I am giving Fashions Fade, Haunted is Eternal 4 out of 5 stars (I liked it). If you wish to read a lively and humorous cozy mystery, then look no further than Fashions Fade, Haunted is Eternal. ( )

Cookie Chanel lives in Sugar Creek, Georgia and owns a vintage clothing shop, It's Vintage Y'all. She also communicates with ghosts and has her own resident spirit named Charlotte that she 'picked up' while at the deceased woman's estate sale. Currently she's at a photo shoot in a graveyard (!) with a group of models and an obnoxious photographer when a shot rings out and she finds the photographer's dead body.

Unfortunately, this also brings another ghost to her, a 1920's flapper named Minnie who can't remember why she's there but thinks it might have something to do with the pearls Cookie recently bought that match exactly the ones Minnie is wearing.

Her boyfriend, Homicide Detective Dylan Valentine, also knows about the ghosts and seems accepting of that fact, which says a lot about how he feels about Cookie. But when Dylan asks her to stay out of the investigation, Cookie never really agrees, deciding to find out who killed the man. Still, there are surprises in store, such as where did the black cat in the graveyard come from, and why has he decided to latch onto Cookie; what happened to Heather (who's discovered something interesting), and who's trying to kill Cookie? If Dylan - or Cookie - don't figure it out soon, she'll be the next ghost to visit someone hoping to solve the crime...

Because I enjoyed all the others in this series, I had high hopes for what appears to be the finale; but unfortunately, it didn't measure up. The writing seemed disjointed somehow; almost as if the author wanted to get the book out of the way and go on to other books. The conversations were between Cookie and her ghosts were boring, and half of them didn't make any sense.

I also didn't (still) understand why Charlotte kept pushing Cookie to go to listen to conversations when she, as a ghost, could have done so much easier and not been detected. Why was she pushing Cookie to get into possibly dangerous situations when she could have gone anywhere undetected? Charlotte has a knack for encouraging Cookie to go do something that will get her into trouble, and then denying she had anything to do with it. (No wonder someone killed her.)

And why was Cookie even investigating? In the previous books, the ghosts had always asked Cookie to find out who killed them and why - but this time, there was no such scenario. There was no ghost hanging around her demanding she discover who killed him. (Yes, there was the 'ghost cat' but he wasn't hounding her constantly and following her around demanding she find his murderer). Yet for some odd reason, she felt the need to figure it out. (Because of this, I had a hard time believing that she would just stay out of Dylan's future investigations). Cookie usually isn't as stupid as she was in this book, just walking into potentially dangerous situations and even leaving behind a police officer that was assigned to protect her (note to officer: they don't fall asleep on stakeouts if they value their jobs).

I also, unfortunately again, didn't think the reason the man was murdered was plausible, and we were left with some unanswered questions that bothered me. I also felt that as far as the vintage thing goes, Dylan and everyone else went a little over the top for Cookie. It all came off as too saccharine for me; it could have been so much better. It was fine for a quick mystery read. ( )