Dead Man Talking

Dead Man Mysteries #1

by T.M. Simmons

Weird things tend to happen when you live in a haunted house — not that author/ghost hunter Alice Carpenter has a problem disciplining the ten resident ghosts in her lakeside log cabin near forgotten-time Six Gun,, Texas. When her cousin Katy calls looking for help with the resident ghost at Espirt d'Chene, the family mansion near Jefferson, Alice agrees to come to the rescue.

Sir Gary Gavin, dead now over two hundred years, insists Alice is the only one who can expose his undeliberate murder to allow him to leave his tortured existence; and he's not above wreaking havoc at Espirt d'Chene until Alice concedes to his demands. Before Alice can even pack, though, Katy discovers a new murder — a headless corpse floating in her swimming pool. This new ghost — Bucky, the black-sheep son of a Texas senator — is dangerous in his newly-dead, confused state as he searches the plantation for his head.

Alice must somehow uncover the identity of Bucky's murderer, or else it looks like Katy will be charged with the crime, despite several other suspects who have motives for wanting Bucky dead. To make matters worse, the homicide detective in charge, Alice's ex-husband Jack, doesn't believe in ghosts. That leaves Alice no choice but to depend on her ghost hunting mentor, Twila, and her elderly neighbor, Granny, to assist in the investigation.

Katy is arrested, and there's no help for it: Sir Gary's going to have to join the investigation. Much to Jack's dismay — and the delight of the women — he is finally forced to admit that Sir Gary is real. A real ghost, anyway. Together, the unlikely team of sleuths join forces to help send Sir Gary to his deserved reward, track down the real killer, and set Katy free.

Genres: Mystery, Paranormal, Fiction, Fantasy, Ghosts, Horror, Paranormal Mystery

299 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 17, 2004

About the author

Trana Mae Simmons sold her first book two years from the time she started writing. After a decade and a dozen books in the romance genre, she now writes paranormal mysteries. The first book in her DEAD MAN series, DEAD MAN TALKING, was originally a release from Five Star Mystery. In addition to her writing, she enjoys developing her strengthening psychic powers. This has led her along the path of avid ghosthunting. Simmons delights in scaring herself silly at times during other-worldly encounters and has been known to visit graveyards in both the dark and full of the moon. She sometimes takes along her husband of 40+ years, Barney, to protect her from the bumps in the night, although he's been known to spy a ghost or two and retreat rather than confront. She's extremely willing to discuss her experiences with anyone she can corner.

Reviews

[Jeri · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good story with lots of ghostly going-ons and mysteries to solve.

[Rachael · Rating 2 out of 5]

Alice is a writer/ghosthunter on a deadline to finish her latest manuscript when her cousin Katy calls in a panic. Katy's house is being haunted by Sir Gary Gavin and he is causing a ruckus. But that's the least of her problems for Katy has just found a body in her pool. Alice along with her dog Trucker and her cat Miss Molly rush over to Katy's to help. Things only get worse upon her arrival. The death is ruled as murder, an easy call to make when the body's been decapitated. The head is nowhere to be found and that makes the ghost of the newly deceased dangerous. Katy's keeping secrets about her involvement with the murder victim. Sir Gary won't rest until the cause of his death has been revealed and he can cross over to the other side. Alice's ex-husband Jack is the lead detective in the case. And someone is still trying to kill the other members of the house.

Let's start with our heroine Alice. At first I liked her. She's a writer and she has pets. That makes for a good foundation for me. But as the story unfolded, her character became much less likeable. The first time in the story that she interacts with a stranger set her negative tone for me. She has to identify herself to a cop before she's allowed on her cousin's property. Because her driver's license is packed away in her luggage, she shows him the author photo from one of her books as proof of her identity. Okay, first, why would you have your driver's license packed away and inaccessible but have a random copy of one of your books right there? This makes no sense to me. Then when the cop doesn't immediately accept this picture as legitimate proof, she fumes at him. It actually says that in the text that she fumes that she cleans up well. Why is she so angry? When has a book photo ever been acceptable proof of identity in a crime case?

And her attitude towards her status as a writer and her fans was really ridiculous and made her sound like a super diva. Here are a few quotes.
"I gritted my teeth in a tight smile. I could never decide which was worse: people who gush over me in false pretense while they try to finagle the secret of getting their own books published or people who've never heard of my books."
"I signed his books, trying not to show my impatience. After all, fans except a certain sense of appreciation when they ask for an author's autograph."
Is it just me or does she sound like a stuck-up diva?

That trait alone was enough to make me dislike her, but her nature was contradictory throughout the book. She was so independent and good at ghost hunting at the beginning but then everything about the ghosts at her cousin's house is just too much for her. Suddenly she can't do anything alone and her ghost hunting skills are described as amateur.

The story itself doesn't flow as a good mystery. There are barely any characters introduced that could be possible suspects until about three-fourths of the way through. Even then, I was confident that the new suspect wasn't the killer. The main idea was that her cousin Katy was the only suspect but we all knew that wasn't true.

There was also a lot of irrelevant information doled out. Alice saw an armadillo on the road and then there was an entire paragraph all about the armadillo. The author did this a lot and none of the info dumping had any relevance to the story. Some people like that kind of thing. I find it extremely annoying.

This book just wasn't for me.

[Adrienne · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ghost hunter/author Alice Carpenter rushes to her cousin Katy's home when she discovers a headless body in the swimming pool. Alice's ex husband Jack is in charge of the investigation and doesn't believe in ghost, until he is able to see the two hundred year old ghost Sir Gary Gavin. Sir Gary wants Alice to help him cross to the light and learn the truth about his death. While Alice wants to learn who killed Bucky, the senator's son. The story becomes convoluted with distractions, I guess meant to be amusing. The mystery surrounding Sir Gary Gavin's death is added as an afterthought. The identity of the killer of Bucky is identified and is disappointing but not a surprise.

[Sherry · Rating 2 out of 5]

Boring

Not that good of a book. I kept nodding off reading this. Couldn't wait for the end. Don't waste your time

[Sara M. · Rating 3 out of 5]

A 3.5 star book.
I enjoyed the story overall. It was a fresh take on murder mysteries in a way I have not seen before. I liked the main character, Alice Carpenter, and her back story was interesting enough that I did not mind it being part of the story in certain places. The characters were all intriguing, but there were too many of them. Too many characters plus too many unfortunate side occurrences (like the emu in the middle of the road, which was completely random and unnecessary) just added unnecessary fillers. It made the book too drawn out and made me lose interest in the main story. The book could have been more concise and to the point.
The murder mystery itself was interesting, but the conclusion of it was bland and most certainly not the climax of the story. It felt like the murder mystery and the ghost hunt parts of the book were fighting for center stage, with one winning over the other in some parts of the book but other parts. In some ways they were intertwined nicely, like Sir Gary's involvement with the investigation and how wasn't over the top.
I enjoyed the book, but will not continue to read the series.

[PepperP0t · Rating 2 out of 5]

Author/Ghost hunter Alice Carpenter is up to her ears in unruly ghosts but drops everything to help cousin Katy wrangle an unruly ghost determined to get Katy to help solve his murder. Meanwhile the cousins discover the fresh murder of a senator's son on Katy's property.

Things get sticky when the investigating detective, Katy's ex, doesn't believe the clues are coming from ghosts. Elderly neighbors and a bevy of ghosts work with Alice after Katy's been arrested to solve the crime. A good premise set the read for an intriguing mystery but let this reader down with major flaws in suspects, suspense, flow and chemistry.
Rating 2stars

[Jackie · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was an OK read, but sorry to say that it didn't 'Wow' me

I usually enjoy Ghost Mysteries, but this one didn't quite get there for me. This is the first book that I've read from this Author. I liked the locale, the supporting characters had promise, and the main character's pets were great. However, the story didn't flow well for me. In addition, I felt that the changing point of views weren't set up clearly, and the ending was rather rushed. The murder didn't make much sense.

The main character wasn't very appealing, but I liked her pets. I may pick up the next book in the series to see if things improve.

[Casey · Rating 1 out of 5]

If you enjoy arrogant, egotistical, demeaning and condescending protagonists. This is for you. Otherwise avoid like the plague. The protag actually uses a book of hers that she conveniently just had in the car as ID because she had that, but no ID. and is annoyed when the police don't accept it. she considers people meeting her should be delighted to meet a 'celebrity'. she supports declawing cats. and the plot isn't even interesting.

[Charleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow what a great story.

You really are great story teller.I enjoyed reading your great story from the beginning to end it kept me hooked.Thanks for sharing it with me keep them coming.

[Anne · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was amazing. I loved it. The characters were wonderful the way they interacted with each other and tried to solve this mystery. I also really liked the story itself. Read it you will love it too.

[Diane Mcclure · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good murder mystery with Ghost Hunter Plot twists.

[April · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun mystery...

Sometimes hard to figure out when the POV changes but a good story to keep you guessing til the end.

[Dave · Rating 2 out of 5]

Was hoping for more suspense and some scares. Many tangents and humor that didn't work for me. Lots of characters but not enough possible suspects to pick from and keep up the whodunit angle.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very entertaining! Looking forward to more adventures.

[mrs susan workman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dead man talking

I was pleasantly surprised by this book, it had twists and turns and was highly amusing.
I must read the next , so keep them coming!

[Somia]

Freebie on amazon 6th April 2020

[sarah wells · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic read

I really enjoyed this book full of mystery ,suspense ,drama and murder great story with some brilliant characters looking forward to next book

[Denise Gossow · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite a fun story with a couple ghosts thrown in. Would probably read the next one.

[Carolee DeWitt · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book.

[Candy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Alice is an author and a ghost hunter. She drives to her cousin Katie's home after she hears Katie has found a headless body in her swimming pool. Fun read about ghosts!

[Thom Swennes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Alice Carpenter didn’t want just any house. The house she was seeking had to fill many extra requirements to pass muster. One such requirement was in-house spiritual baggage. You can’t classify Alice as a Ghostbusters, as she tended toward negotiation, concession, palliation, cooperation, dispensation and compromise instead of simply sucking the suckers up and displacing them with extreme prejudice. This is a talent (or curse) she shares with her cousin Katy Gueydan, who lives at Esprit d’Chene, the manor house of an old Texas cotton plantation, a couple hours distant away. The ghostbusting department was headed and manned by her Aunt Twila Brown. Alice’s writing talent was all her own and made her into a very successful author. When Katy discovers a headless corpse in her swimming pool the story takes off in another direction. A Jessica Fletcher type amateur investigation follows. With the addition and inclusion of Miss Molly and Trucker (cat and dog…..Alice’s pets) helps to fill out the narrative, and give the story more literary meat to bite into. One particular ghostly presence, Sir Gary (Garfield) Gavin, the victim of an undeliberate murder, could easily be related to Nearly Headless Nick, of Harry Potter prominence and like Nick adds color, humor (if not depth) into the tale. As refreshing as mint julep and as smooth as Southern Comfort, this is the perfect companion for a stormy winter’s night.
I really wanted to enjoy and like this book so I opened my heart and mind (figuratively speaking) and embraced everything that dwelled and slithered in the night. The characters (living and spiritual) are well established and entertaining, often eliciting a smile, chuckle or belly-shaking laugh. Although the architectural splendor of Esprit d’Chene is interestingly described and fascinating and the antics of the dog and cat entertaining, the story premise changed like the colors of a chameleon as the tale progresses. It is more of a ho hum mystery that a “on the edge of your seat” one but the slow steady storyline remained interesting enough to hold and maintain my attention. This is the first book in the Dead Man series and although I wouldn’t say categorically that I wouldn’t read another (now that it is snugly nestled away in my library, I probably would devour it like every other book).

[Jess · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really loved the Sir Gary character. He was handsome, charming and very obedient (for some reason).
I also loved Uncle Clarence and Granny. They were both a hoot.

However, I didn't like the main character. She came off as much much older than her character should be. She is apparently a famous writer who clearly hates her fans. People are constantly asking her her an autograph and she just complains non stop about it. If she hates it so much she should clearly stop writing for an audience. She seems really self absorbed so it was hard for me to see why she actually cared about her cousin so much.

Katy was also an ehh character. She came off a bit flat to me.

Overall, the book was entertaining for the most part. I really enjoyed the flavor of the author's writing. However, some scenes really dragged on or could've been edited out entirely.

If you are into ghosts, mysteries, murder and houses with secret passageways I would definitely recommend trying this book out.

[Barbara Mason · Rating 5 out of 5]

Weird things tend to happen when you live in a haunted house -- not that author/ghost hunter Alice Carpenter has a problem disciplining the ten resident ghosts in her lakeside log cabin near forgotten-time Six Gun,, Texas. When her cousin Katy calls looking for help with the resident ghost at Espirt d'Chene, the family mansion near Jefferson, Alice agrees to come to the rescue.
I almost did not download this book because the cover did not grab me. I am glad I did not let that stop me. I loved this story. The characters have humor and personality, even the ghosts. The story flowed smoothly and the editing was outstanding. It's been awhile since I have had a really good read, so good that I am itching to read more of this Authors writing. I would recommend this book to any age.
Now go and download it, I know you want too. Have fun.Dead Man Talking (Dead Man Mysteries)

[🐥Erica 🐥 · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was good. The characters were all likable and/or 3 dimensional. Paranormal is my favorite genre but a couple of aspects of this story seemed a bit 'out there'. i.e., Sir Gary's magic finger, the almost real manifestation of Bucky, and the doll head disappearing when applied to Bucky's ghost. Writer's have a lot of leeway with this genre, but they still need to keep things within the realm of possibility. The story also seemed a tad drawn out and the character of Katy was tepid and did not seem worthy of the loyalty the other's gave her. I'll (almost) definitely read the next in the series though.

[Gwyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was going along just fine as an enjoyable mystery with fun paranormal elements (and characters), but around 75%ish things got a little ridiculous. Despite the ghosts running around, that's where I had trouble suspending disbelief. One could say the writer...lost her head there! Har Har )ok yah that was bad). But really "We'll just go "borrow" the severed head! The morticians totally have no issue with at all handing out body parts to random people cause we're with an old lady!" And then, for absolutely no discernible reason, an emu!

That being said, it was still a decent read and I'll probably pick up the next one.

[LittleJuggernaut · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was a treat to read. I liked the characters, an the writing was fluid. The only two problems I had with this book was the fact that I knew early on were the head was going to be found. The most likely hiding place was mentioned in the beginning of the book. It was frustrating watching our characters search for the (spoiler) and waiting for them to catch on for the first half of the book.

The ending was a surprise to me. I didn't figure out who the killer was until our characters did. This was due entirely to hints from the author, not any mental prowess on my part. Even then the reveal was a fun experience, as was the conclusion.

I can't wait to read the rest in the series.

[Beth Peccarelli · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story! Alice is trying to meet her deadline on her next mystery novel when cousin Katy calls. She is desperate to get help to rid the family mansion/plantion manor of a ghost, Sir Gary, short for Garfield. When all is said and done, one desperate call leads to a headless body in the manor's pool, and joined force with Alice's ex-husband, Jack, Aunt Twilla, neighbor Granny and Alice's Rottweiller and main cat, all on the trail of a ghost story for Sir Gary and a head to go with the corpse. Murder is afoot...
Story, style of humor and characters remind me of Jana Deleon's Ghost-in-Law series. I will be checking out the next tale in this series. Great, fun light reading.

[Lisa Holyk · Rating 3 out of 5]

In general, I enjoyed reading the book. But there were some character issues which took away from that. Too much reliance on stereotypes. Bucky as some Southern boy comes off as some redneck or back swamp Louisiana inbred. There is no way that a Senator's son would be that uneducated and speak that way. Let's not even go into the stereotypes with women. Just...no. As mentioned by others, the way the author in the book talks about fans and signing books,she comes off as a diva who dislikes her fans. She is obviously writing herself into this role and would hate to be one of those fans that she looks down her nose at. That God my book is an e-book that she can never sign.

[Noel · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I started reading mysteries with a twist, I got this book. The book is about ghosts, murder, and a little bit of mayhem. I really enjoyed the characters, especially Alice, ex-husband Jack, and the over 200-year-old ghost, Sir Gary. And, of course, we cannot leave out Trucker. Entertaining, quirky characters that you will not be able to forget. The author paints vivid pictures throughout the book that allows you to visualize yourself smack dab in the middle of the story. Gotta put more of T.M. Simmons' books on my TBR list!

[Maetta · Rating 4 out of 5]

Paranormal mystery-suspense. This is the first book in the Dead Man Mysteries. Alice Carpenter is well known author as well as ghost hunter. Innocently enough, she visits her cousin, Katie, as a favor to help a ghost move along. While there, a murder occurs outside the house. Since Katie knows the victim, the police finger her as the suspect. Alice and various relatives as well as the in house ghost, Sir Gary, fervently try to find out the killer and get Katie acquitted. And it does not help matters that the headless confused newly deceased is up to destruction in the house.