Dead Scared

Cold Case Psychic #34

by Pandora Pine

Dead Clowns Tell No Tales…

When the circus comes to town for a charity performance, Detective Ronan O’Mara hears rumors of a clown who was murdered thirty years ago during a stop in Boston. After the clown’s ghost appears to tell his tale, it's up to Ronan and company to find the killer. All he has to do is overcome his paralyzing fear of clowns. Piece of cake, right?

Psychic Tennyson Grimm is being plagued by dark nightmares that make no sense. Each time he wakes, Ten is scared out of his mind and shouting his daughter’s name. Unwilling to talk about the possible cause of these night terrors, he shoves the bad dreams aside to welcome his brother’s family to town. What better way to entertain them than by bringing them to the circus performance?

Ronan faces his childhood fear and reluctantly dives into the cold case murder of Jumping Jack the clown. He’s willing to do whatever it takes to solve Jack’s murder, even if that means immersing himself in grease paint and red rubber noses to do it. When Tennyson realizes his nightmare is tied to the murder, it’s an all out sprint to catch the killer before another clown bites the dust.

Genres: M M Romance

158 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 24, 2025

About the author

Sick of the slogging rat-race of her 9-5 job, Pandora Pine put pen to paper (literally!) to make her ambition of becoming a romance novelist a reality. She cut her teeth in the dog-eat-dog world of fanfiction, still dreaming of the day when she would be a published author. She lives in Massachusetts with her blabbermouth muse who’ s a fan of middle of the night plot twists.

In her spare time, Pandora fancies herself an amateur nature photographer. She enjoys mucking around in swamps, hiking through the woods and crawling around on her hands and knees in her backyard seeking out the perfect shot. Pandora is a fan of roadside seafood shacks and always thinks Mexican food is a good idea at the time.

Some of Pandora’s favorite things are chocolate, writing longhand with purple pens and handsome men falling in love with each other.

Don't miss Pandora’s seductive new novel coming soon to an e-reader near you.

Reviews

[Susan65 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yet another great addition to this series

[Kathleen Palla · Rating 5 out of 5]

nice to have the whole crew back together

I had been missing Carson, Truman, Coke and the triplets from previous books. It was nice to have the original gang back together again. I hope to see more of them in future books. This is a fantastic series.

[Marsha L Respess · Rating 5 out of 5]

I agree that clowns are very scary and Vincent was truly terrifying. This was a story that was disturbing because of Tenn's nightmares that make him wake up screaming and not remembering anything except a pink dress. Jace had arranged a charity event at the circus which really bothered Ronan since he had been afraid of clowns since his encounter with Vincent/Ying Yang at the circus when he was 13. Then Tenn sees a clown covered in blood asking for his murder being solved and the dream and the murder are connected. It was so scary to realize that both Tenn and Everly were unable to get a clear picture of the dream because they were the victims. I loved how Carson played bad cop and Vincent seems to be the murderer but his daughter Celestina intercedes and you wonder what she is hiding. The scene at the dress rehearsal was nerve-racking and I didn't realize who the murderer was and was relieved that Tenn and Everly were safe and only Vincent died. Love the kids but I want to hear about Greeley again.

[AshPenny37 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love these guys

The gang's all here in the latest installment in the Salemverse mysteries. And this is a good one...a decades old murder forces Ronan to relive a terrifying encounter with a not-so-nice clown who most definitely left an impression on 13 year old him.

All the found family love is here, as usual, and a mystery worthy of the cold case crew's powers...both investigatory and of the other worldly nature. Love it!

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ronan and Ten are back in this latest book.
30 years ago Ronan visited the circus and found his hatred of clowns.
Now he is back with Ten and his brother and the gang. Jace is having a charity circus night and the gang decide to investigate a previous murder.
An interesting book and plenty of the gang including the kids.

[Katie Clausen · Rating 5 out of 5]

😍😍😍😍

Another 5 star book!!! I absolutely love these guys so much!! I really hope the author keeps writing g so that we can see what Everly is gonna be like when she grows up!!! Can't wait for more!!!

[Diane Dannenfeldt · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don’t know how the author keeps these stories fresh and new, but she does. I love that big tough Ronan who would take a bullet for any of his family or friends. I hope out boys are around for a very long time.

[Zondra.Hallyahoo.Com · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it. Pandora has done it again. Can't wait to see what she gives us next.

[Barbara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another winner for Ms. Pine. It was wonderful to read about everyone again. Carson stole the show! Good story and of course great characters. Strongly recommend reading.

[Donna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Was the story great? Of course it was! Did the kids steal the show, again? Of course they did! Was the book full of grammatical errors and mistakes? Of course it was... 🤦‍♀️😭🤣

[Darlene · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing

Pandora Pine never fails to deliver a stunning and suspenseful read. Please , please keep them coming. I haven't missed one yet!!!

[Jenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

Creepy clowns.
Enough said.

[Sarah Baines · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fabulous

Dead Scared is yet another fabulous addition to the Cold Case Physic universe. It was the usual mix of brilliant, funny and emotional. I love these books!

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was better, but I still miss the old days when the Craigs were actually part of the story. I hope this is a sign of good things to come.