What do you think?
Rate this book
Tess and Tilly #14
The Castle Caper
If you love small towns, endearing relationships, food, animals, and a touch of murder, you will love this mystery series set in the small town of White Eagle Montana.
In book 14 in the series, strange lights, sounds in the night, cold drafty spaces, and moved and missing items, can only mean one thing to the locals who’ve lived in the isolated Scottish countryside for generations. But in spite of the assurance of the villagers that the other worldly pranksters will have their fun and then leave, the new owner of the Faulkner Castle hires Tony to come to Scotland and install a state-of-the-art security system. Tony doesn’t believe in ghosts and the job seems like a perfect opportunity to take some time away from White Eagle, so he talks to Tess, and they agree to make the trip. Fun is had by all until Tess spots her dad in a local pub and realizes that something more than they originally thought might actually be going on.
In book 14 in the series, strange lights, sounds in the night, cold drafty spaces, and moved and missing items, can only mean one thing to the locals who’ve lived in the isolated Scottish countryside for generations. But in spite of the assurance of the villagers that the other worldly pranksters will have their fun and then leave, the new owner of the Faulkner Castle hires Tony to come to Scotland and install a state-of-the-art security system. Tony doesn’t believe in ghosts and the job seems like a perfect opportunity to take some time away from White Eagle, so he talks to Tess, and they agree to make the trip. Fun is had by all until Tess spots her dad in a local pub and realizes that something more than they originally thought might actually be going on.
200 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 20, 2022
376 people are currently reading
139 people want to read
About the author
Kathi Daley
475 books1,786 followersKathi lives with her husband, kids, grandkids, and dogs in beautiful Lake Tahoe. When she isn't writing, Kathi likes to read (preferably at the beach or by the fire), cook (preferably something with chocolate or cheese,) and garden (planting and planning not weeding). She also enjoys spending time on the water when she's not hiking, biking, or snowshoeing, the miles of desolate trails surrounding her home.
Kathi uses the mountain setting in which she lives, along with the animals (wild and domestic) that share her home, as inspiration for her cozy mysteries.
Join me on Facebook at Kathi Daley Books (www.facebook.com/kathidaleybooks) for updates on my books, photos of life in Lake Tahoe, recipes, contests, and giveaways. For weekly updates and contests sign up for The Daley Weekly Newsletter (http://eepurl.com/NRPDf).
Kathi uses the mountain setting in which she lives, along with the animals (wild and domestic) that share her home, as inspiration for her cozy mysteries.
Join me on Facebook at Kathi Daley Books (www.facebook.com/kathidaleybooks) for updates on my books, photos of life in Lake Tahoe, recipes, contests, and giveaways. For weekly updates and contests sign up for The Daley Weekly Newsletter (http://eepurl.com/NRPDf).
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews
September 20, 2022
The Castle Caper is the fourteenth book in Kathi Daley’s Tess and Tilly Cozy Mystery series. I love all the wonderful characters as well as the charming setting. Once again, Ms. Daley has provided readers with a clean, fun read. The characters are three-dimensional and affable, and the storyline is well-plotted and intriguing. There’s no shortage of twists, tums, and red herrings in this complex whodunit. I highly recommend this series to those who enjoy reading well-crafted cozy mysteries.
Tess Marconi works full-time for Brady Baker, the local veterinarian and shelter owner, at the animal shelter, where she oversees the basic training for the dogs and placement of the shelter’s residents in forever homes. She’s also involved with training search and rescue dogs and takes part in search and rescue missions. Her husband and one of her best friends, Tony Marconi, is a computer genius. Her mother co-owns a café, Sisters’ Diner, with her aunt. Tess has one brother, Mike, who is a member of the White Eagle Police Department and married to her other best friend and bookstore owner, Bree. Mike and Bree are the proud parents of a young daughter, Ella.
The new owner of Faulkner Castle in Scotland, Ritchie Alexander, hired Tony to look at the state-of-the-art security system and fix whatever is causing it to malfunction. A glitch or two in the security system might be the cause of some of the strange things happening, but another source, either human or otherworldly, has to be responsible for others. Tess and Tilly, as well as Tony’s friend and business partner, Shaggy, and Shaggy’s girlfriend, Shanti, accompany Tony. Tony and Shaggy plan to attend a video game convention in Edinburgh, hoping to promote their soon-to-be-released video game. While enjoying an outing with Shanti and some of the other castle guests, Tess receives quite a shock when she sees her dad. After receiving a message from Tess’s dad, the couple explores the castle’s south wing and finds the body of one of two missing guests.
Tess Marconi works full-time for Brady Baker, the local veterinarian and shelter owner, at the animal shelter, where she oversees the basic training for the dogs and placement of the shelter’s residents in forever homes. She’s also involved with training search and rescue dogs and takes part in search and rescue missions. Her husband and one of her best friends, Tony Marconi, is a computer genius. Her mother co-owns a café, Sisters’ Diner, with her aunt. Tess has one brother, Mike, who is a member of the White Eagle Police Department and married to her other best friend and bookstore owner, Bree. Mike and Bree are the proud parents of a young daughter, Ella.
The new owner of Faulkner Castle in Scotland, Ritchie Alexander, hired Tony to look at the state-of-the-art security system and fix whatever is causing it to malfunction. A glitch or two in the security system might be the cause of some of the strange things happening, but another source, either human or otherworldly, has to be responsible for others. Tess and Tilly, as well as Tony’s friend and business partner, Shaggy, and Shaggy’s girlfriend, Shanti, accompany Tony. Tony and Shaggy plan to attend a video game convention in Edinburgh, hoping to promote their soon-to-be-released video game. While enjoying an outing with Shanti and some of the other castle guests, Tess receives quite a shock when she sees her dad. After receiving a message from Tess’s dad, the couple explores the castle’s south wing and finds the body of one of two missing guests.
November 18, 2023
4 stelle e mezza
Quando ho bisogno di un comfort book mi rivolgo a questa autrice: i suoi libri non sono dei capolavori, ma sono una lettura veloce e piacevole. Stavolta, però, la storia mi è piaciuta un filino meno del solito.
Quando ho bisogno di un comfort book mi rivolgo a questa autrice: i suoi libri non sono dei capolavori, ma sono una lettura veloce e piacevole. Stavolta, però, la storia mi è piaciuta un filino meno del solito.
September 23, 2022
I enjoyed reading Tess and Tilly's Scottish adventure. However all through the story I felt as if I'd read it before. I finally realized it was very much like another book I'd read by the same author, too much like it which is why I gave it three stars.
October 15, 2022
I'm sorry to say I didn't care for this novel. There were too many characters to keep track of, too many ghosts who were talked about, but never appeared, too much repetitious dialog which I repeatedly skimmed over, and not much description except for phrases like the Scottish scenery was breathtaking, or our room was fabulous, which doesn't tell me much. I'm sure the author's earlier books were much better, but this one wasn't very good.
October 8, 2022
Dreadful book. Too many characters stilted dialogue and too much narrative. The story is set in Scotland but the names of locals, and in particular the ghosts, bear very little if no resemblance to names used in Scotland now or in the past. Think I'll give future Tess and Tilly books a miss.
October 7, 2022
This book was just too far fetched for my liking. The story was all over the place and some of it just seemed to be filler. It is still a decent story, but not one of my favorites in the series.
March 3, 2023
This is the 14th book in the Tess & Tilly series. I just didn't like this one as well as I did the others so I gave it 3 stars. I found some of the dialogue repetitious and too much focus about talking about nonsense that just didn't seem important. So many new characters were introduced that they were hard to keep up with. I will say that the author at least listed the new characters at the front of the book, with a description of who they were, which made it easier to keep up with who was who. Then you kept hearing about ghosts being there but they seem to never appear. I wish she had gone into a little more description about the Scottish scenery. There was too much going back and forth over the suspect list that it got old. The end of the book, left me feeling unsatisfied. I was glad I finished it and could move on to my next book. I hated so say this about a Tess and Tilly book because I love this series and have loved all the other books.
This 14th book finds Tess & Tony heading to Scotland. The new owner for Faulkner Castle, Richie, hired Tony to work on his state of art security system to see why it keeps malfunctioning. Tony's friend and business partner Shaggy and his girlfriend Shanti along with Tilly are tagging along. Tony & Shaggy plan on attending a video game convention while they are there.
Things are going well and they are enjoying themselves until Tess sees her dad in a local pub . She was going to speak to him, till he shook his to let her know to pretend she doesn't know him. Tony did get a message from Tess' dad that they would find something interesting in the south wing of the castle. What they found was a dead body and the plot thickens when they find a second dead body. Does Tess' dad have anything to do with these dead bodies? The rest of the book just starts going through the list of suspects to narrow it down to who killed these these people and what were they doing in the south wing.
Overall I have loved this series but this book just didn't measure up. If you read it, let me know what you think in the comments.
This 14th book finds Tess & Tony heading to Scotland. The new owner for Faulkner Castle, Richie, hired Tony to work on his state of art security system to see why it keeps malfunctioning. Tony's friend and business partner Shaggy and his girlfriend Shanti along with Tilly are tagging along. Tony & Shaggy plan on attending a video game convention while they are there.
Things are going well and they are enjoying themselves until Tess sees her dad in a local pub . She was going to speak to him, till he shook his to let her know to pretend she doesn't know him. Tony did get a message from Tess' dad that they would find something interesting in the south wing of the castle. What they found was a dead body and the plot thickens when they find a second dead body. Does Tess' dad have anything to do with these dead bodies? The rest of the book just starts going through the list of suspects to narrow it down to who killed these these people and what were they doing in the south wing.
Overall I have loved this series but this book just didn't measure up. If you read it, let me know what you think in the comments.
March 15, 2023
Ghostly good
What is better than an old castle in Scotland that has ghosts, dead bodies and multiple suspects? Tess and Tony go to Scotland to stay at a supposedly haunted castle so that Tony can fix the computer system that is suddenly glitchiing causing lights to go on and off and toilets to flush on their own. Or are the ghosts acting up for the new owner as stated by the paranormal investigators also staying at the castle. Just when things can't get any creepier, Tess and Tony discover not one but two dead bodies in the not yet restored, locked oldest section of the castle. A sudden monsoon type rain storm causes flooding and the only bridge to the castle to be closed cutting all of the guests and staff off from the town and then at
Authorities. Stuck with 2 dead bodies and lots of suspects, will Tess and Tony be able to solve the case before someone else dies? Excellent cozy mystery by one of my favorite authors.
What is better than an old castle in Scotland that has ghosts, dead bodies and multiple suspects? Tess and Tony go to Scotland to stay at a supposedly haunted castle so that Tony can fix the computer system that is suddenly glitchiing causing lights to go on and off and toilets to flush on their own. Or are the ghosts acting up for the new owner as stated by the paranormal investigators also staying at the castle. Just when things can't get any creepier, Tess and Tony discover not one but two dead bodies in the not yet restored, locked oldest section of the castle. A sudden monsoon type rain storm causes flooding and the only bridge to the castle to be closed cutting all of the guests and staff off from the town and then at
Authorities. Stuck with 2 dead bodies and lots of suspects, will Tess and Tony be able to solve the case before someone else dies? Excellent cozy mystery by one of my favorite authors.
October 15, 2022
Tess and Tony head to the Scottish countryside to stay in a castle where Tony has to work on the security system. It seems that ghosts are causing some problems. But when Tess and Tony find the bodies of two men, there's a real culprit to find.
I've really enjoyed this series and this book is no exception. It was fun to visit a Scottish castle with Tess and Tony. The book's well-written, and I was drawn into the engaging story from the beginning. The mystery will keep you guessing. I'm looking forward to more from this series. I highly recommend both book and series which I believe is best read in order.
I've really enjoyed this series and this book is no exception. It was fun to visit a Scottish castle with Tess and Tony. The book's well-written, and I was drawn into the engaging story from the beginning. The mystery will keep you guessing. I'm looking forward to more from this series. I highly recommend both book and series which I believe is best read in order.
November 4, 2022
Finding Mystery Everywhere She Goes
Tess can find a murder mystery just turning around, so why not in Scotland? The Castle had a lot of guests, so that adds up to a lot of suspects in the case. Which makes for an interesting investigation. Tess and Tony had their work cut out for them, but with a little help from their friends or family the mysteries began to fall in to place. Looking forward to reading number 15 in this series.
Tess can find a murder mystery just turning around, so why not in Scotland? The Castle had a lot of guests, so that adds up to a lot of suspects in the case. Which makes for an interesting investigation. Tess and Tony had their work cut out for them, but with a little help from their friends or family the mysteries began to fall in to place. Looking forward to reading number 15 in this series.
February 14, 2023
Great book from a great author
This book was another great story, this time Tess and Tilly accompany Tony on a trip to Scotland. Tony has work on a computer. Along with well developed characters from the series, new characters join them in a "haunted castle." The usual adventure becomes involved with mystery and Tess and her family/ friends are left to solve it. Another great read
This book was another great story, this time Tess and Tilly accompany Tony on a trip to Scotland. Tony has work on a computer. Along with well developed characters from the series, new characters join them in a "haunted castle." The usual adventure becomes involved with mystery and Tess and her family/ friends are left to solve it. Another great read
October 22, 2022
This series is always delightful to read. Tess & Tony and Tilly the dog are off to Scotland in this book. Could the old castle be haunted or just a problem with the high tech system that runs it all. Of course there is a mystery to solve. Plus Tess sees her Dad in a pub. But since her Dad is a spy she does not speak. Enjoy the latest book in this series.
February 19, 2023
The Castle Caper
Tony,Tilley, and Tess flew to Scotland to a Castle new Castle owned by their friend Richie. In the meantime strange sounds and things happening to computers is why Tess and Tony were going to Scotland to help. A rainstorm, two deaths and something going on when Tess saw her Dad. I really enjoyed reading this story
Tony,Tilley, and Tess flew to Scotland to a Castle new Castle owned by their friend Richie. In the meantime strange sounds and things happening to computers is why Tess and Tony were going to Scotland to help. A rainstorm, two deaths and something going on when Tess saw her Dad. I really enjoyed reading this story
April 7, 2023
Scotland
I do love Tess and Tilly mysteries. Following the convoluted murders & people was a little confusing. I have a few questions about some of the characters.
Tilly is so sweet but very protective of Tess and Tony.
The one thing I didn’t care for was there were too many characters to keep straight.
All in all I enjoyed this book a lot.
Thank you Kathi
I do love Tess and Tilly mysteries. Following the convoluted murders & people was a little confusing. I have a few questions about some of the characters.
Tilly is so sweet but very protective of Tess and Tony.
The one thing I didn’t care for was there were too many characters to keep straight.
All in all I enjoyed this book a lot.
Thank you Kathi
September 26, 2022
The Castle Caper
The story had mystery but not a lot of action. The characters are great. It’s time Tess get over worrying if her father cares about her. I will read the next book in the series.
The story had mystery but not a lot of action. The characters are great. It’s time Tess get over worrying if her father cares about her. I will read the next book in the series.
September 29, 2022
A Tests and Fully mystery #14
A really enjoyable read in the series. I always enjoy all the Tests and Fully characters. The mysterious interactions with their dead father is so intriguing.
A really enjoyable read in the series. I always enjoy all the Tests and Fully characters. The mysterious interactions with their dead father is so intriguing.
October 4, 2022
Tony, Tess, and Tilly take a trip to Scotland along with Shaggy and Shanti to visit a castle hotel. While Tony is working on the computerized hotel system. Tess comes upon a surprising visitor--whose email sends her and Tony finding a gruesome discovery.
October 21, 2022
Great story
I like that Tess and Tony traveled to Scotland to help a client. This turned into a murder mystery that was to be solved with pointers from her dad and a brainstorming session with her brother. Good story line and good ending.
I like that Tess and Tony traveled to Scotland to help a client. This turned into a murder mystery that was to be solved with pointers from her dad and a brainstorming session with her brother. Good story line and good ending.
October 24, 2022
I have enjoyed all of the Tess & Tilly books in the past. This one was a little disappointing as I felt the writing to be more stiff and the interactions between characters to often be awkward. The mystery itself was just intricate enough to keep me interested until I reached the end.
November 1, 2022
I enjoyed this book although it did have several elements that were similar to the Zoe Donovan series when they visited ireland. I guess new ideas are hard to come by. But all in all it was a great fall story not so much Halloween as a Fall Story
May 12, 2024
Tony, Tess, Shaggy and Shanti go to Scotland. They stay in the Faulkner Castle, while Tony upgrades the computer system. After spotting her dad in town, she and Tony tour the old part of the castle and discovers two of the guests, dead.
January 18, 2025
Let's move the bodies and disturb the crime scene. Seriously!?! The characters are lovable but a tad egotistical. I am only continuing the series because I am curious about the back story of the father.
September 23, 2022
Loved the adventures of Tony, Tess and Tilly in Scotland, an interesting change of scene.
September 24, 2022
loved the latest story, can't wait for the next...
September 27, 2022
Terrific series
Anxiously. Looking forward to number fifteen.. Really enjoy all of Kathi Daley's cozy mysteries and look forward to reading them all.
Anxiously. Looking forward to number fifteen.. Really enjoy all of Kathi Daley's cozy mysteries and look forward to reading them all.
September 30, 2022
Who killed Maverick and Easton and why??? Are there really ghosts??? I enjoyed this story and recommend the book.
October 1, 2022
Another great adventure!
I always look forward to a new Tess and Fully story. The additional characters are interesting and there are great twists.. Ready for the next one!
I always look forward to a new Tess and Fully story. The additional characters are interesting and there are great twists.. Ready for the next one!
April 19, 2023
I always enjoy Tess's adventures. This was a fun read. The addition of the castle and culture surrounding it was an added bonus.
January 26, 2025
Lovely
I am enjoying this series so much that I can’t put them down. I will be very sad when I finish them and I am getting there.
I am enjoying this series so much that I can’t put them down. I will be very sad when I finish them and I am getting there.
December 6, 2025
Great book. There were lots of characters yet after their introduction they were easy to keep in mind. Fast paced and fun!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews