The Perfectly Proper Paranormal Museum by Kirsten Weiss

What a charming novel! I've been reading a lot of "niche" mysteries with quirky, young heroines and this is one that actually steps out (if only a little) from what seems to be the blueprint of these stories. First, Maddie actually seems to have a brain in her head. And she's not driven to solve the murders but she's not dragged into either. The paranormal aspects are a light touch and the characters are interesting. There is a hint, just a hint, of the inevitable love triangle but I really hope Ms. Weiss doesn't fall into that trap.
Maddie Kosloski has been, ahem, "downsized," from her most recent job after she refused to bribe a government official. She comes, by her own words, from a family of overachievers so she's not in a rush to explain why she's in between jobs. That's why her friend finds it so easy to push Maddie into taking over the town's second best tourist attraction, the paranormal museum. But that's before Maddie and her friend find the woman who was schtupping the friend's fiance dead in the museum. And the race is on.

Four stars
Book will be published March 8, 2016
Followed by Pressed to Death