Jerome is back - yes! But the main ghost this time is Joe, a Pony Express rider. Gram has been working with Joe over the years to deliver the letters that never arrived and they're down to the last three. Everyone wants to know what will happened when that last letter is delivered.

Meanwhile, during a cowboy poet convention taking place in Broken Rope, an actor is shot dead during a skit and Betts' brother Teddy is found beaten and unconscious in the woods. (NB: The back of the book gets it wrong again. Teddy is never the prime suspect in anything. Who writes these things?!?)

This was, I think, my favorite of the series so far. I've finally figured out how the author intends to structure the series, and If Catfish Had Nine Lives captured my attention from the beginning; previous books always started off a bit slow for me. Keeping Jerome around as something of an anchor ghost makes it easier for me to look forward to each new ghost's story; it's weird, but there it is. Plus, since we're talking about weird - I really like the kinda/sorta romance Betts has going with Jerome. It's a cozy - it's not like they're going to break out the ghost sex or anything! - so it's only sorta weird. Still don't much care from Gram though.

The here-and-now mystery was convoluted as all hell. I'm not sure I ever had any real idea of what was going on, but since it's a cowboy convention full of people from everywhere camping out in a field, the chaos sort of belongs in the plot. I'm not sure the motivation/solution was really all that legit - the murderer's motivation felt weak and - sorry - stupid. But the ghosts are what the story is all about anyway. At least for me.

This is a series that has crept up on me slowly; each new one sits higher atop the TBR pile than the one that preceded it and as long as Jerome sticks around, so will I. ( )

This is the 4th book in the series, so I think I missed some of the background story, but was still able to enjoy the story. I liked that Paige Shelton was able to give us a lot of interesting history about "the Pony Express" by using ghosts.

Betts, the protagonist, is not directly investigating a murder in this story. She and Missouri Anna (Gram) are trying to help the ghosts from the Pony Express deliver letters that were undelivered at his death and find remains of another dead rider, named Astin. Broken Rope is hosting a cowboy poetry convention, and Gram and Betts are teaching outdoor cooking classes - frying catfish over a campfire, and Dutch oven techniques. Jerome, a ghost from previous stories shows up and says he is there to protect Betts, but before they can figure out why, events start to tumble out of control. An actor is shot dead in what was supposed to be the skit of a gunfight, and Betts' brother, Teddy, is found beaten up, with no memory of what happened or who was involved. A young woman claiming to be a descendant of Astin has shown up asking questions. How does this all tie together? There is a little love interest Betts and Cliff (local policeman) as well as some possible feeling with Gram and one of the cowboys. The crime eventually gets solved along with some history and lineage getting explained. A great blend of history, crime, ghosts and cooking. ( )

If Catfish Had Nine Lives is the fourth book in the A Country Cooking School Mystery series.

Betts was looking forward to a little quiet time between classes for catfish fishing with Jake, but the community of Broken Rope has agreed to host the annual cowboy poetry convention. Betts and Gram plan on giving a demonstration cooking with a Dutch Oven over an open campfire. In addition to sitting around the campfire reciting poetry, they have also planned an re-enactment of a gunfight down town. But when one of the gunslingers, Norman, is actually killed, Betts brother Teddy comes under suspicion as he had had a heated discussion with the dead man the night before. Betts soon finds that her brother had been beaten up the night before the killing and he doesn't remember anything from the night before. So Betts needs to find out who might have wanted Norman dead.

The part that I love best about this series is how Shelton works into the story, a ghost from the past who still needs to have some kind of closure. Betts and her ghost Jerome have come to the conclusion that he must be her guardian, as he seems to be around when she is in danger. As Betts is watching the aftermath from the gunslinger's murder, Joe, A Pony Express rider, asks Bett's help in delivering the letters he still has in satchel, so he can pass over. And in the present day, Betts and Jake are helping Esther gather information on her great-great-grandfather, Astin Reagal, who was also a Pony Express rider, and who was never heard from again after setting out on his last mission.

Recipes for Dutch Oven cooking over a campfire are also included with the book.

Most definitely looking forward to the next book in the series. ( )

Broken Rope, Missouri really seems like it would be a great place to visit. Live theater, a cooking school and some paranormal activity, only visible to a chosen few. I always enjoy Jerome's return, although Bett's is going to have to figure her attraction once and for all. When Gran is visited by Joe, a letter reading Pony Express rider, Betts becomes involved in solving both a crime in the past and the present. Shelton is so good at what she does, I look forward to each title very much. ( )