How do you survive a season of fear?
October is a hard month for Rae Riley's family. Her dad, Sheriff Walter "Mal" Malinowski lost his wife and father then. He also has to manage all the trouble that Halloween brings to rural Marlin County, Ohio. But this year, the Malinowskis confront even more heartache.
Rae's Uncle Hank fights for his life after he's trapped under his stallion in a creek. His twelve-year-old daughter Coral says a monster spooked her dad's stallion. Hank's other daughter, sixteen-year-old Amber, is convinced she let everyone down during the family's efforts to rescue Hank because she became hysterical.
While Rae supports her family through this crisis as best she can, her friendship with Deputy Chris Kincaid turns into something more and a family feud over a lost inheritance erupts at a local Halloween attraction. The Haunting in the Hollow is staged on land once owned by Cyrus Morley, a wealthy dabbler in the occult, who hid a fortune in cash and jewels before he died. The only clues to the location is a three-word note and the poem "Eldorado" by Edgar Allen Poe.
Rae and Amber work to unravel the 70-year-old riddle so their great aunt Lily and her kids can inherit a fortune. But other heirs are interested. And Aunt Lily's son Jack would never share anything he finds.
On top of that, Rae realizes Chris is hiding something from her, and a bigfoot hunter comes to the county, interested in the story of Coral's monster and unconcerned with following laws like respecting private property lines. Rae's also worried about Amber, who keeps putting her safety at risk to prove her courage, like confronting Jack when he fights with his ex-girlfriend, sketchy medium Lyra Vex.
Then Cyrus's only living child, Timothy Morley, hires Lyra to conduct a s�ance to contact his father and reveal the location of the treasure. When Lyra uncovers a second clue, it looks like Rae and Amber's treasure hunt is over.
But the day after the s�ance, Amber glimpses a monster bending over Lyra's body. Did one of the heirs kill her? Or was it her jealous ex-boyfriend Jack? As Mal's investigation goes nowhere, Rae learns there's only way one way to survive all the fears the family faces. And only one way to unmask a killer.
Allen, Jcp: - JPC Allen started her writing career in second grade with an homage to Scooby Doo, and she's been tracking down mysteries ever since. The first novel in her Rae Riley Mysteries series, A Shadow on the Snow, won first place in the ACFW KidLit contest for YA fiction in 2024. A Storm of Doubts, her second novel, came in second for YA fiction at the Selah Awards in 2025. Online, she offers tips and prompts to ignite the creative spark in every kind of writer. She also leads workshops for tweens, teens, and adult, encouraging them to discover the adventure of writing. Coming from a long line of Mountaineers, she's a life-long Buckeye. Follow her to her next mystery at www.facebook.com/JPCAllenWrites/, www.instagram.com/jpcallenwrites/, www.bookbub.com/profile/jpc-allen, and www.goodreads.com/author/show/18623122.JPC_Allen.
