The Ghost and the Haunted Portrait marks the seventh entry in our Haunted Bookshop series, but the truth is our beloved hard-boiled ghost has been haunting the cozy streets of Quindicott, Rhode Island, since 2004. We would like to thank Berkley Prime Crime for the faith they had in this series from the beginning, and our marvelous editor, Michelle Vega, who recently shepherded (pun intended) Jack’s return after nearly a decade’s absence.
We wish to thank the many loyal fans of the ghost detective, and we look forward to their enjoyment of Jack’s adventures on this mortal plane for years to come. A tip of the old fedora also goes to our agent, John Talbot, for his unflagging support and professionalism.
Our long-standing appreciation of cover art from the pulp magazines of the 1930s to the dust jackets and perfect bound covers of today inspired this entry in our series. Many sources helped us, including Undercover: An Illustrated History of American Mass Market Paperbacks by Thomas L. Bonn (Penguin Books, 1982) and Paperbacks, U.S.A.: A Graphic History, 1939–1959 by Piet Schreuders (Blue Dolphin Books, 1981).
Ghosts don’t scare us but the many scams and abuses in our industry do, and we thank the Science Fiction Writers of America (and the MWA, HWA, and ASJA) for sponsoring Writer Beware, a noteworthy resource for authors and one of the inspirations for a subplot in this novel.
As for our novels, you can learn more about them (and us) by visiting CoffeehouseMystery.com and CleoCoyle.com.
—Alice Alfonsi and Marc Cerasini, aka Cleo Coyle, New York City