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cozy mystery
Series · cozy mystery
Bailey Ruth Raeburn
The Bailey Ruth Raeburn series by Carolyn Hart has 10 known books (10 published) and is best read in publication order, starting with Ghost at Work (2008). The latest book with a fully recorded publication date is Ghost Blows a Kiss.
- Books
- 10 known books (10 novels)
- Published
- 10
- First published
- 2008
- Status
- completed
- Shelved under
- Mystery & Crime
- Last checked
Start here: Ghost at Work (2008) — then read straight through in publication order.
Reading order
The date order of published books and any announced future entries — the default way to read the series.
- Book 1:
Ghost at Work
Ghost at Work opens Carolyn Hart's Bailey Ruth Raeburn series, a cozy mystery published in 2008. It's the first of ten books, followed by Merry, Merry Ghost.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Ghost at Work - Book 2:
Merry, Merry Ghost
Merry, Merry Ghost is the second book in Carolyn Hart's Bailey Ruth Raeburn series, published in 2009 at 352 pages. It follows Ghost at Work and precedes Ghost in Trouble.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Merry, Merry Ghost - Book 3:
Ghost in Trouble
Ghost in Trouble is the third entry in Carolyn Hart's Bailey Ruth Raeburn series, published in 2010. It follows Merry, Merry Ghost and precedes Ghost Gone Wild.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Ghost in Trouble - Book 4:
Ghost Gone Wild
Ghost Gone Wild is the fourth book in Carolyn Hart's Bailey Ruth Raeburn series, published in 2013 at 304 pages. It follows Ghost in Trouble and precedes Ghost Wanted.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Ghost Gone Wild - Book 5:
Ghost Wanted
Ghost Wanted is the fifth entry in Carolyn Hart's Bailey Ruth Raeburn series, published in 2014 at 349 pages. It follows Ghost Gone Wild and precedes Ghost to the Rescue.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Ghost Wanted - Book 6:
Ghost to the Rescue
Ghost to the Rescue is the sixth book in Carolyn Hart's Bailey Ruth Raeburn series, published in 2015 at 378 pages. It follows Ghost Wanted and precedes Ghost Times Two.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Ghost to the Rescue - Book 7:
Ghost Times Two
Ghost Times Two is the seventh entry in Carolyn Hart's Bailey Ruth Raeburn series, published in 2016 at 352 pages. It follows Ghost to the Rescue and precedes Ghost on the Case.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Ghost Times Two - Book 8:
Ghost on the Case
Ghost on the Case is the eighth book in Carolyn Hart's Bailey Ruth Raeburn series, published in 2017 at 337 pages. It follows Ghost Times Two and precedes Ghost Ups Her Game.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Ghost on the Case - Book 9:
Ghost Ups Her Game
Ghost Ups Her Game is the ninth entry in Carolyn Hart's Bailey Ruth Raeburn series, published in 2020 at 224 pages. It follows Ghost on the Case and precedes the series' closing volume, Ghost Blows a Kiss.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Ghost Ups Her Game - Book 10:
Ghost Blows a Kiss
Ghost Blows a Kiss closes Carolyn Hart's ten-book Bailey Ruth Raeburn series, published in July 2021 at 333 pages. It follows Ghost Ups Her Game as the final entry in a series that ran from 2008.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Ghost Blows a Kiss
About the Bailey Ruth Raeburn series
Bailey Ruth Raeburn is a former Oklahoma police officer's wife turned ghost, dispatched from Heaven's Department of Good Intentions back to her hometown of Adelaide, Oklahoma, whenever the living need a nudge in the right direction. Carolyn Hart launched the series with Ghost at Work (2008) as a lighter, more overtly supernatural cozy than either of her earlier series -- Bailey Ruth can turn visible or invisible at will, has strict Heavenly rules she's supposed to follow (and routinely bends), and solves each book's murder from the unique vantage point of someone the living can't normally see or hear.
The premise gives Hart room for comedy that Death on Demand and Henrie O don't really attempt: Bailey Ruth materializing mid-sentence in inconvenient clothing, her supervisor Wiggins fretting from the Department about her rule-breaking, and murder investigations that double as second chances for Bailey Ruth to fix old regrets in the town she left behind. Underneath the ghost-cozy conceit, though, each entry is still a fair-play whodunit with a real killer to unmask by the end.
Ten novels were published between 2008 and 2021, making Bailey Ruth Hart's longest-running series after Death on Demand itself.
Frequently asked questions
How many Bailey Ruth Raeburn books are there?
Ten novels, published between 2008 and 2021, from Ghost at Work through Ghost Blows a Kiss.
What order should I read the Bailey Ruth books in?
Publication order, starting with Ghost at Work (2008). Each murder mystery is self-contained, though the running setup around Bailey Ruth's Heavenly assignments builds across the series.
Is Bailey Ruth Raeburn connected to Carolyn Hart's other series?
No. It's a separate, standalone series from Death on Demand and Henrie O, distinguished by its supernatural ghost-cozy premise -- Bailey Ruth is a ghost sent back to Earth to help the living.
Who is Bailey Ruth Raeburn?
A former Oklahoma police officer's wife who died and became a ghost working for Heaven's Department of Good Intentions, periodically sent back to her hometown of Adelaide, Oklahoma to solve murders and set things right.
Is the Bailey Ruth series finished?
Ten novels were published from 2008 to 2021, and no further entries have been announced since Ghost Blows a Kiss.
If you like the Bailey Ruth Raeburn series
Reading order last verified .