The Perfect Halloween Book Club Pick: A Text or Treat Discussion Guide

If your book club is hunting for something spooky enough for October but still cozy enough for wine and dessert, meet Sydney Farina—a baker who gets text messages from dead people and has to solve their murders.

In Text or Treat, Sydney tries to focus on pumpkin spice and Halloween decorations rather than her haunted phone… until a body turns up around the corner from the bakery where she works, and her own sister becomes suspect number one in the victim’s murder.

Before your next meeting, read this guide: discussion questions built for actual conversation (not just “did you like it?”), a few Halloween treat pairings, and a free printable activity book waiting for you at the end.

About the Book

Sydney Farina is done texting dead people.

She’s got a new, non-haunted phone, and the only ghosts she wants to deal with are Halloween decorations. But when a dead body is discovered around the corner from the bakery where she works, her Halloween gets a little too ghastly.

Sydney doesn’t even know the dead guy, but that doesn’t stop his ghost from texting her for help. (So much for her brand-new phone.) He sent her a scam message months ago, and she wasn’t his only target. He stole money from dozens of people—including Sydney’s sister, who’s become the prime suspect for his murder.

As Sydney digs into the scammer’s life, she finds a multitude of people who wanted him dead. She has to find the real killer fast… or her sister will be trading her Halloween costume for a prison uniform.

Text or Treat is the third book in the Texts From Beyond series but can be read as a standalone.

Why It’s a Great Book Club Pick

Text or Treat gives your club more to dig into than a typical whodunit: the victim is complex and often unsympathetic, so untangling who wanted him dead means wrestling with real questions about judgment, hypocrisy, and whether someone still deserves grace after they’ve caused genuine harm. Add a sister wrongfully accused, a small-town cast where almost everyone is hiding something, and a Halloween festival backdrop that’s atmospheric without ever tipping into graphic or scary—and you’ve got a read that’s built for a discussion with some real teeth, while staying comfortably cozy.

Discussion Questions

The killer uses a Halloween costume to hide in plain sight during a crowded festival. Could this mystery have worked set during any other town event, or does the Halloween setting do real narrative work?
Sydney keeps investigating even after being attacked twice before in the series. What’s really driving her: justice for the victim, protecting her sister, or something else?
Drew is manipulative even as a ghost, alternately guilt-tripping and pressuring Sydney into solving his murder. Did your opinion of him shift by the end, and if so, where was the turning point?
The bakery functions as a found family for Sydney (Faith, Javier, Kendall), running alongside her actual family (Alex, Savannah, their dad). What does each relationship give her that the other can’t?
Sydney keeps her ability to text the dead a secret from Logan for months until circumstances force her hand. What does that say about the tension between intimacy and protecting someone from hard truths? Would you have told him sooner?
Pearl positions herself as the neighborhood’s moral watchdog, reporting on everyone else’s business—yet turns out to be hiding a secret of her own. What does the gap between her judgment of others and her own conduct say about her character?
What if Drew had been a sympathetic victim from the start rather than a scammer? Would your investment in solving his murder have felt different?
Logan’s reaction to the truth of Sydney texting dead people is more shaken than angry, and he comes around to support her. What did that reveal about the kind of partner he is?
The climax hinges on a live-microphone public confession—a classic cozy mystery move. Did it feel earned given everything before it, or more like a convenient shortcut?
The story lines up several viable suspects (Kendall, Gordon, Pearl, Yumiko, Ayaka) before landing on the real killer. Who did you suspect, and what clue (or red herring) convinced you?
The book ends with a loose thread: the recurring skull-hood-ornament limo that shows up after every murder Sydney solves. Speculate as a group: what do you think it is, and does that hook make you want to keep reading the series?

Halloween Treats to Pair With It

You can’t have a good book club without snacks. Since Text or Treat is set at a bakery, you’ll want some baked goods.

I recommend making these pumpkin chocolate chip cookies by Dessert for Two. It’s a small-batch recipe, perfect for a small book club, and you won’t have a dozen leftovers that you’re forced to eat by yourself. (Though they’re so yummy that might not be so bad.)

If you’ve got decorating skills, there’s lots of tutorials out there for adorable ghost cupcakes like these by Caked by Rach.

Or you can always just buy some Halloween treats at your local bakery or grocery store. You’re busy. I get it.☺️

*Please note I’m not affiliated with any of these brands. I just like their food. 😉

Get the Free Printable

Grab the free printable spooky activity book to keep the Halloween vibes going after book club. It’s got coloring pages, crossword puzzles, word searches, and more. You can download your copy by signing up for my author newsletter.

Get your activity book here.