The Story That Wouldn’t Die: A Mystery by Christina Estes
My rating: 2 of 5 stars
The Story That Wouldn’t Die is the 2nd-book in the Jolene Garcia Mystery series. I actually didn’t realize this was the 2nd-book when I accepted it from the publisher, though that didn’t really affect my experience.
I think had I picked up the 1st-book though, I probably wouldn’t have picked this one up.
I’ll be frank, this Mystery wasn’t to my tastes. I thought I was picking up a Cozy, but it definitely wasn’t that. I’m not quite sure how to explain it, but it the entire thing felt so forced. There was nothing cozy about it, IMO, and it was hardly mysterious.
Unfortunately, it wasn’t the opposite, hard-edged, or compelling, either. I actually didn’t care for the MC, so that certainly didn’t help matters. I’m glad I gave it a shot, but I will not be continuing with the series.
I generally like mysteries that involve journalists, but this didn’t end up scratching that itch. The writing felt more like the author had bullet pointed issues she wanted to include, got all those in and then tried to build a mystery around it.
It just didn’t work and it wasn’t an enjoyable experience. The audiobook narration by Devon Sorvari was solid though, and that definitely helped me to push through and complete it. Otherwise, I’m not sure I would have.
Thank you to the publisher, Dreamscape Media and Minotaur Books, for providing me with a copy to read and review. Even though this didn’t work for me, doesn’t mean it won’t work for you.
If the synopsis and mystery presented sounds interesting to you, go ahead and give it a go. You may end up loving it!