Mystery

Review: Ghost Island (Jessica Niemi #4) by Max Seeck

~ megs14malloy

Ghost Island (Ghosts of the Past, #4)Ghost Island by Max Seeck
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**4.5-stars**

Ghost Island is the 4th-installment in Max Seeck’s Jessica Niemi series, also known as the Ghosts of the Past series.

These Nordic Crime novels follow MC, Jessica Niemi, who is a Helsinki Police Detective. Admittedly, this is the first novel that I have picked up in this series, and personally, I feel it worked well as a standalone.

With this being said though, I enjoyed it so much that I intend to go back and read the previous 3-books. I’ve already got the 1st-book, The Witch Hunter, on loan from my library and am excited to start it soon.

I found Jessica to be a very compelling protagonist, and she did refer to some things in her past that I am interested in learning more about. Most specifically, her relationship with an apparent mentor who has since passed away.

In this installment, at the very beginning of the story, Jessica gets in a bit of trouble while leaving a therapy appointment. She gets in an altercation with a belligerent man, who goes so far as to put his hands on her.

Defending herself, Jessica fights back, although in hindsight, she may have taken it a little too far. When video of the incident spreads, Jessica’s supervisor suggests she take some leave to get her head on straight. The Department doesn’t need this type of negative publicity.

Jessica travels to a remote island in the Åland archipelago, where she rents a room at a historic seaside inn. She doesn’t tell anyone in her life where she is going.

Hoping for solitude, Jessica is a bit rattled when a group of elderly travelers arrive, one of them begrudged that Jessica is inhabiting the room she usually stays in.

Jessica learns this group is the last of the ‘birds of spring’, former refugees who fled Finland as children during World War II and lived together for a few months in an orphanage on the island. They return every year, for a reunion of sorts.

The orphanage has been abandoned for years, but the building still exists and local legend has it that one of the orphans, a girl named Maija, who went missing decades before, still haunts the island.

Maija is said to appear, in her signature blue coat, late at night at the end the pier, the last place she was ever seen.

When one of the ‘birds of spring’ is found dead, drowned by the pier, Jessica suspects foul play. She begins to dig into the past of the orphanage and discovers two other deaths that suggest a copycat killer may be on the island.

With inclement weather closing in, making travel an impossibility, Jessica must get to the bottom of this and quickly, before more people end up dead.

I wasn’t sure what to expect going into this. As mentioned, I hadn’t read the other books and wasn’t sure if that would damper my enjoyment or not.

Nevertheless, this synopsis was intriguing enough for me to want to take the risk and I’m so glad that I did. I was invested in this very early on, as I found Jessica’s character extremely compelling.

I was surprised that this turned out to be a dual timeline, with us getting a huge chunk of the story told via Maija’s perspective, set in the mid-1940s, at the time when she resided at the orphanage.

I am not a big Historical Fiction Reader, but it seemed well done here. Maija’s perspective did manage to keep me engaged and wanting to discover the connections to the present and Jessica’s stay at the property.

This brings me to the setting. I loved it. As someone who lives on a small island, that is remote and difficult to get to, I love island-set stories. It makes it so easy for me to picture just the overall feel of that landscape.

This was made infinitely better by the inclement weather that descends just as the plot is heating up. It brought a claustrophobic feel, as you realize that there is literally no escape for these characters. Someone is dead, and they are stuck. There’s a killer amongst them, but who?

I am an atmosphere girl, first and foremost, and this transported me. I felt like I was there alongside Jessica. I could feel the cold, the wind, the isolation. It was gripping.

My only slight criticism would be, once we got to the big reveal, I felt like the end dragged on a little two long for my tastes. Perhaps, if I had read the earlier books and had more backstory on Jessica I wouldn’t have felt that way, IDK.

Either way, I cannot wait to read the other books in this series and I hope there are more coming. Jessica definitely has a lot of room to grow as character. I feel like there are big things ahead for her.

Thank you to the publisher, Berkley, for providing me a copy to read and review. You’ve hooked me. I’m looking forward to more Jessica Niemi!

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Review: The Last Devil to Die (Thursday Murder Club #4) by Richard Osman

~ megs14malloy

The Last Devil to Die (Thursday Murder Club, #4)The Last Devil to Die by Richard Osman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Last Devil to Die is the 4th-installment in Richard Osman’s wildly-popular Cozy Mystery series, The Thursday Murder Club, following sleuthing retirees.

This is the most emotional installment yet, and I’m left wondering, if this is a Cozy Crime Mystery, why am I crying!?

The answer is simple. It’s because of the way Osman writes his characters. I feel like it would be impossible to read this series, and not come to love Elizabeth, Joyce, Ron, and Ibrahim, like they’re your own grandparents.

I absolutely adore them. The humanity and humor that is brought to these stories brings them to life in a natural and engaging way. It’s so enjoyable.

In this installment, one of Stephen’s old friends, Kuldesh Sharma, an antiques dealer, is killed. Shot in what looks like a professional hit. Shocking to say the least.

Unable to let a good murder pass them by, the Thursday Murder Club decides to investigate. Who would want to kill dear old, Kuldesh? It doesn’t make sense.

This multilayered mystery is fun and fast-paced. There’s a lot of moving parts and a lot of characters. We’re thrown into a world of oft-corrupt antiques dealers, art forgers, and most entertainingly, believe it or not, heroin dealers.

In addition to the mystery, I feel like with each installment we are given more info on the backgrounds of our MCs. We get to know them a little more with each mystery.

I loved seeing Joyce come into her own in this one, as Elizabeth is preoccupied with some personal issues. Joyce really stepped up to fill the void and it was nice to see how much her confidence has grown since the 1st-book.

We also learned more about Ibrahim and got some insight into his past. It was touching to see him feel comfortable enough to open up in the way he did here.

As you can tell from the above-statements alone, these books are about so much more than just the murder mystery. Small note of advice before you dive into this one, be sure you have some tissues handy.

I’m actually not sure what the plans are for this series. I’m hoping this isn’t the last book. There were some aspects of this that felt conclusive, but there’s still a lot of life left to live for these characters, nonetheless.

If you haven’t started this series yet, let me assure you, the hype is real. You don’t want to miss out on this!

I definitely recommend these to anyone who enjoys Cozy Mysteries, character-driven stories, or stories following older characters. Just be prepared to feel things…

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Review: You Know What You Did by K.T. Nguyen

~ megs14malloy

You Know What You DidYou Know What You Did by K.T. Nguyen
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

**4.5-stars rounded up**

You Know What You Did is an intensely-suspenseful Mystery/Thriller debut from a hot up-and-coming author, K.T. Nguyen. And what a crackling debut it is!!

This story follows a fascinating-MC, Anh Le, who goes by Annie. She’s married, and the mother of a teenaged daughter. Annie is also an artist, although she’s feeling unsatisfied with her career lately.

In fact, a few aspects of Annie’s life are beginning to derail after the passing of her Mom, a Vietnam War refugee, who Annie had a contentious relationship with.

Annie’s mother had been residing in an out-building on their family property, so she had been a fairly constant presence in Annie’s life.

The loss impacted Annie in a lot of unexpected ways. Her severe-OCD comes roaring back and the dark fixations of her mind seem to be morphing into her reality.

When Annie’s most wealthy patron goes missing, shortly after Annie visited her home, the police come knocking.

The disappearance is shocking and it has Annie questioning everything, even herself. She can’t seem to keep current events straight in her mind.

She’s confused about many things and it’s scary. She begins to distance herself from her family and friends.

With Annie’s husband traveling for work, and her daughter off to summer camp, Annie is left to her own devices. As you can imagine, that doesn’t go well.

Waking up in a hotel, with a lifeless body beside her, Annie has officially hit rock bottom. The police are back and she doesn’t have answers that make sense, not even to herself.

Y’all, I loved this. I found it completely engaging, creepy and thought-provoking. K.T. Nguyen delivered all the tense, claustrophobic, desperate, unreliable narrator vibes that I could ever hope for.

I found it so easy to connect with Annie. I felt everything she was feeling. It made me incredibly anxious, but in a good, entertaining way, if that’s possible. There were times that I was crawling out of my skin of anticipation.

I was sympathetic to Annie’s character from the start, particularly since I couldn’t stand her husband, or her daughter. It often felt like they were ganging up on Annie and were just not giving her any slack.

I was happy when they both left, so Annie could be alone. Although it definitely didn’t help her mental state.

It’s funny, I was Buddy Reading this with a friend and she mentioned, like how much is what Annie is relaying to us about her husband and daughter true? Could it be her paranoia? Part of her mental spiral? Or were they really being that rotten to her?

It’s so funny, I didn’t even consider that before she said it, but yeah, Annie’s mental state definitely added so much to the suspense of this story. It was an exceptionally well-executed unreliable narrator situation.

I absolutely loved Nguyen’s writing. The character work in particular, I was so impressed. I enjoyed not only the suspense and mystery of this story, but Nguyen also chose to tackle some difficult topics, such as the immigrant experience and mental health.

I enjoyed the levels of depth that these topics added to the story. This is more than just your standard Popcorn Thriller. This story has meat and I enjoyed every bite.

I would absolutely recommend this to anyone who enjoys a taut, engaging and emotional Mystery/Thriller. Particularly, if you enjoy an unreliable narrator.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Dutton, for providing me with a copy to read and review. If this is her debut, I cannot wait to see what Nguyen delivers next!!!

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Review: Twenty-Seven Minutes by Ashley Tate

~ megs14malloy

Twenty-Seven MinutesTwenty-Seven Minutes by Ashley Tate
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Twenty-Seven Minutes, what I would classify as a slow-burn Literary Suspense novel, is a debut for author, Ashley Tate.

In this story, we settle into the small town of West Wilmer, where 10-years ago, their local It-Girl, Phoebe Dean was killed in a car accident on the way home from a party.

Her brother, Grant, was the driver that night and for unknown reasons, he waited 27-minutes after the crash before he called 9-1-1.

Yeah, it’s suspicious and rumors have swirled for years that the reason he waited so long was that he needed to sober up.

For a multitude of reasons, this tragedy hit the town especially hard. As the 10th-anniversary approaches, a memorial is planned for Phoebe and the town is abuzz again with theories and speculation about that night.

As you can imagine, this causes stress for those closest to the incident. It’s like they have to keep repeating the worst night of their life over and over again. Why won’t people just let them forget?

This story is told via multiple POVs and a dual timeline, as we follow those most effected by the events of that night.

Basically, if Phoebe’s death were a pebble dropped in a pond, we’d be following the ripples closest to impact. And honestly, that’s how I thought of this set-up. It worked.

As past and present begin to merge, the truth about that night is finally made clear for the Reader. It’s an emotional and angst-filled journey that doesn’t rush anything along.

I enjoyed this one. I found it to be well-written and the mystery behind that night, the pace at which all is revealed, I thought was really well done.

I think it is important to keep in mind though, this is a slow burn. If you are looking for a fast-paced Thriller, there may be better options. You have to be comfortable just sitting with characters and getting to know them through their thoughts and reflections.

For me, this was truly a story about surviving grief and trauma. Each journey through that space is going to look different. People deal with such events using the resources available to them, and some fare better than others.

I loved the small town atmosphere; she ran deep. I feel like anyone who grew up in a small town could relate with a lot of the vibes Tate created here.

I also enjoyed all the messy, damaged relationships and characters. I found them interesting and frankly, I don’t trust characters who are too perfect. I thought Tate did a great job of blending all of their stories together and pulling off a solid conclusion.

Overall, I think for Readers who really love to sink their teeth into fabulous character work, and they don’t need to like those characters, this will be a great read.

As far as this being a debut, I’m impressed. I think Tate brought everything she needed and more to this story. I am really looking forward to getting more from her!

Thank you so much to the publisher, Poisoned Pen Press, for providing me with a copy to read and review.

While this wasn’t exactly what I expected it to be, I am very pleased with what I got!

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Review: Crooked House by Agatha Christie

~ megs14malloy

Crooked HouseCrooked House by Agatha Christie
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Crooked House was a joy to try to solve. I read it with a bunch of other people and we all tried like heck to figure it out. There were so many different theories, and honestly, all of them could have worked.

This is one of my favorites out of the Christie work that I have read. It’s pure entertainment and Agatha slayed her red herrings here. Everyone is a suspect!

I say it is one of my favorites, and it is, but the author herself also described it as such. She must have been feeling especially clever after she penned this exceptional work.

I love to think about Christie’s work in context to the time she wrote it. This novel has a twist, which now, reading it in 2024, I’ve read before. We’ve probably seen this twist multiple times across all different mediums at this point.

But it’s important to remember, it didn’t start with them, the other works we’ve watched and read, it started WITH HER. With Christie herself, who went on to inspire decades, nay generations of creatives.

This is a standalone for Christie, meaning it doesn’t include one of her two most famous characters, Hercule Poirot, or Miss Jane Marple. Shocking, I know.

I’ve recently been reading the Miss Marple works in order and loving them. I wasn’t sure if I would enjoy this as much, not having one of those iconic characters in it.

I’m happy to report, I didn’t think of that at all once I got into this story. It’s so interesting, so compelling, the plot so tight and engaging, I was hooked from the start, no matter who the characters were.

As far as content, if you require more to spur you to pick this up, this story involves a man whose love interest asks him to look into her Grandfather’s death. Her very wealthy Grandfather, who left behind a substantial inheritance.

He has to travel to the family estate, meet all of her family members and try to determine whether or not the old man’s death was natural, an accident, or murder. And if the latter were true, then whodunit!?

I absolutely recommend this one to any fan of Christie’s work, as well as anyone looking to try her work for the first time. If you love a closed circle mystery, an inheritance story, or just good old-fashioned mystery writing, you should absolutely pick this one up!

I’m looking forward to getting to more of Christie’s standalones after reading this. Christie is an absolute gift to the literary world and I shall continue to pick up her books for years and years to come!

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Review: The Fury by Alex Michaelides

~ megs14malloy

The FuryThe Fury by Alex Michaelides
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**4.5-stars**

The Fury, the latest from Alex Michaelides, is a unique and unsettling Tragedy from which I couldn’t look away. This kept my head spinning all the way through. We love that!

I’ve thoroughly enjoyed this author’s previous novels, so had been highly anticipating this. I started to see some early reviews though that made question if I would like it.

Luckily, I found this to be engaging and intriguing from the very start. Our narrator, Elliot, addresses the fact that he is our narrator. It’s like we are sitting with him, having some drinks, and he is telling us a story from his life.

I absolutely adore that kind of narrative. It always makes me feel like I am actually a part of the action, or more fittingly in this case, of the friend group.

Elliott relates to us the details of an ill-fated trip he took with his best friend, Lana, a retired movie star, her husband, Jason, their mutual friend, Kate, also an actress, Lana’s son Leo, an aspiring actor, and Lana’s assistant, to a remote Greek island for a weekend getaway.

We know what starts out as a beautiful holiday, ends up to be anything but. The group gets trapped on the island due to high winds. Emotions and tensions are running high. The claustrophobic nature of their excursion becomes palpable.

This strain could be blamed for the violence and death that ultimately occurs, couldn’t it? Or is something much deeper lurking under the surface that leads to the bloody and chaotic conclusion?

Y’all, I was absolutely swept up into this story. I know that some Reviewers have mentioned that it was slow for them, but I didn’t have the same experience with it. I had the audiobook and listened to the first 70% just while adulting, doing my cleaning and other errands, one Saturday.

I was obsessed with learning all I could about the characters and couldn’t help but continuing on. The narrative structure is out of the ordinary, but I loved how it was done.

Michaelides kept me guessing. It also should be noted that I am a huge fan of unreliable narrators and Elliott fits that moniker to a tee.

I wouldn’t say this is a simple story to read, and I can see how it wouldn’t be for everyone. I can also see how some may find it slow. There is quite a bit of develop in the beginning, building out our group and their relationships.

However, for those who enjoy some mental gymnastics, mixed with great character work, an unreliable narrator and tension so thick you could cut it with a knife, this is sure to be a success.

If any of these descriptors are buzzwords for you, give it a go. You may like it, you may not, but either way, it’s sure to be a memorable experience.

A few other aspects of this book that worked for my tastes were the remote location, particularly the fact that it is set on an island, I live on an island, so tend to love to see that, the cast of unlikable characters and the teeny bit of character crossover from The Maidens and The Silent Patient.

No, you don’t need to read either of those novels prior to reading this, but for those who have, those little name drops can be a lot of fun.

While this doesn’t have the same level of mystery as The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle, it did sort of remind me of that in some ways. I think the vibe of mild confusion mixed with enjoyment is quite similar.

If you enjoyed that one, you may enjoy this as well. Overall, I think this is just so fun. It’s clever and engaging and yes, also a tad confusing at times.

I’d definitely read it again, maybe try and pick up some subtleties I might have missed this time around.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Macmillan Audio and Celadon Books, for providing me with a copy to read and review. This was a great reading experience for me and I’m happy to have a copy on my shelves.

I can’t wait to see what Michaelides comes up with next!!

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Review: All the Dark Places (Detective Rita Myers #1) by Terri Parlato

~ megs14malloy

All the Dark PlacesAll the Dark Places by Terri Parlato
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

**4.5-stars rounded up**

All the Dark Places is the start of Terri Parlato’s Detective Rita Myers Mystery series. There are 2-books released thus far, with the 2nd-book having just come out this past December.

I actually read them out of order, starting with What Waits in the Woods. I really enjoyed it and knew immediately that I needed to read this 1st-book ASAP.

I loved Rita and needed more of her in my life!

This is a dual perspective story following Detective Rita Myers, our MC, and Molly Bradley, the woman most closely linked to the mystery tackled in this book.

This story is set during the first week of January, which incidentally is when I read it. This tickled me for some reason. This has no bearing on my review, I just thought it was a funny coincidence.

So, it’s the first week of January and Molly has planned a dinner party for her husband, Jay’s, 40th-birthday. They have their tight-knit group of friends, which consists of three other local couples, over to the house.

It’s a great time. There’s plenty of drinks, laughs, food and even a beautiful cake. At the end of the night, the wine has definitely gone to Molly’s head. She heads upstairs to bed while Jay sees the other couples out.

The next morning when Molly wakes, Jay isn’t in the bedroom. He isn’t in the house at all and no coffee has been made. Fearing something is wrong, Molly rushes out to his office, housed in an outbuilding on their property. It’s there that she finds his dead body.

Detective Rita Myers is assigned to Jay Bradley’s case. An experienced detective, Rita is convinced that Jay’s murder isn’t some random act of violence. She believes someone in their circle is responsible for his death.

The investigation leaves no stone unturned as Rita digs into Molly and Jay’s life. It turns out, their group, like most, is hiding a lot deep dark secrets, including Molly herself.

It’s really hard for me to not 5-star a book that keeps me invested for an entire day. I flew through this and loved it. It wasn’t totally perfect, but pretty damn close.

I am well and truly invested in Detective Rita Myers now. I can’t wait for more books in this series, but I have a feeling, since the second one just released, that I’m in for quite a wait before book three.

I listened to the audiobook for both and loved them so much. It’s dual narrators, to fit the dual perspective and the narrators truly captured the spirit of these characters.

I definitely recommend this series to any Reader who enjoys Police Procedural Mysteries, or Crime Thrillers. Parlato’s mysteries are engaging and hard to put down once you start.

Detective Myers is such a compelling MC as well. She’s someone you can really get behind. She’s strong, smart, determined and always looking to do what’s right.

When I say I read this straight through, I’m not joking. I was on a journey with these characters. I didn’t even have time to make status updates. That’s how invested I was. I’m actually hoping for a paycheck from Rita’s department for my efforts.

If you’re looking for a strong new Mystery series to start, look no further. This is where it’s at. While you’re reading it, I’ll just be over here patiently waiting for more!!

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Review: What Waits in the Woods (Detective Rita Myers #2) by Terri Parlato

~ megs14malloy

What Waits in the WoodsWhat Waits in the Woods by Terri Parlato
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

What Waits in the Woods is the 2nd-book in Terri Parlato’s Detective Rita Myers series. This is an Adult Police Procedural Mystery following, you guessed it, Detective Rita Myers.

I actually didn’t read the 1st-book, All the Dark Places, prior to reading this one, but I enjoyed this so much, I started the 1st-book immediately after and have already finished it.

It’s fair to say, I will continue to pick up each book in this series as they’re released. Keep ’em coming, Parlato!

This is a dual perspective story following Detective Myers and Esmé Foster, a young woman directly connected to the mystery investigated in this book.

I listened to the audiobook and the dual narrators truly brought these two perspectives to life.

Esmé left her small hometown of Graybridge, 11-years ago to pursue her ballet career. After an injury and a recent break-up though, she decides it’s finally time to return after she gets a call from her brother stating their father isn’t well.

The day that Esmé returns, a body is discovered on her family property. She arrives home to police cars and questions, not exactly the homecoming she was expecting.

Making matters worse is the fact that the dead body isn’t just some stranger, it’s Kara Cunningham, one of Esmé’s closest childhood friends.

Esmé is devastated by the loss of her friend, but there’s something else needling her as well. Esmé and Kara looked a lot alike, what if she was actually the intended target?

Esmé has her reasons for believing this could be the case, but it’s going to take her processing a lot of old baggage to actually figure it out.

Detective Rita Myers gets called to the Foster property after the discovery of Kara’s body and immediately digs in to her investigation. Detective Myers has a lot of experience and genuine care in her work.

There’s no doubt she is going to get to the bottom of this grisly crime, no matter what it takes.

I had so much fun reading this. The mystery was intriguing, the plot was fast-paced and the reveals were exciting and more often than not, unexpected.

I think Detective Myers is a fabulous main character and I know I am just going to become more and more attached to her as the series continues.

She’s a seasoned detective, no-nonsense and smart. She works with a lot of younger detectives and cops and you can tell that they look up to her as a leader.

I also enjoyed getting to know her more on a personal side outside of work. She has some interesting neighbors and even a potential love interest that I am hoping to learn more about in subsequent books.

As with many Mystery series, I don’t feel like you need to necessarily read these books in order. I didn’t feel like I was missing anything going into this because I hadn’t read the 1st-book yet. It’s a complete story unto itself.

I do feel, though, that this is the type of series where the longer you stay involved with this group of characters, the more attached you become, and the higher your enjoyment level will ultimately be.

I knew right away that I would continue on with this series. The writing is compelling, the mystery is well-formatted and the characters are likable.

This is a very solid Police Procedural Mystery. I would recommend it for fans of Caz Frear’s Cat Kinsella series, or Gytha Lodge’s DCI Jonah Sheens series, as I feel like the tone here and quality of the mystery are very similar to those.

Thank you to the publisher, Recorded Books, for providing me with a copy to read and review.

I’m so excited to have a new Mystery author to follow. I hope this series keeps going for a long, long time!

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Review: The Christmas Murder Game by Alexandra Benedict

~ megs14malloy

The Christmas Murder GameThe Christmas Murder Game by Alexandra Benedict
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

**3.5-stars**

The Christmas Murder Game was the perfect audiobook for me to listen to over my Christmas holiday.

It didn’t require surgical-levels of concentration and the plot was easy enough for my holiday-fried brain to follow.

In this story we meet Lily Armitage, who is returning to her family’s lavish estate, Endgame House, for the first time since the tragic death of her mother, twenty-one years ago.

The Armitage family has an annual tradition called the Christmas Game and this year, the stakes are higher than ever. The winner receives the deed to Endgame House itself.

Lily doesn’t really want the house, but she receives a personal invitation she can’t refuse. If she attends, she may be able to get further information about her mom’s death, which Lily has long not believed the official story on.

The Christmas Game takes twelve days, with riddles and clues to finding twelve separate keys, and Lily must compete against her estranged cousins for the ultimate prize.

When bodies start dropping and the family gets snowed in, it’s clear someone will do anything to win this year’s game, even if it means killing off the competition.

I liked this. It’s a solid story with a lot of reveals and red herrings along the way. I really enjoyed the setting, including the harsh weather that helped build tension.

With this being said, while it did feature a lot of elements I enjoy, such as a locked room feel, unlikable characters, inclement weather and deeply-held family secrets, I didn’t find the overall story that gripping.

Most of the characters were a bit one-dimensional, but I did definitely want to know what was going on. I had many theories, none of which panned out 100%.

This is the second story that I have read from Alexandra Benedict. I think I preferred Murder on the Christmas Express a bit more, but reading this over Christmas probably did have a slight impact on my enjoyment level.

I do always find it a bit more challenging to really focus around this time of year, particularly when traveling.

Either way, I will be continuing to pick up anything I can from Alexandra Benedict, and you should too!

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Review: Mother-Daughter Murder Night by Nina Simon

~ megs14malloy

Mother-Daughter Murder NightMother-Daughter Murder Night by Nina Simon
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This title, Mother-Daughter Murder Night, it’s catchy, isn’t it? Admittedly, it had me intrigued from the get-go.

It just sounds like something I need in my life right now…

Totally kidding. I haven’t lost it that bad. Yet…

The truth is, I really knew nothing about this book going in. I had just seen a few friends enjoying it and I had a tremendous amount of FOMO.

At the end of the day, I’m so happy that my complete inability to sit on the sidelines as others enjoy themselves led me to pick up this book.

It’s such a fun and engaging, though low-key mystery. I was pulled in by the cast of characters and they definitely ended up being my favorite part.

In this story we follow Lana Rubicon, an L.A. Real Estate mogul, her adult daughter, Beth, and Beth’s teenage daughter, Jack. It’s a trio that I grew to love.

After a bit of a health scare, Lana is forced to move in with Beth and Jack. Lana and Beth’s relationship has been a little strained, they’re just very different people, so the situation has them both a bit on edge.

Things get much worse, however, after Jack discovers a dead body while at work.

Jack works as a kayak tour guide on the local waterfront and comes across a young man floating, dead, while out in her kayak. Obviously, it’s quite upsetting for the teen.

The police questioning and subsequent interest in Jack in the aftermath of her discovery is even more upsetting for Lana and Beth. The detectives can’t possibly suspect that Jack had anything to do with this young man’s death, can they?

When it becomes clear that Jack, is in fact, a suspect, Lana takes it upon herself to begin her own investigation, find the real killer and clear their family name.

Jack is all for the amateur sleuthing undertaken by her Grandmother, while Beth definitely would rather let the police do their job. Certainly the evidence will prove Jack’s innocence, or will it?

I loved Lana. She stole the show for me. She is an absolute fireball and goals for me when I reach her age. I really enjoyed her character throughout. She added a great level of humor and sass to the story.

I also really enjoyed the set-up of the mystery. The events leading to the sleuthing. It was an intriguing murder, particularly in light of what you find out about the victim. I was curious as to what had happened to him and how his body ended up where it did.

In my opinion, this story would be a good fit for fans of the Finley Donovan series.

Though it’s not silly, or slap-stick, like FD, the level of mystery and intrigue is very similar, as well as the level to which interpersonal relationships are explored. It gave me a very similar vibe and entertainment level.

Overall, I found this book to be engaging, fun and really well-written. I am glad that I picked it up and look forward to reading more from this author in the future!

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