Book Review

Fire and Bones by Kathy Reichs [Book Review]

Book Review

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. For more info, read my Disclosure Policy.


BOOK INFO

Title: Fire and Bones

Author: Kathy Reichs

Publisher: Scribner

Publish Date: August 6, 2024

Genre: Police Procedural

Series: Temperance Brennan #23

My Rating: 4/5

Fire and Bones by Kathy Reichs

BOOK BLURB

Always apprehensive about working fire scenes, Tempe is called to Washington, DC, to analyze the victims of a deadly blaze. The devastated building is in Foggy Bottom, a neighborhood with a colorful past and present, and when Tempe delves into the property’s history, she becomes suspicious about the ownership.

The pieces start falling into place strangely and quickly, and, sensing a good story, Tempe teams with a new ally, telejournalist Ivy Doyle. Soon the duo learns that back in the 1930s and ’40s the home was the hangout of a group of bootleggers and racketeers known as the Foggy Bottom Gang. While interesting, this fact seems irrelevant—until the son of a Foggy Bottom gang member is shot dead at his home in an affluent part of the district. Coincidence? Targeted attack? So many questions.

As Tempe and Ivy dig deeper, an arrest is finally made. Then another fire claims one more victim, and slowly, Tempe’s instincts begin pointing to the obvious. But her moves since coming to Washington have been anticipated—and every path forward seems to bring with it a lethal threat.


Fire and Bones by Kathy Reichs

MY REVIEW

Fire and Bones is the twenty-third book in the Temperance Brennan series. In this book, Temperance works in Washington, DC on a mysterious fire that left at least four dead.

Temperance is a strong protagonist with her intelligence, wit, and drive. I have enjoyed this series for years, and this book shows the series continues to be intriguing.

Fire and Bones is an enjoyable addition to the series. Recommended to readers who enjoy crime fiction and medical thrillers.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Books in the Temperance Brennan series:
  1. Déjà Dead
  2. Death du Jour
  3. Deadly Decisions
  4. Fatal Voyage
  5. Grave Secrets
  6. Bare Bones
  7. Monday Mourning
  8. Cross Bones
  9. Break No Bones
  10. Bones to Ashes
  11. Devil Bones
  12. 206 Bones
  13. Spider Bones
  14. Flash and Bones
  15. Bones Are Forever
  16. Bones of the Lost
  17. Bones Never Lie
  18. Speaking in Bones
  19. A Conspiracy of Bones
  20. The Bone Code
  21. Cold, Cold Bones
  22. The Bone Hacker
  23. Fire and Bones
Book Review

Village in the Dark by Iris Yamashita [Book Review]

Book Review

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. For more info, read my Disclosure Policy.


BOOK INFO

Title: Village in the Dark

Author: Iris Yamashita

Publisher:  Berkley

Publish Date: February 13, 2024

Genre: Police Procedural

Series: Cara Kennedy #2

My Rating: 4/5

Village in the Dark by Iris Yamashita

BOOK BLURB

On a frigid February day, Anchorage Detective Cara Kennedy stands by the graves of her husband and son, watching as their caskets are raised from the earth. It feels sacrilegious, but she has no choice. Aaron and Dylan disappeared on a hike a year ago, their bones eventually found and buried. But shocking clues have emerged that foul play was involved, potentially connecting them to a string of other deaths and disappearances. 

Somehow tied to the mystery is Mia Upash, who grew up in an isolated village called Unity, a community of women and children in hiding from abusive men. Mia never imagined the trouble she would find herself in when she left home to live in Man’s World. Although she remains haunted by the tragedy of what happened to the man and the boy in the woods, she has her own reasons for keeping quiet.

Aided by police officer Joe Barkowski and other residents of Point Mettier, Cara’s investigation will lead them on a dangerous path that puts their lives and the lives of everyone around them in mortal jeopardy.


Village in the Dark by Iris Yamashita

MY REVIEW

Cara thought her husband and son’s deaths were an accident, but it now seems they may have been murdered. Cara is a detective, and her latest investigation may be putting her in danger.

Village in the Dark is the second book in the Cara Kennedy series. While Village in the Dark can be read as a standalone novel, I recommend reading City Under One Roof first. Cara is smart, determined, and haunted by her past.

An atmospheric and suspenseful mystery. Recommended for fans of mysteries and Alaskan settings.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Books by Cara Kennedy series:
  1. City Under One Roof
  2. Village in the Dark
Book Review

Northwoods by Amy Pease [Book Review]

Book Review

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. For more info, read my Disclosure Policy.


BOOK INFO

Title: Northwoods

Author: Amy Pease

Publisher:  Atria/Emily Bestler Books

Publish Date: January 9, 2024

Genre: Police Procedural

Series: na

My Rating: 4/5

Northwoods by Amy Pease

BOOK BLURB

Eli North is not okay.

His drinking is getting worse by the day, his emotional wounds after a deployment to Afghanistan are as raw as ever, his marriage and career are over, and the only job he can hold down is with the local sheriff’s department. And that’s only because the sheriff is his mother—and she’s overwhelmed with small town Shaky Lake’s dwindling budget and the fallout from the opioid epidemic. The Northwoods of Wisconsin may be a vacationer’s paradise, but amidst the fishing trips and campfires and Paul Bunyan festivals, something sinister is taking shape.

When the body of a teenage boy is found in the lake, it sets in motion an investigation that leads Eli to a wealthy enclave with a violent past, a pharmaceutical salesman, and a missing teenage girl. Soon, Eli and his mother, along with a young FBI agent, are on the hunt for more than just a killer.

If Eli solves the case, could he finally get the shot at redemption he so desperately needs? Or will answers to this dark case elude him and continue to bring destruction to the Northwoods?


Northwoods by Amy Pease

MY REVIEW

Eli is a deputy called to a scene where a teen boy is dead. This investigation leads to looking for a missing teen girl. With the small town setting and limited police resources, the case becomes more complex.

The characters in Northwoods have depth and flaws. Eli is a veteran suffering from PTSD, and using alcohol as a coping mechanism. Despite his struggles, he maintains strong investigative skills. The mystery is intriguing and gritty.

Northwoods is a thrilling debut novel. Complex characters in a multilayered mystery.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Book Review

The Bone Hacker by Kathy Reichs [Book Review]

Book Review

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. For more info, read my Disclosure Policy.


BOOK INFO

Title: The Bone Hacker

Author: Kathy Reichs

Publisher: Scribner

Publish Date: August 1, 2023

Genre: Police Procedural

Series: Temperance Brennan #22

My Rating: 4/5

The Bone Hacker by Kathy Reichs

BOOK BLURB

Called in to examine what is left of a person thought to have been struck by lightning, Tempe traces an unusual tattoo to its source and is soon embroiled in a much larger case. Young men—tourists—have been disappearing on the islands of Turks and Caicos. Seven years earlier, the first victim was found in a strange location with his left hand hacked off; subsequently, two other visitors vanished without a trace. But recently, tantalizing leads have emerged and only Tempe can unravel them.

Maddeningly, the victims seem to have nothing in common—other than the odd places where their bodies turn up, and the fact that none seems likely to have been involved in criminal activity. Do these attacks have something to do with the islands’ seething culture of gang violence? Tempe isn’t so sure. Disturbingly, she discovers evidence that what’s at stake may have global significance.

It isn’t long before the sound of a ticking clock grows menacingly loud. Then Tempe herself becomes a target.


The Bone Hacker by Kathy Reichs

MY REVIEW

The Bone Hacker is the twenty-second book in the Temperance Brennan series. In this book, Temperance works in Turks and Caicos on an investigation of missing male tourists.

This is a series that I’ve read for many years, and this latest book doesn’t disappoint. The mysteries continue to be intriguing. Temperance is a strong protagonist with her intelligence, wit, and drive.

The Bone Hacker is an enjoyable addition to the series. Recommended to readers who enjoy crime fiction and medical thrillers.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Books in the Temperance Brennan series:
  1. Déjà Dead
  2. Death du Jour
  3. Deadly Decisions
  4. Fatal Voyage
  5. Grave Secrets
  6. Bare Bones
  7. Monday Mourning
  8. Cross Bones
  9. Break No Bones
  10. Bones to Ashes
  11. Devil Bones
  12. 206 Bones
  13. Spider Bones
  14. Flash and Bones
  15. Bones Are Forever
  16. Bones of the Lost
  17. Bones Never Lie
  18. Speaking in Bones
  19. A Conspiracy of Bones
  20. The Bone Code
  21. Cold, Cold Bones
  22. The Bone Hacker
  23. Fire and Bones
Book Review

A Killer in the Family by Gytha Lodge [Book Review]

Book Review

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. For more info, read my Disclosure Policy.


BOOK INFO

Title: A Killer in the Family

Author: Gytha Lodge

Publisher: Random House

Publish Date: August 8, 2023

Genre: Police Procedural

Series: DCI Jonah Sheens #5

My Rating: 4/5

A Killer in the Family by Gytha Lodge

BOOK BLURB

A woman uploads her DNA online, searching for her father—but the man who contacts her is Detective Chief Inspector Jonah Sheens. From the acclaimed author of Little Sister, this endlessly twisty crime novel asks: What might a family do to protect or expose a serial killer in its midst?

When the police found the first body, left on a bonfire in the forest, they worried it had the hallmarks of a serial killer.

Now, as they find the second, they know for sure.

Panic about the “Bonfire Killer” quickly spreads through the  sedate suburban area of Southampton. Women are urged not to travel alone at night, and constant vigilance is encouraged among the local residents. But single mom Aisling Cooley has a lot to distract her: two beloved teenage sons and a quest to find her long-lost father, whom she hasn’t seen since she was a teenager.

After much debate, she decides to upload her DNA to an ancestry website. When she gets a match she is filled with an anxious excitement that her questions about her father’s disappearance from her life might finally be answered.

But to her horror, it’s not her father who’s found her. It’s a detective.

And they say her DNA is a close match for the Bonfire Killer. . . .


A Killer in the Family by Gytha Lodge

MY REVIEW

A woman uploads her DNA to an ancestry website in the hopes of locating her father. It’s not her father who contacts her though, it’s a detective looking for a killer.

A Killer in the Family is the fifth book in the DCI Jonah Sheens series, but it can be read as a standalone. This series has some gripping mysteries, and I suggest reading the other books.

This book uses multiple points of view – the detectives working the case, the woman with a DNA match to the killer, the killer, and a victim. The characters are interesting and the mystery is intriguing.

A Killer in the Family is dark, tense, and twisty. Recommended for fans of British police procedurals.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Books in the DCI Jonah Sheens series:
  1. She Lies in Wait
  2. Watching from the Dark
  3. Lie Beside Me
  4. Little Sister
  5. A Killer in the Family
Book Review

City Under One Roof by Iris Yamashita [Book Review]

Book Review

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. For more info, read my Disclosure Policy.


BOOK INFO

Title: City Under One Roof

Author: Iris Yamashita

Publisher: Berkley Books

Publish Date: January 10, 2023

Genre: Police Procedural

Series: Cara Kennedy #1

My Rating: 3/5

City Under One Roof by Iris Yamashita

BOOK BLURB

When a local teenager discovers a severed hand and foot washed up on the shore of the small town of Point Mettier, Alaska, Cara Kennedy is on the case. A detective from Anchorage, she has her own motives for investigating the possible murder in this isolated place, which can be accessed only by a tunnel.

After a blizzard causes the tunnel to close indefinitely, Cara is stuck among the odd and suspicious residents of the town—all 205 of whom live in the same high-rise building and are as icy as the weather. Cara teams up with Point Mettier police officer Joe Barkowski, but before long the investigation is upended by fearsome gang members from a nearby native village.

Haunted by her past, Cara soon discovers that everyone in this town has something to hide. Will she be able to unravel their secrets before she unravels?


City Under One Roof by Iris Yamashita

MY REVIEW

A resident of a small, isolated Alaskan town finds severed body parts washed up on the town’s shore. Cara, a detective from Anchorage, is on the case.

City Under One Roof is the first book in the Cara Kennedy series. The town residents live in the same high-rise building. As Cara investigates, she learns all the residents are keeping secrets. Interesting characters in a unique setting.

An atmospheric debut novel. I’m looking forward to reading the next book in the series.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Books by Cara Kennedy series:
  1. City Under One Roof
  2. Village in the Dark
Book Review

Cold, Cold Bones by Kathy Reichs [Book Review]

Book Review

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. For more info, read my Disclosure Policy.


BOOK INFO

Title: Cold, Cold Bones

Author: Kathy Reichs

Publisher: Scribner

Publish Date: July 5, 2022

Genre: Crime & Detective

Series: Temperance Brennan #21

My Rating: 4/5

Cold Cold Bones by Kathy Reichs

BOOK BLURB

Winter has come to North Carolina and, with it, a drop in crime. Freed from a heavy work schedule, Tempe Brennan is content to dote on her daughter Katy, finally returned to civilian life from the army. But when mother and daughter meet at Tempe’s place one night, they find a box on the back porch. Inside: a very fresh human eyeball.

GPS coordinates etched into the eyeball lead to a Benedictine monastery where an equally macabre discovery awaits. Soon after, Tempe examines a mummified corpse in a state park, and her anxiety deepens.

There seems to be no pattern to the subsequent killings uncovered, except that each mimics in some way a homicide that a younger Tempe had been called in to analyze. Who or what is targeting her, and why?

Helping Tempe search for answers is detective Erskine “Skinny” Slidell, retired but still volunteering with the CMPD cold case unit—and still displaying his gallows humor. Also pulled into the mystery: Andrew Ryan, Tempe’s Montreal-based beau, now working as a private detective.

Could this elaborately staged skein of mayhem be the prelude to a twist that is even more shocking? Tempe is at a loss to establish the motive for what is going on…and then her daughter disappears.


Cold Cold Bones by Kathy Reichs

MY REVIEW

Cold, Cold Bones is the twenty-first book in the Temperance Brennan series. Tempe is a forensic anthropologist who consults with law enforcement on a variety of cases. In this book, someone seems to be targeting Tempe. The cases she is working on are similar to previous cases in her career.

In addition to the crime solving, Tempe’s adult daughter, Katy, has returned home. Tempe is excited to have her daughter back in town, but then Katy disappears.

Cold, Cold Bones is an enjoyable addition to the series. A compelling mystery about gruesome crimes. Recommended to fans of this series and medical thrillers.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Books in the Temperance Brennan series:
  1. Déjà Dead
  2. Death du Jour
  3. Deadly Decisions
  4. Fatal Voyage
  5. Grave Secrets
  6. Bare Bones
  7. Monday Mourning
  8. Cross Bones
  9. Break No Bones
  10. Bones to Ashes
  11. Devil Bones
  12. 206 Bones
  13. Spider Bones
  14. Flash and Bones
  15. Bones Are Forever
  16. Bones of the Lost
  17. Bones Never Lie
  18. Speaking in Bones
  19. A Conspiracy of Bones
  20. The Bone Code
  21. Cold, Cold Bones
  22. The Bone Hacker
  23. Fire and Bones
Book Review

Little Sister by Gytha Lodge [Book Review]

Book Review

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. For more info, read my Disclosure Policy.


BOOK INFO

Title: Little Sister

Author: Gytha Lodge

Publisher: Random House

Publish Date: June 28, 2022

Genre: Crime & Detective

Series: DCI Jonah Sheens #4

My Rating: 4/5

Little Sister by Gytha Lodge

BOOK BLURB

Jonah Sheens is enjoying a moment of peace in a pub garden on his day off when a teenage girl wanders out of the woods. She’s striking, with flame-red hair and a pale complexion. She’s also covered in blood.
 
When Jonah races to help, the girl insists she’s fine. Then she smiles. It’s her sister he needs to worry about. Keely and her sister, Nina, disappeared from a children’s home a week ago. Now Keely is here—but Nina’s still missing. Jonah is sure Keely knows where her sister is—but before she tells him anything, she insists, he has to listen to her story from the beginning.
 
Is she witness, victim, or killer? And if Jonah follows the trail of clues in her story, will they lead him to the missing girl—or distract him until it’s too late?


Little Sister by Gytha Lodge

MY REVIEW

A teenage girl wanders out of the woods, covered in blood. The girl, Keely, and her sister Nina have been missing for a week. Keely tells DCI Jonah Sheens that she will tell him everything, but he must listen to her whole story, starting at the beginning. Jonah agrees, but he and his team are also trying to find Nina.

Little Sister is told using alternating points of view – Jonah, Juliette (an officer on Jonah’s team), and Keely. Jonah and Juliette are trying to find Nina, and Keely is telling a tragic story of abuse in the foster system.

Little Sister is the fourth book in the DCI Jonah Sheens series, but it can be read as a standalone. This series has some gripping mysteries, and I suggest reading the other books.

Little Sister is dark, twisted, and tragic. Recommended for fans of British police procedurals.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Books in the DCI Jonah Sheens series:
  1. She Lies in Wait
  2. Watching from the Dark
  3. Lie Beside Me
  4. Little Sister
  5. A Killer in the Family
Book Review

Sea Storm by Andrew Mayne [Book Review]

Book Review

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. For more info, read my Disclosure Policy.


BOOK INFO

Title: Sea Storm

Author: Andrew Mayne

Publisher: Thomas & Mercer

Publish Date: March 29, 2022

Genre: Crime Fiction

Series: Underwater Investigation Unit #3

My Rating: 4/5

Sea Storm by Andrew Mayne

BOOK BLURB

A distress call draws rescuers Sloan McPherson and the Underwater Investigation Unit to a cruise ship off the coast of Fort Lauderdale that’s sinking from a mysterious explosion. When it appears to be the work of an ecoterrorist and other ships are threatened, it becomes a race against time. More clues are discovered, and evidence is in danger of being washed away by a coming tropical storm. Sloan grows concerned that key details are being ignored, and a strange lack of urgency by authorities sets off alarms.

As the troubling questions compound, Sloan is determined to chase down every lead she has. Her persistence is getting her closer to the truth: that there’s something far more troubling at play than the official explanation. It’s also putting Sloan on a collision course with an enemy more powerful than she realizes, in a case so complex and deadly it may be impossible to prove. Now cracking the case is a matter of staying one step ahead of someone with every resource imaginable to bury Sloan and everything she knows.


Sea Storm by Andrew Mayne

MY REVIEW

Sea Storm is the third book in the Underwater Investigation Unit mystery series. In this installment, the Underwater Investigation Unit is called in when a cruise ship starts sinking after a mysterious explosion.

With an “underwater” unit, there are plenty of water related crimes to keep the team busy. The characters are likable, and this book furthers the development of these memorable characters. While Sea Storm can be read as a standalone novel, I recommend starting with the first book in the series.

Sea Storm is an exciting and intriguing mystery. Recommended for readers who enjoy a good police procedural with a twist.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Books in the Underwater Investigation Unit series:
  1. The Girl Beneath the Sea
  2. Black Coral
  3. Sea Storm
Book Review

The Fields by Erin Young [Book Review]

Book Review

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. For more info, read my Disclosure Policy.


BOOK INFO

Title: The Fields

Author: Erin Young

Publisher: Flatiron Books

Publish Date: January 25, 2022

Genre: Police Procedural

Series: Riley Fisher #1

My Rating: 4/5

The Fields by Erin Young

BOOK BLURB

Some things don’t stay buried.

It starts with a body—a young woman found dead in an Iowa cornfield, on one of the few family farms still managing to compete with the giants of Big Agriculture.

When Sergeant Riley Fisher, newly promoted to head of investigations for the Black Hawk County Sheriff’s Office, arrives on the scene, an already horrific crime becomes personal when she discovers the victim was a childhood friend, connected to a dark past she thought she’d left behind.

The investigation grows complicated as more victims are found. Drawn deeper in, Riley soon discovers implications far beyond her Midwest town.


The Fields by Erin Young

MY REVIEW

The Fields is a debut crime thriller. Riley Fisher heads the investigation in the murder of one of her childhood friends.

The Fields is a dark and gritty police procedural. Riley Fisher is an intriguing character. The mystery is complex and compelling. This is the first book in a new series, and I look forward to reading more.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Books in the Riley Fisher series:
  1. The Fields
Book Review

The Bone Code by Kathy Reichs [Book Review]

Book Review

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. For more info, read my Disclosure Policy.


BOOK INFO

Title: The Bone Code

Author: Kathy Reichs

Publisher: Scribner

Publish Date: July 6, 2021

Genre: Police Procedural

Series: Temperance Brennan #20

My Rating: 4/5

The Bone Code by Kathy Reichs

BOOK BLURB

On the way to hurricane-ravaged Isle of Palms, a barrier island off the South Carolina coast, Tempe receives a call from the Charleston coroner. The storm has tossed ashore a medical waste container. Inside are two decomposed bodies wrapped in plastic sheeting and bound with electrical wire. Tempe recognizes many of the details as identical to those of an unsolved case she handled in Quebec years earlier. With a growing sense of foreboding, she travels to Montreal to gather evidence.

Meanwhile, health authorities in South Carolina become increasingly alarmed as a human flesh-eating contagion spreads. So focused is Tempe on identifying the container victims that, initially, she doesn’t register how their murders and the pestilence may be related. But she does recognize one unsettling fact. Someone is protecting a dark secret—and willing to do anything to keep it hidden.

An absorbing look at the sinister uses to which genetics can be put, and featuring a cascade of ever-more-shocking revelations, The Bone Code is Temperance Brennan’s most astonishing case yet—one that gives new meaning to today’s headlines.


The Bone Code by Kathy Reichs

MY REVIEW

The Bone Code is the twentieth book in the Temperance Brennan series. Temperance is a forensic anthropologist who has worked on a variety of cases. While this could be read as a standalone novel, I recommend reading some of the earlier books first.

In The Bone Code, Temperance gets involved with a case in Charleston that reminds her of a cold case she worked years earlier in Quebec. Meanwhile, a virus outbreak in Charleston is causing panic. Temperance works to connect the two cases and uncover more than just a murderer.

This is a series that I’ve enjoyed over the years. There are a few books in this series that I haven’t read, but I plan to go back and read them soon. Temperance is intelligent and driven in her work. She makes for a strong and interesting protagonist.

The Bone Code is sure to be enjoyed by fans of this series. For readers unfamiliar with Temperance, I recommend checking out this series if you like crime fiction.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Books in the Temperance Brennan series:
  1. Déjà Dead
  2. Death du Jour
  3. Deadly Decisions
  4. Fatal Voyage
  5. Grave Secrets
  6. Bare Bones
  7. Monday Mourning
  8. Cross Bones
  9. Break No Bones
  10. Bones to Ashes
  11. Devil Bones
  12. 206 Bones
  13. Spider Bones
  14. Flash and Bones
  15. Bones Are Forever
  16. Bones of the Lost
  17. Bones Never Lie
  18. Speaking in Bones
  19. A Conspiracy of Bones
  20. The Bone Code
  21. Cold, Cold Bones
  22. The Bone Hacker
  23. Fire and Bones
Book Review

Lie Beside Me by Gytha Lodge [Book Review]

Book Review

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. For more info, read my Disclosure Policy.


BOOK INFO

Title: Lie Beside Me

Author: Gytha Lodge

Publisher: Random House

Publish Date: June 22, 2021

Genre: Crime & Detective

Series: DCI Jonah Sheens #3

My Rating: 4/5

Lie Beside Me by Gytha Lodge

BOOK BLURB

Louise wakes up. Her head aches, her mouth is dry, her memory is fuzzy—but she suspects she’s done something bad.

She rolls over toward her husband, Niall. The man who, until recently, made her feel loved.

But it’s not Niall lying beside her. In fact, she’s never seen this man before.

And he’s not breathing. . . .

As Louise desperately struggles to piece her memories back together, it’s clear to Jonah Sheens and his team that she is their prime suspect—though they soon find she’s not the only one with something to hide.

Did she do it? And, if not, can they catch the real killer before they strike again?

In this gripping novel, a young woman finds that trying to make sense of her life’s bad choices might prove the most dangerous reckoning there is.


Lie Beside Me by Gytha Lodge

MY REVIEW

A woman awakens to discover that the man beside her is not only not her husband, but he’s dead. Though she doesn’t remember what happened, she can’t believe she killed this man. When the police arrive, they find the body in the front yard. The woman is clearly keeping secrets and is a prime suspect.

Lie Beside Me is told using alternating points of view – the suspect, Louise, and the detective, Jonah. Louise is insecure and a struggling alcoholic. Jonah is trying to find a killer. The mystery is well paced and complex.

Lie Beside Me is the third book in the DCI Jonah Sheens series, but it can be read as a standalone. I’ve read the previous two books (She Lies in Wait and Watching from the Dark), and think this series is getting better with each book.

Twisty and intriguing. Lie Beside Me is a straightforward police procedural. A great series for fans of British police procedurals.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Books in the DCI Jonah Sheens series:
  1. She Lies in Wait
  2. Watching from the Dark
  3. Lie Beside Me
  4. Little Sister
  5. A Killer in the Family