Hotel Spacious by J.S. Frankel

September 2, 2025 By 2 Comments


Hotel Spacious by J.S. Frankel
Publisher: Extasy Books
Genre: Young Adult (14 – 18 y.o.), Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller, Romance
Rating: 5 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

An asteroid in a distant galaxy, a secret recipe, and an animal that has a certain magical quality to it. For Vern Nilsson, working as a bellhop at a hotel on that asteroid is one thing. Risking his life to find that recipe is another story altogether.

Vern Nilsson needs a summer job, and he finds one on Hotel Spacious, a hotel on a manmade asteroid in a distant galaxy. Built by the Borne, a benevolent race, Hotel Spacious offers a place for aliens of all sorts to relax.

Except Vern, who’s on call as a bellhop, dishwasher, and all-around gofer twenty-four-seven. The only saving grace from his job is meeting Dinarra—nicknamed Dee—a tiger-woman who has the same job that he has. Never mind that her parents are against it. Interspecies relationships rock.

Relationships aside, murder rears its ugly head. It seems that the murderer is after a secret recipe and a rare animal. If the animal is prepared correctly, it can confer God-like powers upon the eater.

Vern and Dee begin their own investigation, but by the time they discover the truth, it may be too late.

Not every summer job is as exciting as this one.

There were exactly enough details shared about the setting to keep my interest levels high. I especially appreciated how the author trusted his audience to fill in the smaller details about what it was like to visit, stay, or work at this hotel filled with aliens of all shapes and sizes. It made it easier for me to daydream about this topic during reading breaks because not all of my questions were answered. When done with care, ambiguity is a wonderful invitation for a reader to help create their own unique version of the author’s world and characters.

I enjoyed the fact that so many different genres were included in this book. The plot was romantic in some scenes only to switch to the fantasy, young adult, or mystery genres in others. This kept me on my toes as I was reading as I was never quite sure which direction it would meander into next. It takes courage and skill to play around with writing styles and reader’s expectations like that, and it’s one of the many reasons why Mr. Frankel is on my list of authors whose stories I automatically request every time he submits something new to Long and Short Reviews. A storyteller has to be quite knowledgeable about the genres they write in order to pull this off successfully, after all.

If I had to make a guess about Mr. Frankel’s personal life, I’d say that he has probably worked in the service industry at some point. Vern’s wide variety of experiences with the hotel guests and employees made me smile and nod my head as I read because of how true to life these scenes were. Some guests were perfectly sweet and gentle while others could be rather challenging at times…or worse! The main character never knew how he would be treated from one moment to the next or what hijinks might be happening just out of his view, and this made it tricky to find good stopping points while I was reading. It was engrossing from beginning to end.

Hotel Spacious had something spectacular for many different types of readers in his tale.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews, Romance, Science Fiction/Fantasy, YA/Middle Grade/Children's Tagged With: , , , , , ,

From The Other Side by Julia Harrison

August 29, 2025 By Leave a Comment


From The Other Side by Julia Harrison
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller, Romance, Paranormal, Contemporary
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Alyssa wasn’t ready to die. Snatched from her life and unable to access her most recent memories, she is cast into an afterlife that is very different from anything she expected. She is stuck on Earth, invisible to the living, and she is being hunted. Cornered by a malevolent being, Alyssa is saved by new friends who show her how to survive this strange world she never knew existed. A chance meeting leaves her inexplicably drawn to the enemy, and she starts to question if the line between good and evil is as clear cut as she’d been told. When she suspects her new family are lying to her, who can she trust?

Death was the beginning, not the end.

I enjoyed the ambiguity of this novel. There were many shades of grey in the characters, and few if any of them were purely good or bad individuals regardless of what my first impressions of them might have been. This meant that my allegiances shifted as I read and I changed my opinions about certain characters multiple times as I either learned new information about them or revisited old clues about what they were truly like.

There were some pacing issues that made it difficult for me to remain highly interested in what would happen next despite how excited I was when I first began reading. I liked the fact that so many different genres were included, but this did mean that some scenes needed to be stretched out in order to incorporate multiple themes and tropes, not all of which are necessarily easy to blend together. Patience was key while reading this, although there were times when I wished the next action scene would show up more quickly as certain sections included a lot of dialogue before and after these moments.

The ending fit the tone and themes nicely. While there were a few twists in it that I can’t discuss here for spoiler reasons, I enjoyed seeing how everything was woven together in the last few scenes as Alyssa learned a few more key pieces of information that helped to explain some moments that had been rather mysterious to this reader up until that point. It was satisfying to finally know why some characters behaved the way they did and why others sometimes made choices that didn’t always seem to fit what I already knew about their personalities.

From The Other Side was a wild ride.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews, Science Fiction/Fantasy Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Paw Prints in the Ledger by Tara Choate

August 27, 2025 By 2 Comments


Paw Prints in the Ledger by Tara Choate
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Genre: Mystery/Suspense/Thriller, Contemporary
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Irene Lisner is a forensic accountant who could tell you all about fraud, corruption, and embezzlement in Oregon… if only she had the time. Between her wonderful dog, difficult family, and recent diagnosis, she barely has time to say hello to her best friend. When she is assigned a politically fraught case, Irene is sure the city’s problems go beyond staff turnover and governmental drama. The discovery of concealed expenses and forged bank statements make it apparent that this won’t be a simple fix. Confronting thieves is part of Irene’s job, but that doesn’t make it easy. She identifies the problem and faces the embezzler, but her family is not as easy to solve.

There’s nothing simple about municipal politics.

Irene was a well developed and interesting character who had a lot on her plate. I liked the fact that I was able to get to know her not only through her work but also through her close friendship with Sharon and her sometimes tense relationships with her sister and mom. These moments showed off parts of the main character’s personality that she’d never think to share at work but that were important for understanding how she faced health challenges, life with an aging pet, or people at work who weren’t always honest with her.

I struggled with the pacing of this book due to how unevenly certain clues were released and how much time Irene spent on things that weren’t panning out well for her. While I wouldn’t expect every conversation to be a fruitful one, it was challenging for me as a reader to keep my interest levels high when progress was so slow at times.

Dysfunctional relationships have many different appearances, and I liked the fact that this book explored multiple ways they can disrupt how a family, workplace, or community function. When people get used to bowing to the needs of one emotionally unhealthy person, the entire group can become unbalanced as healthier members steer clear of sensitive topics at all costs or overcompensate for someone else’s negative behavior. This added layers of meaning to all of the storylines and was a strong addition to the plot, especially once Irene realized what was going on and began trying to change the way she responded to unhealthy behaviors. Readers who have ever experienced these sorts of conflicts in real life, whether they were minor or major issues, may find plenty of food for thought here.

Paw Prints in the Ledger kept me guessing until the end.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews Tagged With: , , , , ,

Menagerie in the Dark-Stories by Chris Kauzlarich

August 26, 2025 By Leave a Comment


Menagerie in the Dark-Stories by Chris Kauzlarich
Publisher: Phantom Quill Press
Genre: Mystery/Suspense/Thriller, Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Paranormal, Holiday, Contemporary, Historical
Rating: 5 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Life often appears darkest just before the dawn of a new day.

In Menagerie in the Dark, Chris Kauzlarich immerses us in a speculative journey that explores the darker aspects of the human condition before bringing us back to the surface with the light of a new day. Through fourteen stories, this menagerie of characters faces trials of sorrow, death, loneliness, regret, deception, murder, delight, wonderment, and bliss, revealing what will either strengthen them enough to survive or plunge them to their demise. A boy’s home burns down, forcing him to confront a terrifying new world. A man enters a door where he witnesses his wife’s death, leaving him devastated; yet, he cannot stop returning to the scene, convinced he can save her. A nurse’s patients continue to perish under her care, but she harbors a dark secret—an administered cocktail for nefarious purposes.

These and other stories will stretch the limits of your emotions, from heartbreak to horror, leaving you yearning for more.

Fear comes in many mysterious forms.

Katelyn was in severe pain and desperately seeking more medication in “Echoes.” What I found most interesting about her tale was how many different ways it could be interpreted. Yes, she had a back injury that could explain why she needed her pain pills so regularly, but she also showed some signs that her reliance on them had possibly grown past what they were originally prescribed for. There were also inconsistencies in her memories that had multiple possible meanings as well. Other readers should decide for themselves which explanations they think fit the clues best, but I sure enjoyed the process of coming up with my own theories.

I loved the twist on what zombies are like in “Scalpel.” This was actually one of the biggest reasons why I chose a full five-star rating for this collection as the cause of the outbreak was as creative as it was original. It’s not easy to surprise me with this subgenre, so I must tip my cap to the author for pulling it off and making horror feel so relevant to life in 2025. The references that were included about current events from the past several years not only fit into the storyline nicely, they also made me chuckle in a few places which isn’t easy to do when I’m simultaneously scared.

While they were walking around trick-or-treating, Connor told his friends a terrifying local legend about a supernatural killer in “The Legend of Chucky Mudd.” What made the tale even more memorable was that the main character lived in the same house Chucky used to live in! I enjoyed seeing how Connor’s friends reacted to this conversation and how they changed their Halloween plans as a result of it. These scenes reminded me of things like Bloody Mary that used to scare me as a kid, although, of course, these characters were in serious danger and didn’t realize what their games were going to lead to. This was deliciously spooky, just the right amount of gory, and made me want a sequel.

Menagerie in the Dark was a perfectly balanced mixture of genres.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews, Science Fiction/Fantasy Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Vigil For The Dead by MS Morris

August 20, 2025 By Leave a Comment


Vigil For The Dead by MS Morris
Publisher: Landmark Media
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 3 stars
Reviewed by Fern

A desolate moor. A burned body. A deadly conspiracy.
DCI Tom Raven is enjoying the long summer days when an encounter with an old army pal spouting conspiracy theories reignites long-buried memories he would rather forget.

A few days later, walkers crossing the North York Moors discover the burnt remains of a body beside a stone cross on a Bronze Age burial mound.

When the investigation leads to a top-secret military base, Raven is drawn into a plot that threatens national security. He must confront his mixed emotions about his own military past while in a race against time to unravel the conspiracy and catch the killer.

When a small group of walkers found the charred remains of a dead body in a deserted stretch of the moors DCI Tom Raven and his team are called in to investigate. Their early inquiries lead them to a nearby military base and all too soon the secrets and red tape begins to pile up. Can Tom and his team uncover what really happened?

I’ve been greatly enjoying this series and found this to be an exceptional addition. I really enjoyed the progress of Tom’s character and that of his team as well. I was particularly pleased that they’re all growing and moving on in their own ways and at their own rate. That felt very realistic and logical to me. While parts of the plotline felt a little far-fetched to me, the author didn’t stretch the boundaries of my disbelief too much and while I’m not sure all readers will enjoy some of the twists in the plot overall, I think most mystery readers should find the various overlaps and the multiple layers to the plot a solid and enjoyable read.

I also am getting used to the author regularly allows the last few pages to be a bit of a foreshadowing into the next book and while nothing very cliff-hanger-ish or spoilery occurred, I definitely have learned to have the next book or two on hand just in case I find myself desperate to read the next one hard on the heels of the current one.

A solid and well-paced British police procedural style of mystery novel this is a great series and an author I am growing to be a big fan of. With a solid cast of characters and a lovely smaller town setting I found this to be an easy to read and thoroughly enjoyable story.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews Tagged With: , , , ,

Buried by Mark Billingham

August 19, 2025 By Leave a Comment


Buried by Mark Billingham
Publisher: Sphere
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 3 stars
Reviewed by Fern

Luke Mullen, the missing teenage son of a former police officer, was last seen getting into a car with an older woman. No one knows whether he went willingly or was abducted, whether he’s living or dead.

Then the videotape arrives . . .

On special assignment, Detective Inspector Tom Thorne is in charge of the investigation into Luke’s disappearance. But it’s the information that Tony Mullen, the boy’s father, is not freely sharing that Thorne finds particularly disturbing—like the names of dangerous criminals who have openly threatened the tough ex-detective and his entire family. Something shocking and deadly may well be buried deep in old cases and past lives. But Thorne knows he doesn’t have the luxury of time to dig—especially when a kidnapper brutally demonstrates that he is willing to kill.

Teenager Luke Mullen is last seen near his school, getting into the car with an older woman. When he still hasn’t turned up after the weekend even his parents acknowledge something has gone wrong and begin to call in favours from the retired detective’s former colleagues to help trace what happened to his missing son. DI Tom Thorne is part of the team called in to help bolster the case – but as three crucial days have already been lost, can they make up for lost time?

I have been greatly enjoying this British police procedural series. I was happy to note this book had a few key differences. Most of the previous books have felt quite bleak and harsh to me and I was very pleasantly surprised that while still a gritty and edgy read, this didn’t feel hopeless or too bleak to me. I think part of this came from the fact two other cases completely unrelated to the kidnapping were given a strong boost from the two police teams working together and that was a delightful surprise to me. I really feel much of the tone of the book was lightened in that – while the main kidnapping case continued to progress slowly – other links and other cases were aided from the dedicated and strong work performed by the police teams. This helped lighten the tone to my mind.

I additionally feel that having more characters in the two police teams working together and interweaving helped make the tone and feel of the working relationships feel a little more flexible and a little less weighted. I certainly had the feeling that having more crossover between the teams and having people pair up differently and yet still clearly work together gave the story a different tone.

I would certainly add this isn’t a light or easy read still. We do get a few snippets from Luke’s perspective throughout the book and while nothing too overly graphic is described – I do feel a kidnapped teenager and seeing what he’s going through likely won’t be easy ready for some. This is not a happy or light book – but I have to admit I strongly felt it wasn’t the bleak or emotionally taxing read I was expecting it to be when I began. I am glad the author has changed his tone somewhat and I hope this might continue on into the further books in the series.

A strongly plotted and highly realistic British Police procedural mystery novel, this book was a good addition to this series. While I don’t feel it will suit all readers, those looking for a UK style, tightly plotted and strongly written mystery should feel this is a series to look into.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews Tagged With: , , , , ,

Portrait of a Ghost by Betty Ann Harris

August 18, 2025 By Leave a Comment


Portrait of a Ghost by Betty Ann Harris
Publisher: Books We Love, Ltd.
Genre: Mystery/Suspense/Thriller, Romance, Paranormal, Contemporary
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

The quaint New England coastal town of Mystic Port is steeped in history, and has more than its fair share of restless sprits. Prudence Trivit, the town’s librarian and historian, is on a mission to exonerate her great Aunt Alexandra, who in 1897 was accused and arrested for the murder of her husband, the mayor. Prudy is certain of her great aunt’s innocence.

A handsome young journalist, Dylan Monroe, is sent to Mystic Port to interview Prudy for the town’s 250th anniversary celebration.
Dylan notices Prudy’s uncanny resemblance to her great aunt in the large portrait of Alexandra that hangs in the museum. He is stunned by her beauty and quite intrigued by the story of Alexandra.

Prudy and Dylan become quite the investigative team. There are mishaps and mayhem as the spirit of Alexandra try’s to point them in the right direction and an opposing spirit tries to dissuade them.

True love never dies.

The romantic subplot was sweet and complemented the mystery and paranormal storylines nicely. While I didn’t have a lot of time to get to know the characters involved in it, I had a good feeling about them given how kind they were to each other and how many hobbies they shared in common. They seemed to have a decent foundation for possibly building something beautiful together, and this is something I’d love to see expounded upon if the author ever decides to write a sequel as there was still plenty of space to explore the possibilities between them.

I found myself wishing for more details as I was reading this piece. There simply wasn’t much time spent describing the characters or settings, and this made it hard to imagine what anyone or anything looked like. Given the fast pace, I definitely wasn’t expecting pages of descriptions for everything, but more attention paid to this would have made me feel comfortable choosing a higher rating as the plot itself was exactly the sort of story I like to pick up.

The genealogy subplot piqued my interest. I sometimes wonder about a few mysteries in my own family tree, so books that explore characters who have similar questions about their ancestors are always interesting to read. It’s difficult to go into much detail about what Prudy learned without giving away spoilers, but I liked all of the clues she discovered, how she pieced them together, and how hard she worked to figure out the portions that didn’t quite make sense to her. There’s something so satisfying about a character who cares this much about her ancestry and wants to uncover the truth.

Portrait of a Ghost made me smile.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews, Romance Tagged With: , , , , , ,

A Matter Of Evidence by Rhys Dylan

August 13, 2025 By Leave a Comment


A Matter Of Evidence by Rhys Dylan
Publisher: Wyrmwood Books
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 3 stars
Reviewed by Fern

One wrong does not justify another

In the desolate landscapes of SENTA, the Bannau Brycheiniog army training grounds, DCI Warlow and his seasoned investigators find themselves ensnared in a deadly game of shadows.

A man, recently released from prison after a 20-year wrongful conviction, is discovered dead, igniting a storm of doubt and suspicion. As long-buried secrets claw their way to the surface, the line between truth and deception blurs. With everyone involved in the original case now a potential suspect, they must tread carefully and confront the crimes of old as well as the present.

As the stakes escalate, can Warlow decipher the puzzle of the past before the present claims another victim?

DCI Warlow and his team are called in to investigate when a young man – who had only recently been released from prison after a wrong conviction overturned after nineteen years – has been murdered. As they look into the original crime and the resultant mess left behind the team discovered that more than a few people had reasons to keep this freed young man from telling the truth. Can they right these past grievous wrongs?

I have been really enjoying this slightly grittier Welsh based crime/mystery novels but have to admit we’re fast reaching the stage where there’s a number of plots arching across multiple novels and the team are getting more and more settled in together. While I do feel this book can be read by itself, there’s a few strong sub plots that have carried over from the previous few books. Additionally, I don’t feel this book ends quite on a cliffhanger, but it was very very clear to me what is about to happen almost immediately after this book has finished and I find myself really eager to carry on and not wait through a few other reads. So I was quite grateful that I already had the next book in the series waiting for me and I’ll be moving directly onto that next book. I have a strong feeling some other readers might feel the same as me and while this plot wraps up I’m very eager for the dangling thread left right there on the last few pages and so I’d strongly recommend readers consider having the next in the series on hand.

I really enjoyed this main plotline – how the team were determined to right the wrongs of the past police team who let this young man slide into the system and never tried to own their own errors. I also enjoyed how parts of the plot were quite convoluted and how I guessed some of it but also made inaccurate guesses in other places of the book. I thought a number of things wound together very well and while there wasn’t as much closure on some of the longer running plots that I’m eager to see wrapped up, there was some movement in them and that was good to read too.

Readers who enjoy a slightly more complicated British Police Procedural series should find this enjoyable. I admit it’s a little gritter and less “small town” or “comfort read” as many other British mysteries out there, but the plot is solidly written, and I find the series as a whole enjoyable.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews Tagged With: , , , ,

The Artist of Blackberry Grange by Paulette Kennedy

August 12, 2025 By Leave a Comment


The Artist of Blackberry Grange by Paulette Kennedy
Publisher: Lake Union Publishing
Genre: Fiction, Historical, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller, Sci-Fi/Fantasy
Rating: 4 stars
Reviewed by Lavender

In the summer of 1925, the winds of change are particularly chilling for a young woman whose life has suddenly become unbalanced.

Devastated by her mother’s death and a cruel, broken engagement, Sadie Halloran learns that her great-aunt Marguerite, a renowned artist now in the throes of dementia, needs a live-in companion. Grasping at newfound purpose, Sadie leaves her desolate Kansas City boardinghouse for Blackberry Grange, Marguerite’s once-grand mansion sitting precariously atop an Arkansas bluff. Though Marguerite is a fading shell of the vibrant woman Sadie remembers, Marguerite is feverishly compelled to paint eerie, hallucinatory portraits of old lovers—some cherished, some regretted, and some beastly. All of them haunting.

With each passing night, time itself seems to shift with the shadows at Blackberry Grange. As truth and delusion begin to blur, Sadie must uncover the secrets that hold Marguerite captive to her past before reality—and Marguerite’s life—slips away entirely.

The novel introduces us to Sadie Halloran, a young woman adrift after profound personal losses—her mother’s death and a sad broken engagement. Seeking a new purpose, she accepts the role of live-in companion for her great-aunt Marguerite, a celebrated artist now grappling with the disorienting grip of dementia, at the secluded, once-grand Blackberry Grange.

Kennedy excels at crafting layered characters. Sadie’s journey from desolation to determination is compelling, but it is Marguerite who truly captivates. Her fragmented memories and feverish compulsion to paint haunting portraits of her past lovers—some cherished, some monstrous—provide a fascinating and unsettling window into her fractured mind. This blurring of truth and delusion is exquisitely handled, making you question what is real alongside Sadie.

The decaying grandeur of Blackberry Grange itself acts as a character, with time seemingly shifting alongside the shadows. This creates a palpable sense of suspense that builds steadily as Sadie delves deeper into the estate’s — and Marguerite’s — dark secrets. The plot is cleverly constructed, unfolding with a careful pace that keeps the reader thoroughly engaged, hungry to uncover the mysteries that hold Marguerite captive to her past. It’s clear that Kennedy has written this novel with care, evident in the rich historical detail and the sensitive portrayal of dementia alongside the ghostly elements.

While the narrative is largely gripping, there were occasional moments where the exploration of Marguerite’s disjointed memories felt a touch repetitive. However, this minor point does little to detract from the overall immersive experience.

Ultimately, The Artist of Blackberry Grange is a well-crafted tale of family secrets, sacrifice, and the enduring power of love and loss. It’s a novel that will appeal to readers who enjoy atmospheric historical fiction with a ghostly twist, well-developed characters, and a mystery that keeps you guessing until the end. Paulette Kennedy delivers another compelling story that resonates long after the final page.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Other, Reviews Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Lifeless by Mark Billingham

August 11, 2025 By Leave a Comment


Lifeless by Mark Billingham
Publisher: Sphere
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 3 stars
Reviewed by Fern

Tom Thorne’s career is on the skids. Having seriously crossed the line on his last case and depressed over the recent suspicious death of his father, the once ambitious police detective has been reduced to pushing papers . . . and is being encouraged to take a prolonged leave of duty.

But someone is stalking the city’s most destitute citizens. Three homeless men have recently been kicked to death, each brutalized corpse discovered with a banknote pinned to its chest. With nothing to lose, Thorne volunteers to try to find the killer—taking to the streets he knows so well from his days as beat policeman and as a homicide detective, but this time joining the squalid ranks of life’s rejects. In this harsh and harrowing netherworld, with its own rules and moral codes, a shocking link between the brutal crimes and a fifteen-year-old atrocity could end up costing Thorne what little life he has left.

Three men (all homeless and sleeping rough on London’s streets) have all been brutally murdered; kicked to death and found with a twenty-pound note pinned to their jackets. The murders each appear random, but – even still grieving and newly shuffled out of the murder team – DI Tom Thorne can tell there has to be more to this series of killings than is readily apparent. Convincing his boss that going undercover and living rough with these people, Tom is determined to navigate this disturbing underworld. Can Tom uncover what’s happening before he, as well, is lost amongst the masses?

I have been really enjoying this gritty and well written British Police Procedural series. I’ve remarked a few times in the previous reviews for earlier books that this series can be quite harsh and difficult at times to read and this story was absolutely up there with the best of them. The entire premise of the plot is a difficult subject – the vulnerable homeless which every large city has, so I feel everyone can relate on some level to this group. While I was pleased the author didn’t go overboard with the harshness and tragedy of this subject, neither does he gloss over anything.

I found myself really impressed with the depth and balance to which the author – through Tom – filled out this book. I thought the balance was just right, with plenty of description and showing much of this underbelly through Tom living 100% rough on the streets full time with this community (and all those associated taboos) but not making this aspect more important than the other humans there or the plot of unearthing a killer.

Like most of the previous books in this series, I strongly suspect this will not be every reader’s style or favoured plotline. I feel this is meant to be an uncomfortable book and meant to make you think and push your boundaries and I found that here in spades. I equally found myself enjoying Tom’s character – and his boss and Holland’s to a lesser extent – and hoping each of them could grow and expand through this experience.

I admit the murder mystery – while always present – definitely took a secondary seat at times to the life experience Tom was getting on the streets. I was quite happy with this, but I do feel readers interested more purely in the mystery and not as engrossed in the rest of the story might find the spotlight should have been more firmly on the mystery and less on the homeless world and streets that were the atmospheric backdrop to this story.

Readers looking for a different, grittier and at times harder storyline should absolutely give this series – and this book in particular – a crack. While it might not resonate with everyone, I am really finding myself darkly addicted to this series and am happy there’s a number more to come before I’m caught up.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews Tagged With: , , , , ,
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