A wildly fun series, even if it does leave your head spinning at times. Tess Harrow, a best-selling mystery writer, is smart, stubborn, impulsive....well, you get my drift. Just the type to go running into danger on a hunch or cross that fuzzy legal line to find clues. Her daughter is much like her, apt to blurt things outloud that she shouldn't, a trait she shares with her mother. We even get to watch the dynamics of Tess's relationship with her own mother, Bernadette. There is nothing subtle about either of them although, shh, neither wants to hear how much alike they really are.
Well, Tess at least hasn't been spending time traveling about the country with Levi Parker, a probable serial murder. It's when Levi is murdered that the real roller-coaster ride of the plot begins. Never mind that Tess's best friend is an undercover FBI agent, not to mention that her underling has a serious crush on Tess, who has a serious crush on the town detective who looks amazingly like the hero in Tess's books. Unlike Tess, he's a more closed up, by-the-books kinda guy, meaning they butt heads frequently as Tess finds herself involved in his investigation.
Tess's grand opening of her bookstore in conjunction with the release of her best-selling mystery novel doesn't go as planned. Not only does her mother show up unexpectedly but a man that daughter Gertie quickly identifies as an accused serial killer is tagging along with her. Close behind is famous and very wealthy true crime blogger Neptune and her assistant Sven. Tess takes an immediate disliking to her, albeit mostly because Neptune winds up staying at the crush's, er, detective's house. Jealous much, Tess?
And that is really just the beginning. Who killed Levi the serial killer? Could it have really been her mother? How many coincidences are too many? What weird thing is found in Tess's freezer? How did it get there and who was it meant for? Is the reporter tagging along behind Tess, okay, maybe she sorta paid his way, but is he onto more than one story? Who is Darcy? How about Jay? How does a logging business fit into the story? Why is Tess bulk ordering candy and chips? And, oh, too many other happenings to even begin to hint about. Like, will Ivy ever run out of patience with Tess?
Although Tess's rapid fire brainstorms and antics leave your head spinning, I like her. True, she'd probably give me repeated headaches trying to keep up with her thinking, never mind her actions, but she cares. She turns into a mother bear where her daughter Gertie is involved, for instance. She may be sarcastic, impulsive, and single-minded, but she will do anything to protect those she cares about.
Thanks #NetGalley and #PoisonPenBooks for giving me the opportunity to drop into Tess's fascinating but chaotic world again. After that last chapter, I can't wait to come back!
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