grayciouslygreyreader's Reviews (142)

Three Rawlins siblings, John, Sandra and Robby reunite at their childhood home (Teague House),  after the passing of their mother. Robby still lives on the property in a cottage, away from the house with his family, but from the get go we read that he seems to be having martial problems as his wife and kids are staying with his mother in law. Their Aunt Phil, has been taking care of their mother, so when she passes Phil lets the siblings know that she will be going on a never ending cruise to finally live her life. Sandra goes for a walk on the property, and that’s when she sees a finger in the ground. This is where the real mystery begins… because not only is there a body on the property, but also a grave to several others in the same location. Who did it? Did their parents have a sinister past? Why is there a new grave?

This book kept me interested the whole time. A couple characters I felt could be eliminated right away, so I really tried to pay attention to clues on the other characters. The book has a slow burn to it but keeps you interested to see where these bodies came from. Overall I really enjoyed the mystery of who did it. This book has several character POVs, but I felt it was very easy to keep track of. If your vibe is family secret thrillers, then this book is for you. 

Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press, NetGalley, and Stacy Johns for this gifted copy ARC copy. 

This is the 8th book in the Eddie Flynn series, but if you haven’t read any of the others, you can still read this one as a stand alone and not be confused on what’s going on.

Ruby Johnson who is a nanny/maid for the family of John Jackson, witnesses a murder in an elite neighborhood in Manhattan where she used to live but now works in. While everyone who is anyone in the neighborhood is at a party, Ruby who is not invited to join in, witnesses one of the party goers make a quick visit to do the deed before returning to the party and disposing of the weapon or so they thought. Instead of telling the police who she witness doing it, she ends up lying about it and John Jackson finds himself the number one suspect when the gun with his DNA is found at his home.  The thing is, John didn’t do it and Eddie Flynn takes on this, what appears to be a hopeless case. 

I loved this story. It was nonstop fast paced action that would play out so well as a movie. Eddie Flynn is an ex-con artist turned lawyer, so he uses some of his tricks from his past days to help with the case, and although they are very clever, he also makes enemies with a hit out for him that he has to try to avoid while working on this case. One of the hitman, Mr. Christmas made me think of the actor Michele Morrone. The mannerisms and way he talked, I envisioned him the whole time. Steve Cavanagh has a way with words, and I honestly couldn’t put this book down. I practically inhaled this story to know how John Jackson’s case would get resolved, how Eddie Flynn would survive being taken out, and why Ruby Johnson lied, which again were all very clever.  There are many characters including part of the team helping Eddie Flynn with the case, the family Ruby works for, and some of the neighbors, but I found it all really easy to follow along. 

To Catch A Thief by David Dodge was a great mystery read with vintage flair, as this book was originally written in 1952.  The book starts off with action right away, as John Robie flees from his villa in the countryside of France from the agents de police by escaping from a window, jumping from balcony to an olive tree, and over the garden wall through a vineyard. The whole description of this scene is very exciting. I had a wonderful time imaging this all play out. You see,  John Robie is known as “Le Chat” a notorious jewel thief, only this period in his life he is done with stealing and trying to live a quiet life. However there is a copy cat thief, so the agents believe Le Chat is back at it and are trying to arrest him. Robie does not want to go back to prison, so he is determined to find this copy cat before the agents find him.  This book takes place in the French Riviera so there is a lot of glamorous imagery among the characters who visit the beaches, poolside and casino. I enjoyed trying to figure out who the copycat was, and didn’t figure it out until the end when it was revealed.  This is a classic read worth reading if you are a fan of old school glamour and mystery.  

This book was later turned into a movie by Alfred Hitchcock starring Cary Grant and Grace Kelly. I decided to watch the movie after to compare. The beginning was done completely different, and instead of fleeing mysteriously into the night like he did in the book, Cary Grant hops in a car with the agents watching during the day. I thought the book version was so much better for the escape. Also in the book John Robie wears a disguise the whole time. He makes himself look older and has a stuffed belly. The agents are looking for a younger man in the book, but in the movie he doesn’t disguise himself at all.  Romance is also heavily suggested in the movie which we only get a little bit at the very end of the book. 

Although this book is old, a new version is being released on April 1st by the Library of Congress Crime Classics which includes footnotes at the end of each chapter including French translations. I highly recommend reading the book and then watching the movie after, so you can see the differences in both. 

Special thanks to Sourcebooks Poisoned Pen Press and Netgalley for this gifted advance reader copy.

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The last 30% saved it for me. There was too much bickering between the siblings that I grew so annoyed with them that I could care less what happened. Back story on the brother was great… enjoyed that part a lot and then the end. Not my favorite by Grady. 

I always enjoy Jeneva’s books. This one has quite a few unbelievable aspects but that being said, I still really enjoyed it. I also figured out who did it right away. It was one line that I raised my eyebrows and said, “that’s the person”, and in the end I was correct.