Okay so I thought this was going to be a cozy mystery, and this is not that! So if you came here for that, know it isn’t at all cozy and only by the barest of definitions a mystery.

That said I did really enjoy the book! Lenny is surprisingly a likable character even with all her trauma quirks. The cast of characters surrounding her are amazing. Now when it comes to the ‘mystery’ part I felt it dragged in places and the murder part was like oh yeah wait I should include that. Almost like you build up to the climax the entire book… and then are dropped off a cliff hit the bottom and the story is over. The getting away with murder part was not believable for the time period. Now all that said I don’t necessarily need believability on all my books, but this had some serious themes it was dealing with and it’s not fantasy.

Anyways all that aside I did actually enjoy it even though maybe it seems I didn’t. The author has quite a way with words and a story and I was shocked this was a debut.

Please check trigger warnings for child abuse, parental death, murder obviously, suicide, animal abuse. That’s all I can think of at the moment.