Opening Line:  “It’s a widely known fact that most moms are ready to kill someone by eight thirty a.m. on any given morning.”

Overall:  Finlay Donovan is a stressed and struggling mother of two young children who’s husband left her for a hot real estate agent.  She is a mediocre crime novelist suffering from writer’s block.  She has not kept up with her deadline for her current book, her electricity keeps getting shut off, she has many more bills piling up that she can’t pay for, and might have to give back the book advance that she already spent.  On top of all that, her successful husband is now engaged to his new girlfriend and threatening to sue Finlay for full custody  of the children.  Needless to say she is overwhelmed and at the end of her rope.  One day Finlay meets with her angry book agent for lunch at Panera (from where she is banned for making one of her many bad decisions), wearing big sunglasses and a scarf as a disguise.  They are discussing the plot for the mystery novel she is supposed to be writing and is overheard by a woman sitting nearby who mistakenly believes Finlay is a professional killer.  That woman then leaves her a note that offers her a lot of money to kill her evil husband.  Obviously Finlay is not going to do that.  She is a a writer, not a contract killer!   Or is she?

Ovations:  From the overall description above, this may seem like a depressing and/or serious book.  It’s not.  This book is fast paced, funny, and entertaining.  The story is witty, well written, and a fun twist on a regular mystery novel.  The plot propels itself forward through a series of misunderstandings and bad decisions.  It is a fun ride finding out what Finlay is going to choose to do next to get herself out of every new jam she finds herself in.  Finlay is a well written character who has lots of dimensions, layers and flaws, like a real person.  The way the book effortlessly mixes comedy, drama, and some romance too, really keeps you interested and wanting to read more.  At the end of the book, there are no loose ends or holes to the mystery and everything makes sense. (In a mystery novel that is very important to me.)

Oh Well:  Some parts of the story were quite obvious, so you knew where they were headed, and where they were going to end up.  Other parts of the plot got a bit far-fetched, like where the Russian Mob gets involved.  But, I guess you just have to go along with these implausible parts, suspend your disbelief, and enjoy the ride.  Lastly, some of the characters were cliched and one dimensional.  But there is a lot going on in the book, so I guess there was not time to dig into all of the characters deeper.

Opinion:  This book is not a cliffhanger, and wraps-up nicely at the end, so that is good.  But, it ends in a way that you know there is another book coming.  This book is the first in a series.  (The second book, Finlay Donovan Knocks ‘Em Dead, is coming out early in 2022.)  This book wasn’t perfect, but it is an enjoyable, amusing, over-the-top page-turner.  I liked it enough that I will for sure be reading the next one in the series to find out what trouble Finlay gets herself into next.  I recommend you read it too.  Rating 8 out of 10