Finlay Donovan is Killing It - Review

I received a digital copy from Minotaur Books via NetGalley. All reviews are my own.

I have had enough of my romance sweep and decided to tap into my NetGalley backlog for my next read. A while ago, NetGalley introduced an excellent marketing feature that allowed everyone to read the entire Finlay Donovan series, written by Elle Cosimano, for 24 hours in preparation for the next book in the hexalogy. I didn't know squat about the series, but I've seen the covers plenty of times on the other side of the gram, so I said Why not! We are blindly diving into Book 1, Finlay Donovan is Killing It.

"Finlay Donovan is killing it . . . except, she’s really not. She’s a stressed-out single-mom of two and struggling novelist, Finlay’s life is in chaos: the new book she promised her literary agent isn’t written, her ex-husband fired the nanny without telling her, and this morning she had to send her four-year-old to school with hair duct-taped to her head after an incident with scissors.

When Finlay is overheard discussing the plot of her new suspense novel with her agent over lunch, she’s mistaken for a contract killer, and inadvertently accepts an offer to dispose of a problem husband in order to make ends meet . . . Soon, Finlay discovers that crime in real life is a lot more difficult than its fictional counterpart, as she becomes tangled in a real-life murder investigation."

I figured I could get through this series faster if I listened to it via audio. Newcomer to my ears, Angela Dawe narrated the quick 9 hours and 59 minutes of this mystic thriller. In my best Soulja Boy impression, "A quick 9 hours???" Well, it felt quick to me. Dawe's narration portrayal of Finlay Donovan was a match made in heaven. She embodied the personality of a tired mother of two, the anger of a divorcee, and the humor of the misunderstandings and wild mishaps that went on in the story. If they ever did a revamp of this audio, I have no idea who they would top Dawe.

FDIKI happens to be a mixture of Mystery, Thriller, and a bit of humor. Some may even say cozy. If it is considered cozy, I owe that entire genre an apology, because I swore I was staying away from it. I just don't understand the concept of a mystery being warm and fuzzy. Where are my heart palpitations? Where's the pain in my butt from edging off the seat? Where's the audible sigh in shock? Well … I do get to do the shocking sigh for FDIKI, but we'll get there later. All I'm saying is that FDIKI was a cozy surprise for me, and I liked it!

Finlay Donovan is tired and run through. She's been divorced for a year and still hasn't gotten her life on track after the fallout. Her ex-husband has a new fiancée (a woman he cheated on Finlay with) and makes sure to tear Finlay down in every which way possible. On top of that, Finlay is a struggling writer who isn't bringing home any substantial income. A conversation with her agent led to a misunderstanding of a random woman hiring Finlay to murder her husband for payment, and to Finlay's luck, she accidentally accepts.

This was a fun read. I was entertained as hell! Finlay Donovan, at her wits' end, finds herself embroiled in a murder-for-hire plot that could solve all her problems. The plot gets wilder and wilder, and the humor in the story keeps you entertained. While some may find the twists and turns ridiculous, I think it works perfectly for Finlay. After all, as a crime/mystery writer, her real-life plot is a goldmine for her next book deal.

The story was easy to follow and not overly complicated, particularly in terms of the mystery or plot. The one thing I could have done away with was the last few short chapters. At that point, the crimes have been solved, people may or may not have died, and Finlay is still clinging on by a thread; Cosimano could have stopped the story there. Those last couple of chapters (minus the epilogue) felt like she was trying to fill in a word count quota.

Overall, I rated this book 4-stars. I had a time. I didn't know what to expect walking into this book, but I'm glad my fear of missing out (FOMO) made me take the chance. I can see why the Finlay Donovan series took off, as the first book was humorous with a hint of grim. And with the cliffhanger leading into the next book, I'm already plugging in my headphones to see what happens. Meet me over at Book 2 in Finlay Donovan Knocks' Em Dead.

Finlay Donovan is Killing It is available now!

#TheLittLibrarian #Review #Mystery #Thriller #Humor #AdventureFiction #HumorousFiction