In this fifth book in the Finlay Donovan series, Finlay finds herself taking in her elderly neighbour, Mrs. Haggerty, after a body is discovered in her garden. Despite Finlay and her nanny-turned-partner-in-crime Vero not looking to get involved in another murder investigation, they have no choice when Finlay’s ex-husband Steven finds himself caught up in the investigation. 

I love this series, and this book is right up there as a favourite. It’s entertaining and laugh-out-loud funny but without being overly ridiculous, as some of the more recent books have been. It gave off similar vibes to the first book which first drew me in to the series, and it was great to get back to a slightly more traditional murder mystery. 

It was interesting to get more of Mrs. Haggerty’s background in this book and it definitely helped explain her actions in some of the earlier books. I also really enjoyed the chance to explore some of the other relationships in this book: while Javi had only a few small cameos in the book, his and Vero’s relationship raised some interesting questions, as did Finlay and Nick’s. After all, just how much can you progress a relationship when you can’t let someone fully in? I’m excited to see what’s next for the couple after some of the revelations in this book. 

Finally, that ending! Elle Cosimano is a master of the cliffhanger and I’ll be on tenterhooks waiting for the next book. While you can read this as a standalone, I recommend reading the whole series to get the full experience, particularly as it’s looking like we will be pulling together some longstanding threads in the next. 

Another great outing for Finlay and Vero which I flew through in one sitting. These really are compelling and entertaining reads. I can’t wait to see what comes next! 

With thanks to Headline and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review ahead of publication.