by Lina Chern
Overall: In this entertaining contemporary mystery, we meet Katie True. Katie’s currently working in a failing mall outside Chicago, the latest in a string of jobs headed nowhere. She didn’t like college and has never found her passion – except for reading tarot cards. She can’t stand her parents and older sister; the bright points in her life are her brother, Owen, a brilliant, neurodivergent college student, and Marley, a young woman who works in the shop across from Katie’s. But then Marley disappears. And Katie sees a photo of what looks like her corpse on a stranger’s phone…
Likes: Katie narrates the novel, and I loved her voice. It’s sarcastic, self-deprecating, at times hilarious. The mystery had plenty of twists, with several convincing red herrings. Katie’s ability (or lack thereof) to investigate rang true. Owen’s a great supporting character! And I’m interested in tarot, so I found those bits intriguing.
Dislikes: The backstory for the cop character was a tired cliché. Also, Katie talks a lot about her Aunt Rosie, who taught her about tarot but moved to the West Coast during Katie’s teen years. In an age of email, text, and mobile phones, I was surprised Katie never tried to contact her.
FYI: violence, murder, criminal acts.
Thank you to #NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for my arc. All opinions are my own.
Liz Helfrich 