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Madison Kelly #1
Anonymous: A Madison Kelly Mystery
Madison Kelly, a San Diego private investigator, arrives home to a note stabbed to her front door: "Stop investigating me, or I will hunt you down and kill you." The only problem? Madison hasn't been investigating anyone--she's been taking time off to figure out what to do with her life. But how does she prove a negative? The only way to remove the threat is to do exactly what “Anonymous”, the note writer, is telling her not to do: investigate to see who left it. Could this have something to do with the true crime podcast she’s been tweeting about, and the missing girls?
The girls went missing, two years apart, after a night at the clubs in San Diego's famed Gaslamp Quarter, and Madison had been probing the internet for clues. She discovers that someone has been one step ahead of her, monitoring her tweets to prevent her from getting too close. Soon Madison's investigation brings up more questions than answers: are the disappearances connected? Are the girls dead or did they just walk away from their lives? And who is Anonymous, the person who will stop at nothing to keep Madison from learning the truth?
As she closes in, so does Anonymous. Set against a backdrop of surfer culture and coffee houses of San Diego, Anonymous follows Madison as she confronts the reality of the girls' disappearance in a terrifying climax where the hunter becomes the hunted--and Madison is running for her life.
The girls went missing, two years apart, after a night at the clubs in San Diego's famed Gaslamp Quarter, and Madison had been probing the internet for clues. She discovers that someone has been one step ahead of her, monitoring her tweets to prevent her from getting too close. Soon Madison's investigation brings up more questions than answers: are the disappearances connected? Are the girls dead or did they just walk away from their lives? And who is Anonymous, the person who will stop at nothing to keep Madison from learning the truth?
As she closes in, so does Anonymous. Set against a backdrop of surfer culture and coffee houses of San Diego, Anonymous follows Madison as she confronts the reality of the girls' disappearance in a terrifying climax where the hunter becomes the hunted--and Madison is running for her life.
320 pages, Hardcover
First published November 10, 2020
28 people are currently reading
219 people want to read
About the author
Elizabeth Breck
9 books86 followersELIZABETH BRECK is a state of California licensed private investigator who writes the Madison Kelly Mystery series. A native Californian, "Harriet the Spy" was her favorite book as a child, so it was no surprise when she grew up to become a PI. She has worked mainly in the field of insurance investigations, making her the real-life version of Sue Grafton’s Kinsey Millhone. In 2013 she went back to school, earning a bachelor’s degree in writing, summa cum laude, from the University of California San Diego. Currently there are two books in the Madison Kelly Mystery series: "Anonymous" and "Double Take." They each stand alone, but if you want to read them in order, start with "Anonymous". The books are available wherever you buy your books, including audiobooks and ebooks. If you enjoy holding the printed book in your hand, she hopes you'll buy from your local bookstore--who would love to see you! She lives with a black Labrador named Hubert who is her best friend.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 73 reviews
November 3, 2020
3.50 Stars. This was a pretty good mystery book. There were things that definitely annoyed me, but the mystery itself was a lot of fun to read. Since I read a large amount of LGBTQ+ books, I do want to mention that this is not one of them. I saw this mystery book on Netgalley and it instantly grabbed my attention. One of my all-time favorite authors is the ultimate mystery novelist Sue Grafton (RIP). Her books about a California PI will always hold a special place in my heart. So when I saw that this book was by a mystery author with an appreciation for Grafton, also writing about a PI in California, and who is a PI in real life, I knew I had to read this. This is a debut book for Breck and although there were some bumps, there were parts that I really enjoyed.
I enjoyed the premise of this book and it caught my attention right away. Madison, a PI, gets a threatening note on her door to stop investigating or she will die. The problem is she isn’t investigating anything at the moment so what is going on? The only thing Madison can think of doing is to start investigating since the police might not take the notes seriously. Will she be able to figure out what is going on before it’s too late?
There are some mixed early reviews for this story and I’m not surprised. The main character is a type of character I can see rubbing people the wrong way. For one, she is pretty Mary Sue-ish. She is the most beautiful woman ever and I think it was only a quarter of the way into the book and already three different men want her. And of course she is one of the best investigators ever. I personally don’t mind Mary Sue characters; they just don’t really bother me. Yes, it was annoying all these men drooling over her, but I didn’t mind her being so great in the other areas.
The second issue I expect some people to have was about the personality of the main character. I’m not into calling other women out their names, but this is a character and she really is bitchy and grumpy half the time. Again, this didn’t really bother me because I like my PI’s with some issues. I don’t like normal well-adjusted investigators. I want them to have flaws and problems especially if they are going to be “great” in so many other areas.
What I did have an issue with was Madison’s attitude to certain things. She keeps insisting she is this strong woman and doesn’t need a man, yet she is constantly surrounded by them and every time something happens she goes running to them. It was really annoying. I just want to add there are no explicit sex scenes, but some sex off the page. Madison also stated how she just can’t understand other women and is only friends with men (insert giant eye roll here). Of course the one person who puts their neck on the line to help Madison the most ends up being a female friend.
What made this book fun for me was the mystery. I thought it was really strong and well done. While I did guess who that “bad guy/gal” was pretty early on, I still was sucked into the story and really wanted to see how it would play out. There were turns in the mystery I didn’t expect and there were a number of exciting scenes that kept me turning the pages. I think Breck being a PI in real life really helped the mystery in a positive way.
In conclusion, I would recommend this to mystery fans if you can get over the bumps. There are issues with this main character. She is shallow about looks and in denial about being boy crazy. She will say and act in ways that will probably annoy you, but the mystery really was fun. I’m guessing this is the start of a series and chances are reasonably high that I would read a book 2. With this being a debut I’m hopeful the bumps that were here would not be present in the next installment.
An ARC was given to me for a honest review.
I enjoyed the premise of this book and it caught my attention right away. Madison, a PI, gets a threatening note on her door to stop investigating or she will die. The problem is she isn’t investigating anything at the moment so what is going on? The only thing Madison can think of doing is to start investigating since the police might not take the notes seriously. Will she be able to figure out what is going on before it’s too late?
There are some mixed early reviews for this story and I’m not surprised. The main character is a type of character I can see rubbing people the wrong way. For one, she is pretty Mary Sue-ish. She is the most beautiful woman ever and I think it was only a quarter of the way into the book and already three different men want her. And of course she is one of the best investigators ever. I personally don’t mind Mary Sue characters; they just don’t really bother me. Yes, it was annoying all these men drooling over her, but I didn’t mind her being so great in the other areas.
The second issue I expect some people to have was about the personality of the main character. I’m not into calling other women out their names, but this is a character and she really is bitchy and grumpy half the time. Again, this didn’t really bother me because I like my PI’s with some issues. I don’t like normal well-adjusted investigators. I want them to have flaws and problems especially if they are going to be “great” in so many other areas.
What I did have an issue with was Madison’s attitude to certain things. She keeps insisting she is this strong woman and doesn’t need a man, yet she is constantly surrounded by them and every time something happens she goes running to them. It was really annoying. I just want to add there are no explicit sex scenes, but some sex off the page. Madison also stated how she just can’t understand other women and is only friends with men (insert giant eye roll here). Of course the one person who puts their neck on the line to help Madison the most ends up being a female friend.
What made this book fun for me was the mystery. I thought it was really strong and well done. While I did guess who that “bad guy/gal” was pretty early on, I still was sucked into the story and really wanted to see how it would play out. There were turns in the mystery I didn’t expect and there were a number of exciting scenes that kept me turning the pages. I think Breck being a PI in real life really helped the mystery in a positive way.
In conclusion, I would recommend this to mystery fans if you can get over the bumps. There are issues with this main character. She is shallow about looks and in denial about being boy crazy. She will say and act in ways that will probably annoy you, but the mystery really was fun. I’m guessing this is the start of a series and chances are reasonably high that I would read a book 2. With this being a debut I’m hopeful the bumps that were here would not be present in the next installment.
An ARC was given to me for a honest review.
November 10, 2020
Anonymous is the first instalment in a new mystery series and tells the story of Madison "Maddie" Kelly, female private investigator--and alter-ego of author and P.I. Elizabeth Breck, set against the coffee houses and surfer culture of La Jolla, San Diego, CA. One day Madison goes for her usual jog but when she returns to her oceanfront apartment she discovers a deeply unsettling note pinned to her front door: "Stop investigating me or I will hunt you down and kill you. BITCH. No police,” it reads. There is also a strand of long blonde hair attached to the note, which she imagines was placed there by the note writer for a reason and not that it was merely an accident. Initially, she is confused by the threat because she is between jobs and is not currently investigating any cases. However, she then recalls that she tweeted about the cold cases of two young women that were featured on the true-crime podcast Crawlspace and had recently been sniffing around them informally. Samantha Erickson vanished after leaving a bar in the Gaslamp District four years ago and Elissa Alvarez on her way home from a bar in the same neighbourhood two years later.
Maddie vows to carry on her informal investigation, even going so far as interviewing a host of possible suspects and uncovering some hidden agendas. Meanwhile, we see for ourselves the shady guys who could be her stalker, including a neighbour and an ex. This is a captivating start to what seems to be a promising series and there is plenty of action throughout to keep you glued to the pages. It feels authentic and realistic in terms of the plot, and I loved the fact that Maddie is based on Breck who is a PI herself; this makes me wonder how much of the cases are from experience. Although the cast of characters is limited this allowed extra attention to detail regarding our central figure and smart, sassy protagonist, Madison; I am already looking forward to watching her evolve and mature through the upcoming books. There is quite a bit of exposition is this novel but that's forgivable due to it being a series opener, and I am pleased the author took the time to introduce us to Maddie and the setting soundly. All in all, this is a unique and rapid-fire debut with a startling conclusion, and a highly recommended page-turner.
Maddie vows to carry on her informal investigation, even going so far as interviewing a host of possible suspects and uncovering some hidden agendas. Meanwhile, we see for ourselves the shady guys who could be her stalker, including a neighbour and an ex. This is a captivating start to what seems to be a promising series and there is plenty of action throughout to keep you glued to the pages. It feels authentic and realistic in terms of the plot, and I loved the fact that Maddie is based on Breck who is a PI herself; this makes me wonder how much of the cases are from experience. Although the cast of characters is limited this allowed extra attention to detail regarding our central figure and smart, sassy protagonist, Madison; I am already looking forward to watching her evolve and mature through the upcoming books. There is quite a bit of exposition is this novel but that's forgivable due to it being a series opener, and I am pleased the author took the time to introduce us to Maddie and the setting soundly. All in all, this is a unique and rapid-fire debut with a startling conclusion, and a highly recommended page-turner.
September 15, 2020
Content warnings: misogyny, physical abuse, domestic violence
Madison Kelly, private investigator, comes home from a jog to find a note, and her hair, stabbed to her front door: “Stop investigating me, or I will hunt you down and kill you.” Unfortunately, Madison is in a career lull, and isn’t investigating anyone. The only way to figure out who’s threatening her is to risk her life, and start investigating the letter.
There are several ways that Anonymous falls into clichés, but one of its largest, and most pervasive problems, is its heroine. Madison is every overused bestseller PI trope, rolled into one blonde, tall, beautiful package. She’s smarter than everyone else around her. (She doesn’t, however, understand California law about what constitutes stalking). She hates guns, but she manages to have one at the ready every time she needs one. She’s better at following someone than the police. She manages to have three men vie for her attention and affection somehow. And, because each detective protagonist has to have a quirk, she has a double mastectomy with reconstruction (which she brings up at many points), and EXTREMELY unlikely luck, which is also stated without irony several times in the text. She is so fortunate, in fact, that she manages to find a cell phone lost by a murder victim 4 years ago by dropping a bracelet, which she slides out along with the phone. She also has a habit of name-dropping famous mystery authors, like Sue Grafton, and comparing herself to them.
Warning: Beyond this point, there are SPOILERS for Anonymous. I normally omit as many plot details as possible, but I would not be able to explain some of the problems with this novel without discussing the weak points of its plot.
Worse than being an extreme example of a Mary Sue, the narration provided by Madison has a heavy undercurrent of internalized misogyny. At one point in the novel, Madison meets a woman who wants to hire her in order to help with a divorce from her physically abusive husband—but the husband finds out about the meeting beforehand, and knows Madison’s name. Madison immediately condemns her as a “stupid woman,” and goes on a tangent about hating dumb women, before telling the wife that she’s on her own, and that she made a stupid mistake in an unprofessional and disrespectful way. Later in the story, Madison calls her again, and the wife has done just as she’s asked: left the husband, and gone to stay with a relative. Madison takes a moment to reflect on this, instead of as a positive development, as a waste of her time caused by a rich, spoiled woman who only wanted more money in her divorce. In addition to she characterizes of cancer patients with a worse prognosis/more aggressive treatment of her as weak people, and frames walking out of the cancer center after surgery as a victory over not becoming one of them. Madison’s thinly-veiled superiority complex reveals her as an extremely offensive and unlikable protagonist with few redeeming factors, even for a reader who likes antiheroes or protagonists with major flaws.
Unfortunately, the novel’s other characters aren’t any better. Many are stereotypes, especially of blonde surfer men, police officers, or Hispanic women. Furthermore, a lesbian character is included, but is characterized as unintelligent, obsessive, and annoying by Madison, and has very little to do in the plot. I can’t help but feel that it would have been less derogatory to omit this character than to include her in the novel, as it feels like tokenism.
The settings of the novel are less than exciting, as they’re areas that are reproduced time and time again in mystery novels and TV: beaches, coffee shops, bars, restaurants, apartments. The pacing isn’t slow, but if you’re familiar with the mystery genre, there’s a good chance that you’ll realize key elements of the plot before its heroine does. The conclusion of the book makes logical sense, but also is less than satisfying, as it takes several deus ex machina to get there. Madison hasn’t changed much by the end, either, apart from admitting a tiny bit of fear to her surfer love interest, who returns the affectionate confession – who then, inexplicably, runs away from the scene of Madison’s near-murder because he sees a great wave.
I can’t recommend Anonymous in its current state, although I normally love to let people know about books with a strong female lead. Its quality would have been greatly improved by rethinking its main character, using a sensitivity reader, and relying less on luck or statistically impossible circumstances to push the plot forward.
Madison Kelly, private investigator, comes home from a jog to find a note, and her hair, stabbed to her front door: “Stop investigating me, or I will hunt you down and kill you.” Unfortunately, Madison is in a career lull, and isn’t investigating anyone. The only way to figure out who’s threatening her is to risk her life, and start investigating the letter.
There are several ways that Anonymous falls into clichés, but one of its largest, and most pervasive problems, is its heroine. Madison is every overused bestseller PI trope, rolled into one blonde, tall, beautiful package. She’s smarter than everyone else around her. (She doesn’t, however, understand California law about what constitutes stalking). She hates guns, but she manages to have one at the ready every time she needs one. She’s better at following someone than the police. She manages to have three men vie for her attention and affection somehow. And, because each detective protagonist has to have a quirk, she has a double mastectomy with reconstruction (which she brings up at many points), and EXTREMELY unlikely luck, which is also stated without irony several times in the text. She is so fortunate, in fact, that she manages to find a cell phone lost by a murder victim 4 years ago by dropping a bracelet, which she slides out along with the phone. She also has a habit of name-dropping famous mystery authors, like Sue Grafton, and comparing herself to them.
Warning: Beyond this point, there are SPOILERS for Anonymous. I normally omit as many plot details as possible, but I would not be able to explain some of the problems with this novel without discussing the weak points of its plot.
Worse than being an extreme example of a Mary Sue, the narration provided by Madison has a heavy undercurrent of internalized misogyny. At one point in the novel, Madison meets a woman who wants to hire her in order to help with a divorce from her physically abusive husband—but the husband finds out about the meeting beforehand, and knows Madison’s name. Madison immediately condemns her as a “stupid woman,” and goes on a tangent about hating dumb women, before telling the wife that she’s on her own, and that she made a stupid mistake in an unprofessional and disrespectful way. Later in the story, Madison calls her again, and the wife has done just as she’s asked: left the husband, and gone to stay with a relative. Madison takes a moment to reflect on this, instead of as a positive development, as a waste of her time caused by a rich, spoiled woman who only wanted more money in her divorce. In addition to she characterizes of cancer patients with a worse prognosis/more aggressive treatment of her as weak people, and frames walking out of the cancer center after surgery as a victory over not becoming one of them. Madison’s thinly-veiled superiority complex reveals her as an extremely offensive and unlikable protagonist with few redeeming factors, even for a reader who likes antiheroes or protagonists with major flaws.
Unfortunately, the novel’s other characters aren’t any better. Many are stereotypes, especially of blonde surfer men, police officers, or Hispanic women. Furthermore, a lesbian character is included, but is characterized as unintelligent, obsessive, and annoying by Madison, and has very little to do in the plot. I can’t help but feel that it would have been less derogatory to omit this character than to include her in the novel, as it feels like tokenism.
The settings of the novel are less than exciting, as they’re areas that are reproduced time and time again in mystery novels and TV: beaches, coffee shops, bars, restaurants, apartments. The pacing isn’t slow, but if you’re familiar with the mystery genre, there’s a good chance that you’ll realize key elements of the plot before its heroine does. The conclusion of the book makes logical sense, but also is less than satisfying, as it takes several deus ex machina to get there. Madison hasn’t changed much by the end, either, apart from admitting a tiny bit of fear to her surfer love interest, who returns the affectionate confession – who then, inexplicably, runs away from the scene of Madison’s near-murder because he sees a great wave.
I can’t recommend Anonymous in its current state, although I normally love to let people know about books with a strong female lead. Its quality would have been greatly improved by rethinking its main character, using a sensitivity reader, and relying less on luck or statistically impossible circumstances to push the plot forward.
July 21, 2020
This book started off quickly and had an interesting premise- PI Madison comes home to a note on her door threatening her if she keeps investigating something but she isn't sure what the person means, she is isn't actively investigating anything, and is in between jobs doing insurance fraud work. She has been listening to a podcast about a couple girls that went missing in her hometown of San Diego, and wonders if this is what has caused the attention; curiosity gets the best of her and she starts digging in even deeper.
There was a lot of action in this book and it was a good mystery- the author throws out a few red herrings, which makes the unmasking of the villain somewhat of a surprise (though that person had been on my list the whole time). The pace of the book is fairly fast, with a lot of characters that Madison connects together in various ways.
The thing that wasn't so great about the book was the extreme detail, repetitive at parts, that the author goes into. I used to live in San Diego so I could picture all the highways and how they intersected but I doubt the average person has any interest in that level of detail. Also, Madison's attractive looks and height are brought up over and over again and it just wasn't necessary.
This story does make you have to suspend your disbelief a bit- some of the things Madison does, finds, and gets access to seem pretty unlikely in real life, but served to help the pace of the book move along.
Overall, a decent read that wasn't necessarily the most memorable book I'll read this year but held my interest throughout. Thanks to Netgalley for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
There was a lot of action in this book and it was a good mystery- the author throws out a few red herrings, which makes the unmasking of the villain somewhat of a surprise (though that person had been on my list the whole time). The pace of the book is fairly fast, with a lot of characters that Madison connects together in various ways.
The thing that wasn't so great about the book was the extreme detail, repetitive at parts, that the author goes into. I used to live in San Diego so I could picture all the highways and how they intersected but I doubt the average person has any interest in that level of detail. Also, Madison's attractive looks and height are brought up over and over again and it just wasn't necessary.
This story does make you have to suspend your disbelief a bit- some of the things Madison does, finds, and gets access to seem pretty unlikely in real life, but served to help the pace of the book move along.
Overall, a decent read that wasn't necessarily the most memorable book I'll read this year but held my interest throughout. Thanks to Netgalley for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
November 10, 2020
It took me longer than usual to read this book because it started out a bit too slow for me. However, I'm finally finished and it ended well!
Madison Kelly a Private Investigator comes home after her run to find a note speared to her door. " Stop investigating me or I will hunt you down and kill you. BITCH. No police." She's Baffled as to why someone would leave such a note because she WAS NOT INVESTINGATING anyone!! If someone was hoping to scare her, it backfired. Now her interest was piqued.
What does she do? The complete opposite. She immediately tries to figure out what prompted this. Finally, she concluded that this occurred because of some tweets she posted after listening to a podcast about two missing girls. Madison immediately launches an investigation of her own to figure out who Anonymous is. The story gradually picked up from there.
I loved the character Madison because she's very strong, determined and independent. She is not intimidated by anyone even though she has some trust issues. I think the next Madison Kelly will be something to look forward to. I would recommend this book. However, I*m giving this book three stars just because it started out too slow for me.
Thank you NetGalley, Crooked Lane Books and Elizabeth Breck for Anonymous
Madison Kelly a Private Investigator comes home after her run to find a note speared to her door. " Stop investigating me or I will hunt you down and kill you. BITCH. No police." She's Baffled as to why someone would leave such a note because she WAS NOT INVESTINGATING anyone!! If someone was hoping to scare her, it backfired. Now her interest was piqued.
What does she do? The complete opposite. She immediately tries to figure out what prompted this. Finally, she concluded that this occurred because of some tweets she posted after listening to a podcast about two missing girls. Madison immediately launches an investigation of her own to figure out who Anonymous is. The story gradually picked up from there.
I loved the character Madison because she's very strong, determined and independent. She is not intimidated by anyone even though she has some trust issues. I think the next Madison Kelly will be something to look forward to. I would recommend this book. However, I*m giving this book three stars just because it started out too slow for me.
Thank you NetGalley, Crooked Lane Books and Elizabeth Breck for Anonymous
July 18, 2020
Think every private eye looks like Tom Selleck and drives a flashy red Ferrari? Well, think again! Meet Madison Kelly – a tall, blonde, cool drink of water who revels in her hometown surfer haven in San Diego. She may not look like your average PI, but don’t let that fool you - she can definitely hold her own. Not even a battle with breast cancer can slow down this feisty, feminine force of nature.
Madison, fresh off her first murder investigation, is taking some time off to decide which direction she wants to take her career next – stick with her “old hat” of insurance fraud, or is the arena of high-stakes murder cases where her heart really lies? Out of the blue, Madison comes home to a threatening note nailed to her front door – with one of her long blonde hairs streaming from the nail, no less – warning her to back off her current investigation – only she’s not investigating anything currently. Convinced the threat is a result of her Tweets to a radio show about two cold cases involving missing young women from the Gaslight district. Not deterred by the threat, but inspired by it, Madison begins her own investigation of these seemingly similar disappearances.
This spunky who-dunnit is a serious page turner with a lively and fun heroine. At times, I found myself wishing for a little more “show” rather than “tell” in the story, which left me feeling the novel could have used another round or two of editing to tighten up the descriptions and language. However, the story is solid and I have no doubt this series (of which this novel is the first) will be a favorite of those crime drama lovers out there (and I know there are a lot of you!). This is a winning formula for Elizabeth Breck, a first-time novelist, who brings her real-life private investigation experience to the fore in this energetic tale.
Thank you to Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley.com who provided me this Advance Reader Copy in exchange for an honest review.
#Anonymous
#AMadisonKellyMystery
#ElizabethBreck
#CrookedLaneBooks
#NetGalley
Madison, fresh off her first murder investigation, is taking some time off to decide which direction she wants to take her career next – stick with her “old hat” of insurance fraud, or is the arena of high-stakes murder cases where her heart really lies? Out of the blue, Madison comes home to a threatening note nailed to her front door – with one of her long blonde hairs streaming from the nail, no less – warning her to back off her current investigation – only she’s not investigating anything currently. Convinced the threat is a result of her Tweets to a radio show about two cold cases involving missing young women from the Gaslight district. Not deterred by the threat, but inspired by it, Madison begins her own investigation of these seemingly similar disappearances.
This spunky who-dunnit is a serious page turner with a lively and fun heroine. At times, I found myself wishing for a little more “show” rather than “tell” in the story, which left me feeling the novel could have used another round or two of editing to tighten up the descriptions and language. However, the story is solid and I have no doubt this series (of which this novel is the first) will be a favorite of those crime drama lovers out there (and I know there are a lot of you!). This is a winning formula for Elizabeth Breck, a first-time novelist, who brings her real-life private investigation experience to the fore in this energetic tale.
Thank you to Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley.com who provided me this Advance Reader Copy in exchange for an honest review.
#Anonymous
#AMadisonKellyMystery
#ElizabethBreck
#CrookedLaneBooks
#NetGalley
February 11, 2021
Not a terrible read, but one that drags a bit... starting at page 3! Maybe it is me, but I found the surfer dude thing a bit much ... so maybe it is a localized thing that sort of turned me off. I did think the plot was a bit slow and so often predictable... it just seemed to fail to pick up momentum. I found the writing a bit rough to plow through and I could never quite come to terms with the characters who were not quite fully developed...
3 stars
Happy Reading!
3 stars
Happy Reading!
August 27, 2020
Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of
Anonymous.
I'm always on the lookout for a new mystery series featuring a strong female protagonist so I was pleased when my request was approved.
** Minor spoilers ahead **
Madison Kelly is a PI, one of few female investigators in an field dominated by men.
When a threatening note warns her off a case, Madison is concerned, her curiosity piqued.
She's not working on any case but the threat leads her into investigating the cold cases of two missing young women.
I liked Madison; she was tenacious, resourceful and a survivor.
The loss of both her parents to cancer had caused her to rely only on herself, least of all dependent on a man.
A strong heroine who doesn't need a man to feel fulfilled in her life will always count me as a fan, but I noticed how often the author has to tell the reader about how attractive Madison is, how she always turns a man's head, how striking she is, how so many guys are attracted to her.
For a woman who doesn't need a man, she's surrounded by nothing but men.
Now, I'm not sure if the author did this unintentionally, as if she needed to remind readers that Madison's femininity was not diminished after surviving breast cancer or to stress the fact that even though Madison doesn't depend on a man for anything, she is still an empowered but attractive female, which defeats the purpose of Madison's stance as a plucky investigator.
All the men and their machinations surrounding Madison got to be distracting, and sometimes pulled me away from the narrative.
The writing was good, and the plot wasn't bad.
I would give the next book in the series a chance, provided it tones down the "all the guys want Madison" not so subtle recurring theme.
I'm always on the lookout for a new mystery series featuring a strong female protagonist so I was pleased when my request was approved.
** Minor spoilers ahead **
Madison Kelly is a PI, one of few female investigators in an field dominated by men.
When a threatening note warns her off a case, Madison is concerned, her curiosity piqued.
She's not working on any case but the threat leads her into investigating the cold cases of two missing young women.
I liked Madison; she was tenacious, resourceful and a survivor.
The loss of both her parents to cancer had caused her to rely only on herself, least of all dependent on a man.
A strong heroine who doesn't need a man to feel fulfilled in her life will always count me as a fan, but I noticed how often the author has to tell the reader about how attractive Madison is, how she always turns a man's head, how striking she is, how so many guys are attracted to her.
For a woman who doesn't need a man, she's surrounded by nothing but men.
Now, I'm not sure if the author did this unintentionally, as if she needed to remind readers that Madison's femininity was not diminished after surviving breast cancer or to stress the fact that even though Madison doesn't depend on a man for anything, she is still an empowered but attractive female, which defeats the purpose of Madison's stance as a plucky investigator.
All the men and their machinations surrounding Madison got to be distracting, and sometimes pulled me away from the narrative.
The writing was good, and the plot wasn't bad.
I would give the next book in the series a chance, provided it tones down the "all the guys want Madison" not so subtle recurring theme.
March 21, 2021
What fun to travel through familiar streets and communities as you live this exciting mystery. Suspense and solid characters make this book an excellent choice.
November 9, 2020
Anonymous by Elizabeth Breck is an intriguing mystery with a strong lead character.
Madison Kelly is a private investigator who mainly works with insurance companies. While taking time off work, she is listening to true crime podcasts. She is very interested in a podcast about two unsolved murders that occurred in the local area. Four years ago, Samantha Erickson went missing after a night of drinking in the San Diego Gaslamp Quarter. Two years after her disappearance, Elissa Alvarez vanished from another bar in the same vicinity. Madison has been interacting with the podcasters and other listeners on twitter. So when she arrives home after a jog one morning to find a threatening note on her door, she is first confused about what the note writer is referring to. Madison soon becomes certain she is being warned about her on-line musings about the missing women. This attempt at intimidation piques her curiosity so she begins seriously investigating the two cases. Will Madison unmask a killer? Or will she become the next victim?
Madison is an independent woman who mainly relies on no one but herself both in business and her personal life. In the past, she has depended on her friendship with local police Detective Tom Clark for occasional assistance. However, their relationship has recently been strained for several months. She pushes aside her uneasiness and asks him to analyze the notes for her. Meanwhile, she begins retracing Elissa and Samantha's movements on the nights they vanished. Madison also interviews the family members and friends of each woman hoping they will have information to aid her investigation.
Madison's private life is fairly solitary and she has a bit of a friends with benefits relationship with local surfer Dave Rich. Deciding to expand her social network, she agrees to go out with one of her neighbors. When she unearths startling new evidence, Madison arranges to meet Tom and he introduces her to his friend Ken. As she inches closer and closer to solving the cases, Madison is uncertain whom she can trust.
Anonymous is a clever mystery with interesting twists and turns. Madison is a likable protagonist but she is sometimes a little too trusting. The investigations are evenly paced but Madison's instincts are not quite as sharply honed as she believes. Although a fairly easy to solve whodunnit, Elizabeth Breck pulls off a suspenseful denouement. This well-written debut is a promising beginning for the Madison Kelly Mystery series.
Madison Kelly is a private investigator who mainly works with insurance companies. While taking time off work, she is listening to true crime podcasts. She is very interested in a podcast about two unsolved murders that occurred in the local area. Four years ago, Samantha Erickson went missing after a night of drinking in the San Diego Gaslamp Quarter. Two years after her disappearance, Elissa Alvarez vanished from another bar in the same vicinity. Madison has been interacting with the podcasters and other listeners on twitter. So when she arrives home after a jog one morning to find a threatening note on her door, she is first confused about what the note writer is referring to. Madison soon becomes certain she is being warned about her on-line musings about the missing women. This attempt at intimidation piques her curiosity so she begins seriously investigating the two cases. Will Madison unmask a killer? Or will she become the next victim?
Madison is an independent woman who mainly relies on no one but herself both in business and her personal life. In the past, she has depended on her friendship with local police Detective Tom Clark for occasional assistance. However, their relationship has recently been strained for several months. She pushes aside her uneasiness and asks him to analyze the notes for her. Meanwhile, she begins retracing Elissa and Samantha's movements on the nights they vanished. Madison also interviews the family members and friends of each woman hoping they will have information to aid her investigation.
Madison's private life is fairly solitary and she has a bit of a friends with benefits relationship with local surfer Dave Rich. Deciding to expand her social network, she agrees to go out with one of her neighbors. When she unearths startling new evidence, Madison arranges to meet Tom and he introduces her to his friend Ken. As she inches closer and closer to solving the cases, Madison is uncertain whom she can trust.
Anonymous is a clever mystery with interesting twists and turns. Madison is a likable protagonist but she is sometimes a little too trusting. The investigations are evenly paced but Madison's instincts are not quite as sharply honed as she believes. Although a fairly easy to solve whodunnit, Elizabeth Breck pulls off a suspenseful denouement. This well-written debut is a promising beginning for the Madison Kelly Mystery series.
January 4, 2022
This originally appeared at The Irresponsible Reader.
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WHAT'S ANONYMOUS ABOUT?
Madison Kelley is a freelance PI who has been between jobs for a while (we're never told exactly why, a little touch that I loved more than I was annoyed by it being left dangling to tempt me). So she does what any mystery junkie would do when she's not being paid to investigate—she listens to True Crime podcasts, and with her favorite focusing on a local investigation (or two, as we join the action it's unsure if they're connected) she spends a lot of time thinking about the case(s) and tweeting the hosts with her ideas.
Madison starts receiving threats telling her to stop her investigation. But she has no idea what investigation the threats are referring to—it can't be her tweets to the podcast, can it?
Madison has to move from fan-interest in the crime to actually investigating it, just to find out who is threatening her. Assuming it's not someone from a previous case, a prank, or a case of mistaken identity. I know I'm not in the evaluative portion yet, but I have to say that I don't remember the last hook that got me like this one. So, so, clever.
KINSEY 2.0?
By page 10, I'd already put in my notes, "She's Kinsey, but not." The sentiment just grew. I'm not really suggesting that Breck designed Madison to be a Kinsey Millhone clone/knock-off, but if someone was to design a contemporary version of Grafton's protagonist, the result would look just like Madison Kelley.
So here are just a few things that made me think of Kinsey over the course of the book: she's from California (although Breck uses San Diego without a fake name); her PI work (up until this novel) has primarily been as an insurance investigator; she has a strange not-really-romantic relationship with a married cop; she's not afraid to stand up for herself or to take on situations she might be wise to avoid; she refuses to let being a woman in a male-dominated field hold her back; she's interested in romance but needs her space/independence. Frankly, a lot of these will apply to several other female PI's—I realize that. But there's just something about the way that Breck showed Madison to the reader that screamed Kinsey, but not.
How is she not Kinsey? A few quick notes (I expect this list will grow in subsequent novels—and could be longer now if I took more time to compile it/didn't mind spoiling anything): Madison doesn't once resort to/mention a Little Black Dress (and I don't see her donning one), Madison eats so much better, she seems better with people naturally, I can't imagine Kinsey listening to the 1980s equivalent of True Crime Podcasts—and being on Twitter? No way.
INVESTIGATIVE TIPS
One of the best parts of Detective novels is when you get some insight into PI/Detective methods—sometimes it's in a didactic way like Michael Westen would do on Burn Notice, sometimes it's just in the narration like Archie Goodwin would do. It's what convinces people like Harvey Mapes, Adam Whyte/Colin McLaughlin, Cat Caliban, or me that we can handle a murder investigation when one drops in our laps.
The descriptions of Madison tailing someone, noticing someone tailing her, shaking the tail, and so on are just great. I assume given Breck's résumé that they're authentic (and if I'm wrong, she pulls it off in such a way that you'd never know). Not only do you feel like you're in the moment in a way you sometimes don't when reading about someone tailing another car (even when reading really good novels), but you walk away convinced that you could follow a random stranger for a while without them noticing and seeking a restraining order against you.
SHE HAS GOOD TASTE, TOO
Like other detectives I've read recently, Madison reads Mystery/Detective Fiction—although it hits me, that I can only think of female detectives that fit this bill (or amateurs). Why is that? Are male detectives illiterate or are do they only read intellectual fare (see: Spenser)?
Anyway, I had noted that Madison had some good tastes in reading when I came across the above quotation—and knew we were going to be friends for a long time to come. Sure, I'd already decided to read the next novel by this point, but this cemented it. Nero Wolfe is her favorite? That's worth me picking up at least three sequels.
SO, WHAT DID I THINK ABOUT ANONYMOUS?
Never underestimate luck—that's pretty much always true of fictional detectives (private, police, or amateur)—at least Breck's upfront about it.
This was my last novel of 2021, and what a novel to go out on! Madison's a great character—who makes one pretty big error in judgment but is otherwise sharp as a tack. And you can't beat her kind of luck.
I really liked Breck's prose and pacing—she kept things moving while giving us enough background on Madison to really get a good feel for her (and I have to know more about the lawyer, Haley—I think she promises to be fun). Also, of all the ways to bring in True Crime podcasts and social media into detective fiction, this is my favorite.
Clearly, I had a blast with this. Anonymous starts with a killer hook, has enough twists and turns to keep things interesting and the reader invested, has some good emotional subplots, a great setting (and we get a decent feel for Madison's little corner of it), and a bang-on ending. It's hard to ask for more from a debut.
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The thing about being a private investigator was that she liked to investigate things. Madison had never been able to interpret whether she liked mysteries or she hated them; all she knew was that she was compelled to solve them.
WHAT'S ANONYMOUS ABOUT?
Madison Kelley is a freelance PI who has been between jobs for a while (we're never told exactly why, a little touch that I loved more than I was annoyed by it being left dangling to tempt me). So she does what any mystery junkie would do when she's not being paid to investigate—she listens to True Crime podcasts, and with her favorite focusing on a local investigation (or two, as we join the action it's unsure if they're connected) she spends a lot of time thinking about the case(s) and tweeting the hosts with her ideas.
Madison starts receiving threats telling her to stop her investigation. But she has no idea what investigation the threats are referring to—it can't be her tweets to the podcast, can it?
Madison has to move from fan-interest in the crime to actually investigating it, just to find out who is threatening her. Assuming it's not someone from a previous case, a prank, or a case of mistaken identity. I know I'm not in the evaluative portion yet, but I have to say that I don't remember the last hook that got me like this one. So, so, clever.
KINSEY 2.0?
By page 10, I'd already put in my notes, "She's Kinsey, but not." The sentiment just grew. I'm not really suggesting that Breck designed Madison to be a Kinsey Millhone clone/knock-off, but if someone was to design a contemporary version of Grafton's protagonist, the result would look just like Madison Kelley.
So here are just a few things that made me think of Kinsey over the course of the book: she's from California (although Breck uses San Diego without a fake name); her PI work (up until this novel) has primarily been as an insurance investigator; she has a strange not-really-romantic relationship with a married cop; she's not afraid to stand up for herself or to take on situations she might be wise to avoid; she refuses to let being a woman in a male-dominated field hold her back; she's interested in romance but needs her space/independence. Frankly, a lot of these will apply to several other female PI's—I realize that. But there's just something about the way that Breck showed Madison to the reader that screamed Kinsey, but not.
How is she not Kinsey? A few quick notes (I expect this list will grow in subsequent novels—and could be longer now if I took more time to compile it/didn't mind spoiling anything): Madison doesn't once resort to/mention a Little Black Dress (and I don't see her donning one), Madison eats so much better, she seems better with people naturally, I can't imagine Kinsey listening to the 1980s equivalent of True Crime Podcasts—and being on Twitter? No way.
INVESTIGATIVE TIPS
One of the best parts of Detective novels is when you get some insight into PI/Detective methods—sometimes it's in a didactic way like Michael Westen would do on Burn Notice, sometimes it's just in the narration like Archie Goodwin would do. It's what convinces people like Harvey Mapes, Adam Whyte/Colin McLaughlin, Cat Caliban, or me that we can handle a murder investigation when one drops in our laps.
The descriptions of Madison tailing someone, noticing someone tailing her, shaking the tail, and so on are just great. I assume given Breck's résumé that they're authentic (and if I'm wrong, she pulls it off in such a way that you'd never know). Not only do you feel like you're in the moment in a way you sometimes don't when reading about someone tailing another car (even when reading really good novels), but you walk away convinced that you could follow a random stranger for a while without them noticing and seeking a restraining order against you.
SHE HAS GOOD TASTE, TOO
The coincidences were stacking up. Her favorite fictional detective, Nero Wolfe, always used to say, “In a world of cause and effect, all coincidences are suspect.” She agreed.
Like other detectives I've read recently, Madison reads Mystery/Detective Fiction—although it hits me, that I can only think of female detectives that fit this bill (or amateurs). Why is that? Are male detectives illiterate or are do they only read intellectual fare (see: Spenser)?
Anyway, I had noted that Madison had some good tastes in reading when I came across the above quotation—and knew we were going to be friends for a long time to come. Sure, I'd already decided to read the next novel by this point, but this cemented it. Nero Wolfe is her favorite? That's worth me picking up at least three sequels.
SO, WHAT DID I THINK ABOUT ANONYMOUS?
Madison had had a supervisor at one of her first investigation jobs tell her, “Being a good investigator is fifty percent technique and fifty percent luck. And Madison, you have good luck.” She had thought about that a lot. She did have good luck.
Never underestimate luck—that's pretty much always true of fictional detectives (private, police, or amateur)—at least Breck's upfront about it.
This was my last novel of 2021, and what a novel to go out on! Madison's a great character—who makes one pretty big error in judgment but is otherwise sharp as a tack. And you can't beat her kind of luck.
I really liked Breck's prose and pacing—she kept things moving while giving us enough background on Madison to really get a good feel for her (and I have to know more about the lawyer, Haley—I think she promises to be fun). Also, of all the ways to bring in True Crime podcasts and social media into detective fiction, this is my favorite.
Clearly, I had a blast with this. Anonymous starts with a killer hook, has enough twists and turns to keep things interesting and the reader invested, has some good emotional subplots, a great setting (and we get a decent feel for Madison's little corner of it), and a bang-on ending. It's hard to ask for more from a debut.
June 13, 2020
Madison is private investigator she just arrive home to find a note on her door saying Stop investigating me, or I will hunt you down and kill you. While she looks around to spot anything else suspicious she baffled because she hasn’t been investigating anything lately.
As she thinks about what she wants to do next and not so quick to be warn off she decide to do the opposite of what the note said and starts to investigate. She starts to wonder if it has anything to do with her tweets about a crime podcast. As she dig deeper she realizes the note is link to two young girls who went missing years apart but she start to realize someone has been follow her and been two step ahead of her now she knows that hunter is being hunted as she race to solve this crime she have to make sure she makes it alive herself.
I really enjoy this read I can totally see this on screen as I was reading this I so picture Kyra Sedgwick or Zoie Palmer as Madison. I hope the author is planning to write more about Madison Kelly
I received an ARC copy of this book from the Publisher via Netgalley and voluntarily leaving my review.
As she thinks about what she wants to do next and not so quick to be warn off she decide to do the opposite of what the note said and starts to investigate. She starts to wonder if it has anything to do with her tweets about a crime podcast. As she dig deeper she realizes the note is link to two young girls who went missing years apart but she start to realize someone has been follow her and been two step ahead of her now she knows that hunter is being hunted as she race to solve this crime she have to make sure she makes it alive herself.
I really enjoy this read I can totally see this on screen as I was reading this I so picture Kyra Sedgwick or Zoie Palmer as Madison. I hope the author is planning to write more about Madison Kelly
I received an ARC copy of this book from the Publisher via Netgalley and voluntarily leaving my review.
September 12, 2020
I love this book! Madison Kelly is the new, kick ass private investigator on the scene and this series will become the next one you can't put down. I sure couldn't put it down and read it in one weekend! With a well-balanced combination of humor, romance, pathos and mystery along with a roller-coaster of a story, there is something for everyone. A must read! I can't wait for the rest of the series!
May 17, 2021
Overall, it was an interesting book. I've read the Lizzy Gardner Series by T.R. Ragan and thoroughly enjoyed her books, so I was kind of expecting a similar character to Lizzy As I was reading it though, even when I didn't compare, I couldn't fully get behind the character and her decisions. I understand having a strong female lead, however, I think it fell a little bit in the characterization of Madison.
She was saying she doesn't need a man, which is fine, but the way she was written about it just turned me kinda off. Like, there are plenty of men who support and see their partners as equal. In some of the sections where it was described as she wouldn't let a men tell what to do or "let her" do something, to me that's an issue in a relationship. A relationship should never be like that.
I do understand she did come from a position of insurance fraud, but I would think there was some sympathy and compassion for the friends and family of the victims. However, I didn't see a lot of that. I don't know if that's what it takes to be a PI or something else, but it just turned me off slightly.
But, I did like the mystery part and a few of the plot twists. If you're OK with not being on board with a character 100%, I would say this is a good book to pick up if there's nothing else to do.
She was saying she doesn't need a man, which is fine, but the way she was written about it just turned me kinda off. Like, there are plenty of men who support and see their partners as equal. In some of the sections where it was described as she wouldn't let a men tell what to do or "let her" do something, to me that's an issue in a relationship. A relationship should never be like that.
I do understand she did come from a position of insurance fraud, but I would think there was some sympathy and compassion for the friends and family of the victims. However, I didn't see a lot of that. I don't know if that's what it takes to be a PI or something else, but it just turned me off slightly.
But, I did like the mystery part and a few of the plot twists. If you're OK with not being on board with a character 100%, I would say this is a good book to pick up if there's nothing else to do.
October 28, 2020
Madison Kelly is a private investigator living in San Diego, California. She comes home one morning to find a threatening note to “stop investigating me,” nailed to her door, along with a piece of her own hair-except Madison doesn’t currently have a case. The only thing Madison has going on, is listening to a true-crime podcast about two girls who went missing from San Diego after drunken nights found and tweeting her theories about the case to the podcast hosts. Madison starts investigating the threat to her life and in doing so, finds more questions then answers. Will Madison find the murderer...or will the murderer find Madison before it’s too late? This is a switch-up on the usual police procedurals I read and I liked it. It’s not often you have a ballsy, powerful female in a P.I. role and Madison brings it. The author does a great job of educating the reader on what qualifications and the daily grind of a P.I. The dialogue could have been tightened up but honestly, it was still pretty enjoyable to follow. If you’re looking for an easy to read book with a badass female in charge, look no further, Madison Kelly is here to take care of you.
October 29, 2020
An interesting start to a new series. Madison is a private investigator who finds herself under the eye of a villain for an investigation she's not conducting. That's right. But, because of that, she finds herself looking into the case of two women who went missing. This is set in San Diego and those is live in the area (or have spent time there) will appreciate the local color which adds to the story. Madison herself is a conundrum. She's had a double mastectomy, sees herself as a strong feminist who doesn't need a man, and yet she is dismissive of other women for a variety of reasons and surrounds herself with men. And enough already about how beautiful she is. I didn't find her likable and I should have seen her as the sort of spunky protagonist Break wanted her to be. That said, the mystery itself is well done. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Give it a try- I'd like to see another outing.
January 10, 2021
Looking forward to more Madison!
Disclaimer: I am not an avid mystery reader.
I thoroughly enjoyed Breck's debut novel. The storyline was well-paced and thought through. There were one or two things that I predicted but they added to the anticipation of the events rather than detract from the fun of the read. I appreciated Madison's inner dialogue that demonstrated self-awaredness and desire for growth. I read a few critical reviews on Madison's woman-hating, but she admits she is overly critical and aims to correct it. I can 100% relate to that. I tend to expect more from women, not saying it's right or fair, but I do. I can also identify with her desire to do everything on her own. I want to be a strong independent woman and rely on no man, but sometimes that fitting won't budge and i have to ask for help. It always feels crappy knowing I couldn't do it on my own. Madison, I feel ya, girl.
Breck may make me a mystery-lover with more stories like these.
Disclaimer: I am not an avid mystery reader.
I thoroughly enjoyed Breck's debut novel. The storyline was well-paced and thought through. There were one or two things that I predicted but they added to the anticipation of the events rather than detract from the fun of the read. I appreciated Madison's inner dialogue that demonstrated self-awaredness and desire for growth. I read a few critical reviews on Madison's woman-hating, but she admits she is overly critical and aims to correct it. I can 100% relate to that. I tend to expect more from women, not saying it's right or fair, but I do. I can also identify with her desire to do everything on her own. I want to be a strong independent woman and rely on no man, but sometimes that fitting won't budge and i have to ask for help. It always feels crappy knowing I couldn't do it on my own. Madison, I feel ya, girl.
Breck may make me a mystery-lover with more stories like these.
July 3, 2020
So, I finished Anonymous last night and it was a good read. I had a bit of a difficult time connecting with Madison in the beginning. She is pictured as one of these strong females who doesn't need a man to be safed, which is all right, but it felt forced sometimes. Also I think it was one or two times mentioned too often that she is a tall women next to other repetitions. As this is an ARC maybe it gets edited more before the final release but anyway that's small stuff. I enjoyed the story and the author made it difficult to trust anyone therefore concealing who did it worked well for me. As this is the start to a new series I'll keep an eye out for more of Madison and her investigations.
***My thanks to NetGalley and Crooked Lane for providing me with the eARC in exchange of my honest opinion.***
***My thanks to NetGalley and Crooked Lane for providing me with the eARC in exchange of my honest opinion.***
October 16, 2024
New author for me! Madison is a cancer survivor P.I. that has attitude, a place on the beach, a sexy on again off again guy, a married cop who is in love with her, and an intriguing neighbor. She's investigating some disappearances that acquires her a stalker who's leaving notes on her door and her twit acct. Juggling everything while interviewing past witnesses and friends she puts her life in danger in an intricate tale of who is stalking her, who is friend or foe, & will she survive her investigation. A medium paced story and a little too wordy on descriptions and history of the area she's in and when she's traveling. (Example: there's a chase scene where she switches roads and streets and I didn't need to know the name of each street because it didn't have anything to do with the case or come up anywhere. Good suspects in the crime that keeps you guessing.
April 1, 2021
I won't add to what has already been written about this first book by Elizabeth Breck, but just add my few cents' worth. The writing initially seemed a bit mechanistic, and I felt the protagonist, Madison, was a bit of a cliche (the tough, loner woman detective). But the author soon hit her stride, and I enjoyed the increasing complexity and evolution of Madison and the other characters. I chalk up the weakish beginning to this being her first book. As a historian, I appreciate the way she constructed a real sense of place, including some history of this area of California - something, which is important and really adds to any mystery novel. This was well done, without feeling didactic and intrusive. I ended up thoroughly enjoying this and look forward to more. Well done, Ms. Breck.
March 3, 2024
I enjoyed this because of the excellent pacing. I'm probably sensitive to pacing because 5 books ago, in late February, I slogged through mud to finish a British writer's mystery book. With so many people reading this book as she cranked out the pages, I'm just amazed that a "pane" of a window became "pain." Maybe it was a final edit. Last three lines of her acknowledgment also had a typo. It's probably just me, but mistakes jump off the page and slap me in the face. About halfway through the book she has Madison do something dangerous that had me gasping, "No, no, no." I think I even slapped my forehead before I realized with half the book still to go, she would survive it.
December 13, 2021
I can't say enough GOOD about this debut detective series. Madison Kelly is a tough 30 something breast cancer survivor. She doesn't suffer fools and doesn't hesitate to call them out. She is more attracted to to how people THINK then how they behave...sometimes to her detriment. She's a registered PI in San Diego and she mostly works on insurance cases. However, she is in a lull right now and listens to a crime solving duo of podcasters to sharpen her skills. What ensues is fun, new and fresh. I can't wait for the next one!
July 31, 2022
- Main character is two dimensional, and a "I'm not like other girls" girl while also thinking she's better than everyone.
- Very slow & boring read. Got to page 180 before anything really happened.
- Main character is so rude to everyone, for seemingly no reason.
- Unrealistic descriptions to "show how special and unique" she is.
- It's not even possible for lungs to "need to be x-rayed twice cause they both don't fit in one x-ray"! I checked with an ICU nurse who's never even heard of that!
- Very slow & boring read. Got to page 180 before anything really happened.
- Main character is so rude to everyone, for seemingly no reason.
- Unrealistic descriptions to "show how special and unique" she is.
- It's not even possible for lungs to "need to be x-rayed twice cause they both don't fit in one x-ray"! I checked with an ICU nurse who's never even heard of that!
November 14, 2022
Not bad for a debut novel. This one caught my eye as a San Diego resident, I’m always curious to see how writers treat the setting, and the author is a fellow UCSD alum. How could I saw no? Plus I love a fun murder mystery. This one was a little slow to get going and suffers from quite a few character stereotypes and plot line tropes. But I’m willing to chalk this up to it being a first book. I am interested to see how Breck develops her characters going forward so I will likely pick up a copy of the second installment in the future. 4 stars since it was an entertaining read.
March 30, 2021
Wow! It's as if the author channeled Sue Grafton and brought her up-to-date. Madison Kelly is a kickass, take no guff private investigator who discovers her participation in a missing women case discussion on Twitter leads her into danger. This makes it sound like this is another one of those "had I but known" mysteries I hate so much. But it's not.
Breck isn't quite up to Sara Paretsky's standards, but this exceeds both Grafton's and Marcia Muller's writing--and it's a debut novel.
Breck isn't quite up to Sara Paretsky's standards, but this exceeds both Grafton's and Marcia Muller's writing--and it's a debut novel.
July 29, 2021
I was browsing the shelves of my local library when the cover of this book caught my attention. The premise of this book really piqued my interest. Naturally, it came home with me immediately.
I found the main character, Maddie, to be a really likable character and found myself rooting for her to solve the mystery. I'll be sure to keep an eye out for book 2.
Try this book if you're looking for a fast-paced, easy-to-read book.
I found the main character, Maddie, to be a really likable character and found myself rooting for her to solve the mystery. I'll be sure to keep an eye out for book 2.
Try this book if you're looking for a fast-paced, easy-to-read book.
October 26, 2022
As a San Diego native...the way the neighborhoods were constantly being described was a bit much lmao and don't get me started on the audiobook narrator's pronunciation of "Jamacha Blvd" 😬
Also I read a ton of Copaganda and I get that. But this was a lot of cop loving shit. It was much more blatant than most of previous reads. So CW for little jabs about people voting to defund them and the idea that "light stalking" by a cop isn't something to worry about.
Also I read a ton of Copaganda and I get that. But this was a lot of cop loving shit. It was much more blatant than most of previous reads. So CW for little jabs about people voting to defund them and the idea that "light stalking" by a cop isn't something to worry about.
November 16, 2020
A very slow paced plot that failed to pick up momentum. The narrative does touch on sensitive subject matters, however, they are not ones that are new to this genre. The characters were severely underdeveloped and the writing itself was hard to get through. Perhaps a better fit for those looking for a slow, easy read. 1 star
March 19, 2021
First of all Madison Kelly seems really real to me and I want more books about her.
This is a debut novel about a PI who doesn't know who to trust but dedicated to the quest of her case. She has her demons ( and thank God it's not drink and drugs) and big insecurities and I love her humanity. She's a little different from most protagonists and a lot could happen from here on out....
This is a debut novel about a PI who doesn't know who to trust but dedicated to the quest of her case. She has her demons ( and thank God it's not drink and drugs) and big insecurities and I love her humanity. She's a little different from most protagonists and a lot could happen from here on out....
March 5, 2023
The plot was good and enjoyable. The protagonist was annoying. Seemingly stuck in a 2012-like "I'm not like other girls" phase. She's also way to lucky to be realistic and does crazy things like drive with her knees and tweet at the same time. I did like that it takes place in San Diego, and it was quite cool to recognize all the places she goes.
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