A review by justkrissy
Kill Her Twice by Stacey Lee

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

 Yes, this is a murder mystery, but it is so much more. A great piece of historical fiction, discussing topics of racism, gentrification, sexism, America’s ever present crooked justice system, and of course familial love. 

Three sisters, Gemma, May, and Peony, find themselves having to solve the case of a beloved friend and Hollywood movie stars’ death when Gemma and May stumble across her body. With the hanging threat of Chinatown’s demolition over their heads, these sisters are determined to solve this case and their neighborhood by any means necessary. 

I really enjoyed this book! I wouldn’t say that the murder mystery aspect is very thrilling, but the character work, the relationships, and subplots outside of solving the murder really take center stage here. The pacing is quite slow, but I don’t think it really took away from anything other than my attention span at times. There were also a couple of smaller plots that I wish we could’ve seen played out. 

This book does well with introducing you to all these suspects, but not giving away so much that you’ll immediately know who the killer is. I found myself still at a loss until the near end of who it could be! I really liked that a lot. 

I also loved the sisterly love shown throughout the book. Gemma and May (and of course, Peony) have such a well matched dynamic and they’re always balancing each other out.

Overall, a well written book. I’m not usually the one to read historical fiction, but I was initially intrigued by this one being a murder mystery. I’m really glad I gave this one a chance!!