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A review by reader_cheryl
The Devil You Know by P.J. Tracy
4.0
The Devil You Know
By P.J. Tracy
Book 3 in The Detective Margaret Nolan series
When the body of an actor is revealed after an earthquake, Detective Margaret Nolan
finds herself thrust into the world of Hollywood royalty.
(Disclaimer: I haven’t read the other two books in the series, but it didn’t matter because this can be read as a standalone novel.)
The body of popular Disney actor Evan Hobbes, accused via social media of child molesting, is found after an earthquake shakes him loose and dumps his body on the Pacific Coast Highway. Detective Margaret Nolan and her partner Al Crawford are assigned to the high-profile case. As they investigate, Detective Nolan is forced to deal with all sorts of characters-agents without souls, jilted lovers, and Hollywood royalty. Before the initial murder is solved, more bodies are discovered, and more murders are committed. Is one person responsible for all the murders or is it just Essie Baum is extremely unfortunate to be in the middle of it all? Are the murders even related to one another or just eerie timing? Nolan’s skills are put to the test as the body count continues to grow.
The Devil You Know is fast-paced murder mystery, full of twists and turns. The first five chapters are spend introducing the reader to the key players in the novel and that threw me for a bit because it wasn’t clear how they fit into the book overall. It also made it more difficult to remember who they were when re-introduced as the story unfolded. Once Hobbes’ appeared (Chapter 10) the links between the characters clarified and the reading became easier.
P.J. Tracy’s way of writing is what really drew me into the book, though, and is what kept me reading. Tracy uses dark humor and cutting observations to reveal her characters, while also writing a mystery that was difficult to solve. I enjoyed reading The Devil You Know.
Thanks to #NetGally for providing a copy of the book.
By P.J. Tracy
Book 3 in The Detective Margaret Nolan series
When the body of an actor is revealed after an earthquake, Detective Margaret Nolan
finds herself thrust into the world of Hollywood royalty.
(Disclaimer: I haven’t read the other two books in the series, but it didn’t matter because this can be read as a standalone novel.)
The body of popular Disney actor Evan Hobbes, accused via social media of child molesting, is found after an earthquake shakes him loose and dumps his body on the Pacific Coast Highway. Detective Margaret Nolan and her partner Al Crawford are assigned to the high-profile case. As they investigate, Detective Nolan is forced to deal with all sorts of characters-agents without souls, jilted lovers, and Hollywood royalty. Before the initial murder is solved, more bodies are discovered, and more murders are committed. Is one person responsible for all the murders or is it just Essie Baum is extremely unfortunate to be in the middle of it all? Are the murders even related to one another or just eerie timing? Nolan’s skills are put to the test as the body count continues to grow.
The Devil You Know is fast-paced murder mystery, full of twists and turns. The first five chapters are spend introducing the reader to the key players in the novel and that threw me for a bit because it wasn’t clear how they fit into the book overall. It also made it more difficult to remember who they were when re-introduced as the story unfolded. Once Hobbes’ appeared (Chapter 10) the links between the characters clarified and the reading became easier.
P.J. Tracy’s way of writing is what really drew me into the book, though, and is what kept me reading. Tracy uses dark humor and cutting observations to reveal her characters, while also writing a mystery that was difficult to solve. I enjoyed reading The Devil You Know.
Thanks to #NetGally for providing a copy of the book.