Reviews and Comments

I found this book least enjoyable of the three I’ve read so far. Jessica’s characterization was better, if not a bit too pushy, but the final scenes felt incredibly weak. Motivations both simplistic and convoluted, all communicated through exposition after the fact. It fell pretty flat for me. And I’m at a loss as to why Jessica’s friend(s) keep showing up. I think in these early books of the series the author must be leaning hard on well known and beloved characters to stoke the reader’s interest. I’d prefer they stay in Cabot Cove, or else give us a mystery based there.

Two stars because at least it was readable, but that’s about the only good thing I can say about it. Aside from our core crew, every character was unlikable. Jessica acted and spoke uncharacteristically. The ending was unsatisfying.

A fun, not-so-scary read. It’s a fast and light October thriller. There were two glaring errors: the titular “someone” is revealed far too early, and not only was the protagonist’s mysterious past not something I cared about, but the truth of it was a letdown. I also found the killer’s motive to be a little weak. Still, it gave me some autumn vibes to enjoy.

This book was extremely well researched, incredibly detailed, and comprehensive. That being said, the first third or so was an absolute slog. Like I was wading through the muck of the Everglades myself. There were as many names dropped as there came to be invasive cattails. It wasn’t awful. It was just too much. If you’re looking for other, and in my opinion better, books in the environmental and ecological history genre, I’d sooner recommend “The Worst Hard Time” or “American Chestnut.”