Name: Down and Dirty
ISBN: 9781940499215

Liliana Hart

Wedding plans are in full swing in Bloody Mary, Virginia. J.J. Graves is ready to walk down the aisle and start a new life - despite the fact her father is still on the loose, blood money is stashed in her closet, and an unidentified body is missing from her parents' bunker. But it isn't her personal life that's threatening her chance to say "I Do." It's the remains of a family of four that were killed in an ordinary house fire. But once JJ and Jack start investigating, they find there's nothing "ordinary" about murder.

Down and Dirty

Sarah Escorsa

I used to be a mystery & thriller kind of girl. Suspense, detective stories, police procedurals, crime, forensics, legal thrillers, medical thrillers, political thrillers… They were all I used to read. Then one day I realized they were all the same. Easily read and easily forgotten. I'd had enough and gave up on the genre for years. 

I downloaded the first instalment in this series from Amazon because it was free and the blurb wasn't too bad.The book was surprisingly enjoyable even though it involved some romance (which I hadn't realized before I started reading the book). The next two instalments were just as entertaining and I was looking forward to reading book 4. 

Unfortunately it didn't leave up to my expectations. This was desperately pink & fluffy compared to the first books in the series. Not that they were particularly gruesome but there was a dark element to them that balanced the romance aspect of the story nicely. J.J. used to be a complex character with an interesting background. Now, what with her relationship with Jack and the pending wedding, it's mostly bunnies & rainbows. There is that thing about Jack's PTSD which I guess was supposed to add a little drama to the story but it was badly handled and felt forced.

There is a murder investigation but it is of very little interest. The worst thing is, I read this about ten days ago but can't remember a thing about the plot. I have no clue what it was about. I went back and read the blurb but it didn't help:/ That's just how light the mystery part of the book is. Or maybe it's just me developing early Alzheimer's.

Gone is the sub-plot about J.J.'s parents and their scam. Her dad appears briefly and the encrypted USB flash drive (from book 3) is mentioned once or twice but that's it. This sub plot was what made this series interesting and without it the book has little appeal. 

Worse, Down and Dirty reads more like chick-lit than mystery. Half of the book (if not more) is about J.J. & Jack's wedding. There are some entertaining scenes and funny dialogues but I didn't pick up this book to read about wedding planning. I actually feel sorry for the readers who were looking forward to the wedding itself because there was very little about it (about half a page I think). The freaking wedding is the main focus of the book but then poof! Nothing. Good thing I wasn't reading this for the romance aspect of the story!

Let's look at it on the bright side: this is one series I'll no longer have to worry about. Bye bye J.J. Graves, it was fun while it lasted!