Mostly Murders

Many thanks to Linda Opdyke for this novel, which is book 7 in the Take it to the Limit series but can be read as a standalone.

Mickey (Michelle) and Ethan are happily married. They are also running competing private investigation agencies. When Mickey and Ethan go to Ethan’s class reunion, old resentments still linger between several of the attendees, including Ethan and his old school nemesis Sonny who clearly still holds a grudge against Ethan.

Ethan does his best to ignore Sonny, but he can’t ignore Nick, Ethan’s friend since second grade, who is terminally ill and convinced that someone is trying to kill him. But before Ethan can investigate, someone other than Nick ends up dead. Meanwhile, Mickey is hired by a friend who swears her to silence, but as the case clearly is connected to Nick, it becomes more and more difficult for Mickey to keep her case a secret from Ethan.

They say that there can be no secrets in a happy marriage, but Mickey and Ethan seem to manage pretty well. Ethan knows Mickey is keeping secrets from him, but still loves and trusts her enough to give her a chance to sort things out on her own. Mickey is torn between wanting to keep a promise to a friend, wanting to turn to Ethan for advice and wanting to prove herself as an investigator, and I sympathised with her plight, though I didn’t agree with her decisions.

The mystery is well paced with several interesting twists and turns, and I really liked the resolution. I also really liked the strong theme of found family and friendship between Mickey, Ethan and their friends and colleagues. Mickey and Ethan have an interesting work dynamic, partially cooperating and partially keeping secrets and trying to predict and preempt each other’s next moves. If you’re looking for a crime thriller with a very different relationship dynamic between a married couple, give this one a go, or maybe start with Take it to the Limit, book 1 in the series.

Crime thriller