Sadly I wasn’t able to enjoy this book as much as some of my previous NetGalley selections. I read mysteries because I enjoy a mental puzzle. I want to sort through and piece together the clues to determine whodunnit, often trying to see how early I can accurately predict the culprit.
This expectation and goal for the genre is what makes this book less satisfying for me. Although I liked the main character, insufficient clues to the solution were provided for it to be satisfying as a puzzle for me.
I was additionally frustrated at contradictory information regarding the source of the solution. In one scene, the police officer claims to have obtained information independently of the sleuth but in the closing scene he credits the sleuth as the only source. This might seem trivial to some people, but for me contradictions like this, even when provided late in the game, make me suspicious of the rest of the book, undermining the entire reading experience.
Finally, the opener felt slow, although the timing of the death is within the standard range for the genre.
So while other readers may be quite happy with the book because of different expectations, I can’t fairly give more than a low three stars for my own satisfaction.
