⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Was I hooked by that book? Yes. The murder mystery led us through deep, dark secrets to an ending that was equally frustrating and satisfying.

No one in London knows what befell Fiona’s family back in Ireland. At least, no one left alive. That is until her late brother’s best mate arrives in the city for the bareknuckle bout of the century. Blood is spilled in the ring before the fight, and when Fiona is hired to clean it up, she finds that the boy from her past is now a dangerous man who may have answers she’d lost all hope of finding. But while she frantically tries to keep his neck from a noose, it becomes apparent that her own is at risk. Follow Fiona into her most chilling case yet, one that threatens to burn the precarious tightrope upon which she balances, and force her to decide, once and for all, on which side of the law she will choose to land.

MY THOUGHTS

Fiona was ready to embrace her sexual awakening. The man she picked was a surprise, and yet not. The interactions between Fiona and the three prominent men in her life were very well done. The almost chaotic back and forth of Fiona’s investigation was a mirror for her own uncertain feelings and the varying emotions that it evoked within the reader.

The writing style perfectly fitted the overall gritty and unsettling tone of the story. This is not a book where you might feel like skipping over some words. Don’t expect a traditional romance either. There were too many unresolved feelings at the end to satisfy an HEA or even an HFN.

I can recommend this series if you like your historical romance a bit on the darker side with plenty of uncertainty and murder as the pervasive theme. It is best to read them in order as Fiona’s past and her personality unfold.

Thank you to the publisher and Booksprout for providing me with a copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Were you hooked by that book? Let me know in the comments below.

Genre: Historical Romance
Published: March 19, 2024
Sensuality Rating: Warm
Series: The Fiona Mahoney Mysteries