I enjoyed the first third of the book like any other cozy mystery where the protagonist is a mystery writer writing under the pseudonym of a man. When her editor said a well-known magazine was willing to pay a lot of money to interview the (male) author, Paisley had to find a guy who fit the role. And she did. It was fun.

But then it got serious. After the interview someone tried to murder the guy. And then it got very serious when they tried to kill Paisley too. And then terrifying and uber suspenseful as she gets unwittingly mixed up in the dark underbelly of an militant extremist group.

I couldn’t put it down. But eventually had to and then I had nightmares. No, there’s not anything paranormal or genre horror. Just real-life very dark stuff that if you realize it may be going on in our country – which it is! – you get creepy scared.

The book, the story, and the writing make for a fantastic read, if you don’t get scared. It has a good if rather abrupt ending. The Epilogue is another thing.

I do recommend this book, but just be aware. It is not cozy in any sense of the genre.

FIVE stars