Guess Again - Mystery Review

Goodreads:   Guess Again by Charlie Donlea

Rating: Really Liked It (4 Stars)
Source:   Publisher

Description:  Ten years ago, 17-year-old high school volleyball star Callie Jones vanished from her quiet Wisconsin lake community. A highly publicized search followed but her body was never found. The case went cold, but the echoes still linger.

Ethan Hall, a former renegade detective turned ER doctor, left law enforcement to escape the horrors of the kid crime division. But on the tenth anniversary of Callie’s disappearance, his former partner, Pete Kramer, makes a desperate request. Pete is the veteran detective who originally investigated the case. Now he’s dying, and to ease his conscience and get closure for the Jones family, he needs Ethan to return to the haunting work he left behind—and solve what happened to Callie, once and for all.

Word soon spreads and everyone in the small town of Cherryview feels a rush of hope that answers will finally be found. Amid a sweltering heatwave, Ethan’s investigation gains momentum, but reexamining old evidence won’t be enough. He needs a new way into the case, no matter how dangerous or unconventional. And it comes from the least likely of sources—an inmate in a maximum-security prison.

Soon Ethan’s methods draw him deeper into a twisted psychological game. Because there is much more to the nightmare of Callie’s disappearance than he imagined, including a connection with his own dark past . . . and secrets that are still worth killing for.

Genre:  Mystery

Why I Picked This Book:  I've really enjoyed other books by this author and this looked intriguing

My Impression:   I couldn't resist picking this book up as soon as I saw it listed.  I really enjoy this author and the blurb really caught my attention.  The book starts with a fast pace.  We meet Ethan and are quickly introduced to his former partner as well as why Ethan has made such a dramatic lifestyle change.  The case of Callie Jones really caught me - what happened to a 17-year-old girl who seemed like she had her entire life ahead of her 10 years ago?  

I didn't love the deep dive into Eithan's past and demons or really the whole Francis character.  This is coming from a cozy mystery reader so it could be that he's just too creepy for me - he definitely made me uncomfortable!  There's a lot of back and forth both to different POVs and to different timelines which at times gave the book a bit of a choppy feel and was a little distracting.

I had no idea how everything was going to come together or wrap up and I was definitely along for the ride to see how it would come to an end.  Even though this was a bit higher on the terrible people scale than I usually enjoy and the at times choppy feel I did enjoy the story and was hooked from beginning to end.  

I'm looking forward to reading more from Donlea and will pick up his next book even though this wasn't a total win for me.

Would I Read More of this Series/Author?  Absolutely!  He's a bit darker than my usual read but that's not a bad thing!  

Would I Recommend this Book?  If you're in the mood for a suspenseful mystery I think any book by this author would be a good pick and this book is no exception.

* I received this book in exchange for an honest review.  As always my opinions and impressions are completely my own. *