Review: Dead Man's List by Karen Rose

 

Dead Man's List (San Diego Case Files #3) by Karen Rose

Publication Date: March 4th 2025 by Berkley

Pages: 472

Source: Publisher

Rating: ★★★★

Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Libro.fm | Audible | Goodreads

My Thoughts:

Detective Kit McKittrick and Sam’s hiking date ends abruptly when they stumble upon a dead body. The victim ends up being a corrupt councilman and there’s no shortage of suspects. As his deeds are revealed it’s no wonder someone took him out! Sam, as the police department’s consulting psychologist helps Kit and Connor as they methodically hunt for the killer.

 

Meanwhile, Rita, one of the girls the McKittrick’s are fostering, is set to testify against her mother’s murderer.  She receives a veiled threat, putting the whole family on high alert.

 

Dead Man’s List was a layered mystery that captured and held my attention from beginning to the wild end! Lots of reveals! I loved seeing Kit, Sam and Connor in action, handling the suspects. It was a great crime/police procedural! The personal relationships with family and friends’ factor in heavily and I loved the support they gave each other. The ladies from the senior center always make me laugh, too!

 

Most of Ms. Rose’s romantic suspense stories could be read as standalones, but Dead Man’s List is the third book in the San Diego Case Files, and I think it’s best to read in order as the relationship between Kit and Sam is a slow going one starting with the first book. There’s also the continuing mystery of who killed Kit’s foster sister when they were teenagers. A bit of information has been revealed in each installment.

4 Stars

Book Description:

Homicide Detective Kit McKittrick's latest case exposes San Diego’s seedy underbelly in this nerve-shattering tale of romantic suspense from New York Times bestselling author Karen Rose.

On a long-anticipated second date with police psychologist Dr. Sam Reeves—right as things are getting steamy—Kit stumbles across the mutilated body of a local San Diego politician. The politician is loved by many of his constituents but is hated and reviled by many more. That the suspect list is long is no surprise to anyone, but exactly who ends up on it stuns Kit and her team.

As the SDPD reveal the victim’s sinister dealings, Kit and Sam are forced to navigate the lawless world of the city’s most rich and powerful citizens to find answers. But time is rapidly running out, with their sources of information dropping like flies as the killer methodically eliminates loose ends—and anyone else who stands in the way.

About the Author

Karen Rose is the New York Times bestselling author of more than thirty novels, including the bestselling New Orleans, Sacramento, Baltimore, and Cincinnati series. She has been translated into twenty-three languages, and her books have placed on the New York Times, the Sunday Times (UK), and Germany's der Spiegel bestseller lists.