All the Best Lies (Ellery Hathaway #3) by Joanna Schaffhausen
Publication Date: February 11th 2020 by Minotaur Books
Pages: 328
Source: Publisher
Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | IndieBound
About the book:
The highly anticipated third novel in the award-winning Ellery Hathaway mystery series.
FBI
agent Reed Markham is haunted by one painful unsolved mystery: who
murdered his mother? Camilla was brutally stabbed to death more than
forty years ago while baby Reed lay in his crib mere steps away. The
trail went so cold that the Las Vegas Police Department has given up
hope of solving the case. But then a shattering family secret changes
everything Reed knows about his origins, his murdered mother, and his
powerful adoptive father, state senator Angus Markham. Now Reed has to
wonder if his mother's killer is uncomfortably close to home.
Unable
to trust his family with the details of his personal investigation,
Reed enlists his friend, suspended cop Ellery Hathaway, to join his
quest in Vegas. Ellery has experience with both troubled families and
diabolical murderers, having narrowly escaped from each of them. She's
eager to skip town, too, because her own father, who abandoned her years
ago, is suddenly desperate to get back in contact. He also has a secret
that could change her life forever, if Ellery will let him close enough
to hear it.
Far from home and relying only on each other, Reed
and Ellery discover young Camilla had snared the attention of dangerous
men, any of whom might have wanted to shut her up for good. They start
tracing his twisted family history, knowing the path leads back to a
vicious killer—one who has been hiding in plain sight for forty years
and isn't about to give up now.
My
Thoughts:
Ellery Hathaway, a police officer, and FBI Agent, Reed Markham
have a complicated past. Years ago, Reed saved fourteen-year-old Ellery from
the clutches of a deranged serial killer, something that left a mark on them
both.
In Vanishing Season (book one), Ellery, asks for Reed’s
help with a case, and they’ve been sort of attached since. Solving cases is the
excuse that brings them together, but they’re drawn to each other, and while
the mysteries they investigate are thrilling, I’ve been more fascinated with
their evolving relationship. As I said, their relationship is complicated since
Ellery went through a horrific event: kidnapped, and held for three days before
Reed found her, so even though years have gone by she’s still dealing with the emotional
fallout. Reed initially feels a lot of guilt
over his attraction, since Ellery was a victim, and she’s several years younger.
As the story progresses Reed has come to terms with the fact that Ellery is no
longer the child he rescued, but a grown woman and survivor. Strong, intelligent,
but with a determination that gets her into trouble at times. Reed has his own troubles: work, a failed
marriage, and the struggles of joint custody. Not a fan of his ex-wife. I sense a “dog in
the manger” sort of situation on her end. No worries, she’s a very minor side
character.
In this current installment Reed is the one asking for help
with a case: the grisly murder of his birth mother, forty-years ago. The case has gone cold, and about to be
closed for good. Reed needs someone objective since new DNA evidence makes him
question everything he thought he knew about his family and the past.
I had strong suspicions which turned out to be right on some
things, but I was captivated by every new development! Trying to piece together
a mystery from forty-years ago was not an easy feat, especially with all the
lies they had to deal with. There were tense moments from unpleasant
revelations, especially for Reed, but I think I felt worse for Ellery. The situation
with her dad was heartbreaking, and I was so outraged for her!
Through it all, Ellery and Reed are there for each other, and
I was soooo thrilled! Their relationship has been tentative, slow going with setbacks
from misunderstandings, and the baggage of the past, but I have been so
hopeful; hanging on every interaction, feeling the passion simmering beneath
the surface! I’ve been inpatiently waiting for these two to realize it’s
only a matter of when not if, and finally we’re getting
somewhere!
All the Best Lies was soooo good! I devoured it in one day, and now I can’t wait
for the next one! There was a little happy/bittersweet twist at the end that I
wondered about before it was revealed. While
All the Best Lies could be read as a standalone, I wouldn’t recommend
it. The books are best read in order.
5 Suns
