Thank you Libro.fm/Macmillan Audio for the ALC and Minotaur Books, #partner, for the advanced copy of Finlay Donovan Rolls the Dice in exchange for my honest review.
Publisher: Minotaur Books / Macmillan Audio
Published: March 5, 2024
Summary:
From New York Times bestseller Elle Cosimano comes Finlay Donovan Rolls the Dice―the fiercely anticipated next installment in the beloved Finlay Donovan series.
Finlay Donovan and her nanny/partner-in-crime Vero are in sore need of a girls’ weekend away. They plan a trip to Atlantic City, but odds are―seeing as it’s actually a cover story to negotiate a deal with a dangerous loan shark, save Vero’s childhood crush Javi, and hunt down a stolen car―it won’t be all fun and games. When Finlay’s ex-husband Steven and her mother insist on tagging along too, Finlay and Vero suddenly have a few too many meddlesome passengers along for the ride.
Within hours of arriving in their seedy casino hotel, it becomes clear their rescue mission is going to be a bust. Javi’s kidnapper, Marco, refuses to negotiate, demanding payment in full in exchange for Javi’s life. But that’s not all―he insists on knowing the whereabouts of his missing nephew, Ike, who mysteriously disappeared. Unable to confess what really happened to Ike, Finlay and Vero are forced to come up with a new plan: sleuth out the location of Javi and the Aston Martin, then steal them both back.
But when they sneak into the loan shark’s suite to search for clues, they find more than they bargained for―Marco’s already dead. They don’t have a clue who murdered him, only that they themselves have a very convincing motive. Then four members of the police department unexpectedly show up in town, also looking for Ike―and after Finlay’s night with hot cop Nick at the police academy, he’s a little too eager to keep her close to his side.
If Finlay can juggle a jealous ex-husband, two precocious kids, her mother’s marital issues, a decomposing loan shark, and find Vero’s missing boyfriend, she might get out of Atlantic City in one piece. But will she fold under the pressure and come clean about the things she’s done, or be forced to double down?
My thoughts:
This is the fourth book in Elle Cosimano’s Finlay Donovan series and much like the previous three books, and one short story, in this series, I really enjoyed this one. These books are just pure fun, entertaining reads and I really cannot recommend them enough!
What I love about this series is I know these books are going to make me laugh and sometimes that is exactly what you need! There’s a little mystery, a lot of crazy antics, usually some good action and so much laughter! I just adore Finlay and when she and Vero get themselves in the middle of something – watch out! I loved that this time around, Finlay’s mother was part of the mix, and she added such a fun dynamic to the whole mix. Plus, Finlay’s ex-husband was along for the ride and that proved to be quite entertaining as well. Steven and Vero do not really see eye-to-eye on things, so whenever those two were near each other, watch out!
I loved that this installment picked up on some of the threads that were introduced in the short story that was just released last fall, Veronica Ruiz Breaks the Bank. If you haven’t read that one yet, no worries as it’s not crucial to the overall plot of this one, but it does give some backstory to Vero that we haven’t been privy to yet.
The setting of Atlantic City made for a nice change of pace and of course the idea of a “girls trip” turned into anything but, but as we all know nothing ever goes smoothly when Finlay and Vero are around! These books are such fun, entertaining reads and the way this one ended leaves me with high hopes that there will be more Finlay and Vero in the future!
Audio thoughts:
Once again, I decided audio was the way to go with this latest installment and I was not disappointed. Angela Dawe brings her A-game to this narration, and I was laughing hysterically while out walking as I listened to this one. She just nails this performance, giving each character their own personality and infusing just the right amount of tension and emotion into her voice as needed. Such a fun listening experience!
Books in this series:
3.5 Veronica Ruiz Breaks the Bank
4. Finlay Donovan Rolls the Dice
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