Reviews tagging 'Gun violence'

Finlay Donovan Rolls the Dice by Elle Cosimano

22 reviews

kimveach's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This is definitely the way to write a fourth book in a series where you need to remember what happened in the previous books.  The author did a fantastic job of reminding you what had previously happened, which was vital since it picked up right from the last book's ending.  It's possible that it could read on its own, but it definitely would be better to read the series.

As always, this series is best when listened to instead of read.  The narrator does a great job of bringing out the humor, eye rolls, exasperation, and all the other emotions that make this series so much fun.

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amberlfaris's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25


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maggies's review against another edition

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adventurous funny mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

On its own merits, this book is hugely entertaining! As usual, Finn and Vero are a great duo, racing around Atlantic City on a series of missions and being hampered by what seems like all law enforcement and bad guys on the eastern seaboard. I love how Finn and Vero are so supportive of each other, importantly without telling each other what to do! They are truly women supporting women 🤝 On the other hand, when compared to the previous novels in the series, it was the weakest for me. The pacing felt inconsistent and the action didn’t really thrill until much later in the book (
it was a lot of conversations with various people in various locations, and that didn’t inspire the urgency to jump off the page
). Regardless, Finlay Donovan has me in a chokehold and I will be back for book #5!

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lovelymisanthrope's review

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emotional funny lighthearted mysterious sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

I had to continue in this series after I enjoyed the previous Finlay Donovan books so much.
"Finlay Donovan Rolls the Dice" is the next installment in the Finlay Donovan series. Finlay and her best friend/nanny, Vero, find themselves on a road trip to Atlantic City to hopefully rescue Javi, Vero's childhood crush. To their dismay, they also have Finlay's two children, ex-husband, and mother along for the ride. Can Finlay continue to keep her second life a secret and rescue Javi?
This series is just a really fun mystery read. Finlay is a comical main character who brings so much life to the page. For being a struggling single mom, she has really grown into her own badass detective who is equal parts cunning and strong. Finlay does not need anyone, and I love seeing her character grow to realize that her ex-husband has been holding her back all these years.
As this series progresses, I do think it pushes the reality of whether this could really be happening. The situations Finlay and Vero keep finding themselves in are outlandish, but entertaining. I think to really enjoy these books, you have to suspend reality and just enjoy what is happening. Could a single mom feasibly find her way into a situation in which she continually has to murder bad guys AND make it home in time to feed her kids dinner? Maybe.
I did enjoy getting more of Vero's backstory in this installment and I LOVED seeing Finlay put her cheating ex-husband in his place time and time again. He is not even a good father, and I really want him to get written out of the series somehow.
I will definitely be continuing with this series if Finlay decides to go on more adventures. 

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lindsayerin's review

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adventurous funny lighthearted fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.25


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avidreaderandgeekgirl's review against another edition

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funny lighthearted mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

   Finlay Donovan is off on another adventure this time in Atlantic City.
    The book was fun as usual, but it took a bit longer to get going and get me engaged than the other books.
    Overall, I didn't enjoy it as much as the other books. Because the side characters weren't as involved, and it wasn't as funny as the previous book. I did enjoy the ending though!

Narrator Rating: 5.0 stars
   The narrator did a fantastic job as usual!

Elemental Levels:  Fluff-2.5/5   Heartfelt-1.5/5   Love aka Romance-2/5   Mystery-1.5/5     
Predictability-3/5   Spice-1/5   Humor-3/5/5

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readingwithmeredith's review against another edition

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adventurous funny mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0


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vj_thompson's review

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adventurous funny mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

This book felt like a good Finlay Donovan story again. I didn’t know how the story was going to wrap up, and it was crazy. I’m already ready for the next one.

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mrsmishler's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75


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purplepenning's review

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adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0


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