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pernillelsk's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Death, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Stalking, Blood, and Violence
Moderate: Confinement and Alcohol
lovelymisanthrope's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
After thoroughly enjoying "Finlay Donovan is Killing It", I was so excited to pick this up in preparation for the Literally Dead Book Club discussion.
"Finlay Donovan Knocks 'Em Dead" picks up immediately after the conclusion of the first book. Finlay is struggling to continue writing her book and is still trying to navigate how to coparent with her ex-husband. Someone has ordered a hit for Steven, Finlay's ex-husband, so on top of worrying about his parenting, Finlay is worried to leave her children alone with him. At least she has her partner in crime, Vero, but Finlay quickly suspects that Vero may be hiding something from her...
Although I did not enjoy this quite as much as the first one, I am still enthralled by Finlay as a character. The plot of this series is going off the handle a little bit, which is highly entertaining, but makes it feel less realistic. The situations Finlay and Vero find themselves in are wild, and I do not think the average person would be able to get out of them quite so well. Although this is fine for a novel, what I love about Finlay is how relatable she feels, so for me as a reader, I want the story to feel more realistic.
I love how close Finlay and Vero are. Their friendship is something to aspire for and they are the epitome of "ride or die". Having the support of another woman does make it more probable to me that Finlay is navigating this situation more sanely.
The love triangle between Finlay, the law student, and the detective was something lighthearted and fun to read about. I think it again makes it more realistic that Finlay might know what she is doing because she has the advice of two different people with criminal knowledge. I am excited to see her relationships develop more in book three!
I love that Finlay remains a powerful, strong woman who is taking on her situation head on. I also really love that her novel she is writing is loosely based on her current predicament. Having to write out what is going on I think is helping her process her crimes and uncover the bad guys.
I am still enjoying this series and I am so excited to see what antics Finlay gets up to next!
"Finlay Donovan Knocks 'Em Dead" picks up immediately after the conclusion of the first book. Finlay is struggling to continue writing her book and is still trying to navigate how to coparent with her ex-husband. Someone has ordered a hit for Steven, Finlay's ex-husband, so on top of worrying about his parenting, Finlay is worried to leave her children alone with him. At least she has her partner in crime, Vero, but Finlay quickly suspects that Vero may be hiding something from her...
Although I did not enjoy this quite as much as the first one, I am still enthralled by Finlay as a character. The plot of this series is going off the handle a little bit, which is highly entertaining, but makes it feel less realistic. The situations Finlay and Vero find themselves in are wild, and I do not think the average person would be able to get out of them quite so well. Although this is fine for a novel, what I love about Finlay is how relatable she feels, so for me as a reader, I want the story to feel more realistic.
I love how close Finlay and Vero are. Their friendship is something to aspire for and they are the epitome of "ride or die". Having the support of another woman does make it more probable to me that Finlay is navigating this situation more sanely.
The love triangle between Finlay, the law student, and the detective was something lighthearted and fun to read about. I think it again makes it more realistic that Finlay might know what she is doing because she has the advice of two different people with criminal knowledge. I am excited to see her relationships develop more in book three!
I love that Finlay remains a powerful, strong woman who is taking on her situation head on. I also really love that her novel she is writing is loosely based on her current predicament. Having to write out what is going on I think is helping her process her crimes and uncover the bad guys.
I am still enjoying this series and I am so excited to see what antics Finlay gets up to next!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Stalking, Violence, Murder, Blood, and Death
lucual20's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Body horror, and Murder
Moderate: Kidnapping, Gun violence, and Stalking
Minor: Blood
kaitlynnnng's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I want to know more about Vero and her full story.
I don’t know if I fully trust Julian, Parker, or Joey.
This book’s ending was much less of a cliff-hanger than the first book’s was.
I don’t know if I fully trust Julian, Parker, or Joey.
This book’s ending was much less of a cliff-hanger than the first book’s was.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Gun violence, Murder, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Stalking
megs23's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Cancer, Gore, Gun violence, Fire/Fire injury, Medical content, Stalking, Kidnapping, and Murder
maggies's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Finlay Donovan's life is such a tangled web! This second book in the series is a fast-moving murder-for-hire caper with fast cars and even faster men (I have no idea what I mean by that lol except that Julian and Nick have both fallen fast for Finn). Some suspension of disbelief is obviously required, but it was still entertaining and ultimately wrapped up nicely with a setup for book three. I would almost class it a "cozy thriller"—there's life-threatening action on-page, but the majority of the plot is Finn and Vero just living their complicated lives.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Infidelity, Stalking, Murder, Gun violence, and Toxic relationship
pinkhyxteria's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Blood, Death, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Murder, Stalking, and Violence
themoodreader's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Murder
Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, Blood, Confinement, Death, Cancer, Violence, Gore, Murder, and Stalking
atlas_shruggs's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I love these books so much. The way Elle Cosimano writes is just so addicting, her characters are hilarious and the plot twists in both Finlay Donovan books have had me gasping out loud, screaming in surprise. I cannot believe I am expected to wait until January for the third book, I don't think I'll survive.
I inhaled this book just as I did the first one, I enjoyed it so much. The plot was intriguing, Finlay's writers block was so relatable, and I'm still kinda rooting for her to end up in a poly relationship with Nick and Julian, or just end up hooking up with Vero. I mean Vero is already the perfect step-parent to Zach and Delia sooooo, just saying.
I inhaled this book just as I did the first one, I enjoyed it so much. The plot was intriguing, Finlay's writers block was so relatable, and I'm still kinda rooting for her to end up in a poly relationship with Nick and Julian, or just end up hooking up with Vero. I mean Vero is already the perfect step-parent to Zach and Delia sooooo, just saying.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Alcohol, Blood, Body horror, and Murder
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Stalking, and Medical content
lnzava's review
adventurous
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Gore
Minor: Stalking