Annalisa Vega and her partner (and ex-husband and current lover) Nick are on a case that has hit a dead end when Vega's boss calls her to a crime season. She wants Vega to personally oversee the death of a former cop, turned PI.

Dead and Gone is an excellent police procedural novel. I'm super picky about police procedurals and dislike most that I read. But this one has great characters and the twists and turns of plot had me reading it in big chunks.

I reviewed Gone for Good, which is book 1 in the series. I loved it. Somehow though I missed book 2 Long Gone. I hate that I missed but it didn't have any bearing on this novel. Dead and Gone can be read as a stand-alone novel. I'm pretty sure, though, once you've read it you will want to go back and read the other two.

Most police procedurals have the detectives focused on only one case, which is probably not very realistic. I liked that Annalisa has multiple cases. She starts with Chicken Bandit (a robbery case) and then there is Sam Tran's death (suspected to be a homicide)) and in the process of investigating his death, she finds herself working his open cases. Plus, her niece suspects she has a stalker at her university campus - while not technically her case Annalisa can't help but poke around.

With the many open cases, there are a ton of twists and turns, and the tension is definitely ramped up. I loved it. I just couldn't put the book down. I don't like reading on my phone but it did make it easier to sneak in a few pages from time to time.

Whether you are still dealing with the heat of summer or the weather is slipping into the cooler temps of fall, this book is perfect for curling up with and losing herself in the story.

My review will be published at Girl Who Reads on Thursday - https://www.girl-who-reads.com/2023/08/dead-and-gone-by-joanna-schaffhausen.html

One-word review: Inordinate
Emojis: 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦💉🦍
Rating: 4🌟s

My thoughts:

I always enjoy being back in Det. Annalisa Vega’s world. She is a detective who is not scared to do what's right even when it's hard, and it's often hard in her line of work. She comes from a long line of Chicago cops and balances work and family in the best way possible. I loved her personal storyline in this series installment, which can easily be read as a stand-alone. She grows and changes with every book in a completely authentic manner, and I love following that growth.

There were four mysteries in this story which is a lot. I thought, "Wait, there's more," more than once. I understand technically how it ended up that way, but from a reading enjoyment perspective, it was too much. Also, involving Annalisa's family for a third time in the series is a stretch. It is a large family, but is it really feasible for them to be involved in each book's mystery?

Still, I found the mystery involving her niece on the college campus the most compelling of the three mysteries. It was not because it was her niece but because the mystery was so delightfully confounding. I just knew who did it, and boy, was I wrong! I love being wrong in guessing a mystery!

The pacing was fast for the majority of the book. It started to slow for me after the point it felt it should be wrapped up and wasn't, but that was a mental thing on my part. The chapters are short, which supports that fast pace. And the narration is in the third-person point of view, focusing on Annalisa's perspective, except for the few chapters that are in first-person point of view through the eyes of the killer. I liked when the story breaks away and lets the reader in on what's going on in the killer's mind. It's just so fascinating!

I can't wait to see where the story goes in the next installment, as some significant changes are on the horizon!

Annalisa is asked to look into the death of an ex-cop by her boss. She doesn’t believe it was suicide. As Annalisa looks into the case she finds out that her brother has Sam working on a case for him. As Annalisa looks into all the current cases she finds many possible suspects.
Goodreads

Sometimes it felt like this had too much going on… lots of different story lines to pay attention to. I really liked the characters and the writing style. I listened to the audiobook and thought the narrator was excellent.

I am a big fan of this series, and the latest book didn’t dissapoint!

This is a great mystery/detective story with Annalisa Vega who is a great character with interesting interpersonal relationships.

Joanna Schaffhousen has paced the plot perfectly, never a boring moment!

If you haven’t checked out this series yet, I strongly recommend it.

Thank you to St. Martins Press and Netgalley for providing me with an ARC of this book to read and review.

Annalise Vega…

Is this truly the end? If it is, it’s a satisfying end, if it’s not, I’d be happy for her story to continue.

There’s something about Annalise and her no nonsense way that makes you love her. She’s had to make some really hard decisions but she has done it. She has proven herself time and time again.

If you haven’t read this series yet, please do yourself a favor and start from the first book.

Loved it! This series has become one of my favorite female detective series. I hope we’ll get more Annalisa Vega. There were times where I wanted to yell at her for doing something stupid but overall I loved all of this book and twists. I definitely recommend reading this series in order but if you love detective mysteries then you’ll want to read this one!

I absolutely love this series. Complex police cases and likeable characters and their ever evolving family dynamics kept me invested in the story and left me wanting more. Remarkably written with a dash of humour throughout the pages making it an unputdownable read from start to finish.

Thank you Netgalley for this arc

<i>I received a copy of this story from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.</i>

I'm new to this series and to Joanna's work but I'll definitely be reading more!

This police procedural was full of so many twists and turns that it was impossible to anticipate all of them. The characters were specific and memorable which is incredibly important. There are so many storylines that it would've been impossible to keep them straight if they were poorly developed.

I loved the use of multiple points of view in lieu of an unreliable narrator. It helped keep the pacing up and gave the reader just enough to work with to think they'd figured it out. The surprises are truly very well done.

If procedural mysteries are your thing, definitely check this one out!

Dead and Gone is the third book in the exciting Detective Annalisa Vega series by Joanna Schaffhausen. Will there be another one? I sure hope so, because I'm not ready to let Annalisa, her unique family and Nick go yet! If you haven't read the first two, I suggest you do so. I started with the first one, and it was fantastic. Sadly, I didn't read the second one, and so I missed some important relationship changes for Annalisa. Also, there are references made to the storyline of book one, so do your best to read them in order. However, the mysteries of this one stand alone, but you won't want to miss a single moment!

Chicago police detective Annalisa Vega's newest case hits close to home for her boss, Commander Lynn Zimmer. Zimmer's former partner turned PI, Sam Tran, is found hanging in a cemetery tree, and the scene suggests there's someone out there with a hatred toward police. Annalisa believes the murder may be related to one of Tran's open cases. And who is one of Tran's last clients? Annalisa's brother Vinny! Vinny hired Tran because there's a dangerous stalker on his daughter Quinn's college campus, and it seems the stalker is now after Quinn. Annalisa begins to investigate Tran's open cases, which besides the stalker includes a brutal double homicide from 20 years ago and a missing mother. Throw in the case of the "Chicken Bandit" and Annalisa's evolving relationship with ex-husband Nick Carelli, and Annalisa has more than enough on her plate!

This was a great mystery, but with so much going on I should have made a flow chart! There were quite an array of suspects, and I guessed every single one wrong. Of course, that made the story all the more fascinating. I did not see how all these disparate cases could be solved, and I was amazed at how everything came together. On top of that, Annalisa and Nick Carelli are working on the Chicken Bandit case, and as the crimes become increasingly brutal, Annalisa is put into the Chicken Bandit's sites. All of Tran's cases were extremely interesting, but I found the campus stalker to be the most thrilling. Annalisa Vega is such a compelling character. I love her, but I don't always like her. She can make not-brilliant decisions that put her life in danger, but she's actually whip smart. Her family history is quite complicated. She grew up in a boisterous loving household, but in the first book she turned in her father in connection with an old case, and her brother Alex was put into prison for murder. Her family loves her, but they have trouble dealing with her turning in Pops, a former police officer. And since Pops was a cop, some of Annalisa's co-workers no longer trust her. Her best friend is Sissy, who was married to Annalisa's brother Alex, but is now divorced. Talk about complicated family matters! And to make her personal life even MORE complicated, she and ex-husband Nick Carelli have reunited; they had gotten divorced due to Nick's endless lies and cheating, but Annalisa is taking the chance that Nick really has changed. The book of course focuses mainly on the mystery of the campus stalker and who killed Tran, but I really enjoyed Annalisa and Nick trying to move on with their relationship. I loved that there was an incredibly sweet moment among all the violence and mysteries. Annalisa is moving forward in her life, and I hope the author follows her new life path and we can keep our relationships with these awesome characters going!

I received an ARC of this book courtesy of the publisher and NetGalley. I received no compensation for my review, and all thoughts and opinions expressed are entirely my own.

Dead and Gone is definitely a page turner. I have liked the previous book in the Detective Annalisa Vegas series. I did find Dead And Gone just as intriguing.
Recommended series!
Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and author for the opportunity to read this book for my honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

I have been reading this series as a reviewer from the beginning and I have to say, I am extremely glad I was given the task! I absolutely love Annalisa Vega and her whole world.

This third book, in my opinion, is probably my favorite.

I like that I can equate what happened in the first two books to what is happening presently in this one. All the heartache and sadness really comes to the forefront here (but not in a depressing way). It shows the evolution of Detective Vega and how she is able to move forward while also keeping in mind all she has overcome in the past.

My only issue was that there was A LOT going on in this one and it was sometimes difficult to remember who did what and the character’s names.

I can’t say enough about this series! I recommend it to everyone.

I am absolutely loving this series and the author is becoming one of my favorites!

The suspense will keep you captivated and the storyline will have you hooked, page after page. I also love getting to know more about Annalisa's personal life.

I am ready for more!! I can't wait to see what happens next!!

My thanks to St. Martin's Press, Joanna Schaffhausen and Netgalley.
I love this authors previous books, especially with these peeps.
This is nowhere near a good as her others.
Luckily, "wait...is that a real word?"
Anywho..This was what I'm hoping " a brain fart! "
Yes. We all have them, and I'm moving on from here!
This story was what I kindly call a floofty. That's what I call Lily Mae. Lily is my cat who never farts, "According to her." But when it happens, it's a floofty.
I loved every book I've read from this woman. I've really enjoyed them all. One little hiccup isn't going to slow me down! Also, I kinda love Annalisa's story.

Reading Between the Wines book review #101/115 for 2023:
Rating: 4 🍷 🍷 🍷 🍷
Book: Dead and Gone
Author: Joanna Schaffhausen
Available now!!! Released Aug 8, 2023!

Sipping thoughts: I loved this series and Annalisa Vega is one bad mother-shut your mouth! I love the mystery feel of all the books in this series. I totally had the rug pulled off of under me on this one. Joanna writes like a magician with the sleight of hand that you don’t see because you are looking at something else. If you want a thrilling mystery that starts from chapter one and doesn’t let up to the last word in the book, this is the one for you! I am hoping for a book #4!

Cheers and thank you to @NetGalley and @StMartinsPress for an advanced copy of @DeadAndGone.

#DeadAndGone #JoannaSchaffhausen #StMartinsPress #NetGalley #advancedreadercopy #ARC #Kindle #Booksofinstagram #readersofinstagram #bookstagram #nicoles_bookcellar #bookworm #bookdragon #booknerd #booklover #bookstagrammer #bookaholic #bookreview #bookreviewer #IHaveNoShelfControl #ReadingBetweenTheWines #fiction #thriller #suspense #mystery #MysteryAndThrillers #GeneralFictionAdult

Dead and Gone is the third book in the Detective Annalisa Vega series. When I requested this book, I didn't realize it was part of a series. While the background information would have been nice, I think it was fine to read as a standalone. Yay me, another series I need to go back and start from the beginning because I loved this and Detective Vega.

It felt like there were two books combined into one which I really enjoyed, it was fast paced, action packed and entertaining. It helped that the author weaved everything together and tied up any loose ends before the conclusion. I enjoyed the characters, the investigation and personal aspects.

Thank you netgalley and St.Martin's Press / Minotaur books for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I voluntarily read an advanced copy of Dead and Gone by Joanna Schaffhausen. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for this ARC.

I am such a fan of the Annalissa Vega series that anytime a new book comes out, I devour it. This time was no exception. The mysteries (of which there were many in this book.) never disappoint, and I love trying to guess who the bad guy is and not always getting it right. There are so many great twists and turns. And Analissa's strong backstory/emotional trauma keeps all the plots tethered. I give this book a solid 4.5/5 stars and look forward to the next book.

DEAD AND GONE is the third book in author Joanna Schaffhausen's Annalisa Vega series, and I'm here to say each book is better than the last. There's a reason Joanna Schaffhausen is a critically acclaimed, award-winning author, and the evidence is in this book! With a tenacious heroine who never gives up, multiple twisted plot lines, immersible setting and a whole lot of family drama, DEAD AND GONE is highly engaging and unbelievably atmospheric.

When ex-cop turned private investigator Sam Tran is found hanging from a tree in a cemetery with an ugly message written across his chest, it should be painfully clear he didn't commit suicide. Chicago Police Detective Annalisa Vega arrives on scene in time to answer the cell phone ringing in the dead man's pocket only to be shocked by hearing her brother Vinny Vega's voice on the other end of the line. She learns Vinny hired Tran to find a dangerous stalker threatening his daughter on her college campus. The stakes are sky high for Annalisa and her family as they'll do whatever it takes to keep free-spirited Quinn safe. In an effort to unravel several convoluted cases, Annalisa begins sorting through the dead PI's open cases while also trying to keep an eye on her niece who's not happy about being confined. The more she investigates, the more she believes the cases may be tied together in some way. One thing is clear . . . PI Sam Tran stumbled upon some information that got him killed and to discover the identity of the killer, Annalisa will have to connect the dots between all his open cases. As it turns out, a twenty-year-old double homicide may hold the key Vega needs.

DEAD AND GONE is an intense, complex and highly engaging story. As always, Schaffhausen's characters are fully fleshed out and compelling. Readers will easily connect with Annalisa as well as most of the support cast which includes several red herrings. Ex-husband Det. Nick Carelli is Vega's partner in both a professional and personal manner, and their interactions adds a touch of personal depth and anguish to the storyline, helping temper the viciousness of the murder case. A multitude of twisted plot lines keeps the tension high and the tone dire as Vega races against time to find a stalker before her niece, who fancies herself an amateur sleuth, gets into something she can't get out of . . . at least not alive. Vega also faces some personal revelations that put a strain on the relationship she and Nick are trying to rebuild.

From the unsettling prologue to the final shocker, DEAD AND GONE is impossible to put down. While it is part of a series, the author does an excellent job weaving in needed backstory to make this one readable as a standalone. However, I highly recommend reading the series in order for character development. Totally addictive, DEAD AND GONE is a fantastic addition to this intriguing series. The story is an action packed, tension laden, riveting suspense thriller with just the right blend of murder, suspense and personal relationships. I look forward to learning where the author takes these characters in future books. Highly recommended to fans of suspense thrillers.

This is book #3 in the Detective Annalisa Vega series but they can be read is a stand alone. Detective Vega is investigating the death of and ex Police Officer and current PI. This leads to looking into his cases and who would want to murder him. While this is going on, her niece has a stalker at school and things just keep getting worse. I love Annalisa's character, she straight forward and real. She's determined to solve these cases even if they rant hers and they are so interesting. I couldn't figure out who was doing what or who was really doing everything. It was fun to go long as she find little pieces to solve them . I enjoyed the relationship aspect of her and Nick and them trying to figure things out between them. Theres a lot happening in this book and it was done so well, I was sucked in to all of it and couldn't. wait to see what would happens.
4.5

Thank you to @minotaurboks and Netgelly for my #gifted copy.

Dead and Gone is the third installment in the Detective Annalisa Vega series. In this book, Annalisa is asked by her boss to investigate the suspicious death of Sam Tran, a personal friend to Anna's boss, a former police officer, and current private detective. The circumstances surrounding Sam's death are bizarre, and the situation only gets stranger when Annalisa learns that one of Sam's last cases involves her brother and niece. Someone has been stalking Quinn, Anna's niece, on her college campus, and Sam was hired to find the stalker. If you've read the previous books, you know how fraught Anna's relationship with her family is, so their entanglement in a suspicious death brings Annalisa a lot of strife. Anna will need to investigate all of Sam's active cases to try and find the answers, while keeping up with her own caseload and personal life.

I really like police procedurals, and I feel like there aren't many of quality being written these days. The Annalisa Vega series is definitely an exception, and has a lot going for it. The plot here is suspenseful and tense, but does get bogged down by so much going on. Also, Anna's seeming complete disregard for proper police procedure in certain scenes really takes you out of the story. These are just tiny nitpicky issues, and I did enjoy the book. Definitely read the first two books before this; although each case can stand alone, there is backstory and continuation of familial issues that may confuse readers who jump in on the third book. I am excited for the evolution of this character and this series and can't wait to read more by Joanna Schaffhausen. Thank you to Netgalley and Minotaur Books for the chance to review this advance copy. 4 stars! Dead and Gone is available for purchase everywhere you buy books now!