Helen is a bit of an eccentric hoarder. Her husband died in an unfortunate accident a decade ago and her hoarding never got any better, but he's still there for her as she still sees him and their banter is fantastic. Imagine a woman with twenty cats that she can't properly take care of causing infestations of bugs and an abundance of cat feces and urine. A severed finger is found near her home but she's not bothered. Nothing really gets to Helen these days. However, she becomes a suspect and has to spend a night in jail. Then another murder occurs and she has a tie to this person as well - with no alibi. Her family comes up to try and help her but how do you properly help someone who lives in her own little world?

OK - first of all, I love the title of this book but it doesn't quite fit with the story line. I assumed it would be more of a tag line for a story of vengeance. Don't judge this book by the cover or title. Cleverly written, we get a look into the perspective of a person with hoarding issues. Have you ever seen the show, Hoarders? I have and am always fascinated by these people's stories. People are so quick to judge, but these are real issues stemming from something and they can get help. But back to the book - this was an easy page turner. Refreshing and different from most mysteries I've read lately with a lot of humor. Absolutely take a chance on this book and I look forward to the next book in the series.

What a strange book, I wasn't sure what to make of it.I do like writers who think outside the box and this one most certainly did .This was pretty wacky. I did struggle to connect with Helen and I felt disappointed that I didn't really like her as a character,I think it would have made quite a difference if I had liked her more.I think she was well written maybe for me it wasn't as cozy as I expected from the description, and in a way this is not a bad thing.I don't want to give a bad review because I personally didn't like the main character because that is not always necessary and I think it is a brave author who makes a difficult character central to their story.I did enjoy the fact that this book was pretty different and original and I admired that.I would be interested to read more by this author and I do think they write stories that are entertaining .

A severed finger shows up on her doorstep in a seedy section of Las Vegas. But Helen Taylor does not freak out, she is already one crazy lady. Helen is a hoarder, her house is full of cats and she has conversations with her long-dead husband, Bobby. Helen is now a suspect in her neighbours murder and ends up spending a night in jail.

I really liked the character, Helen, and her discussions with her long-dead husband, Bobby, and the fact that Bobby answered her back. Helen has a booth at her local swap meet and compares everything she sees with the retail price and the price she would sell them for. I thought this was going to be annoying at first as it was mentioned quite a lot, but thankfully it didn't. This is a story that covers Mental Health illness, love and family loyalty. Do not judge this book by its cover. As it does not do the book any favours!

I would like to thank NetGalley, Inbrifex Books and the author H. G. McKinnis for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A Justified Bitch is a light-hearted murder mystery, family relationship drama, and is easy-to-read and quite goofy. It is actually a bit outside the type of book that I normally read and feels like it is more on the "chick-lit" side than the gritty side of the mystery world. Nevertheless, the author knows how to spin a fairly good yarn and much of it makes for a compelling read. I think that the novel is at its best when it gives Helen's point of view. Helen is a hoarder extraordinaire who has a running dialogue with her dead husband, Bobby, as if he were sitting on her shoulder. The confusion and distraction and misunderstandings that flow from Helen's mental difficulties make this story. The murder and family drama are a bit secondary.

I will say the title and cover of this book are what first attracted my attention, but what is on the inside was just as excellent. This is a great mystery novel and the title and cover shouldn't dissuade you from reading it! Excellent author and I loved the story!

First of all, a big thanks to Imbrifex and Smith Publicity for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review. Also, for the blog spot to kick off the tour!

A JUSTIFIED BITCH by H.G. McKinnis definitely grabbed my attention for two reasons: the title (how can you ignore that?) and the tagline - it takes a guilty bastard to make a justified bitch. Consider me instantly intrigued. I will say, this is a classic example of "don't judge a book by it's cover". It does not do the book justice.

It all starts with a severed finger is found just a few feet away from the doorstep to Helen Taylor. Most people would panic, not Helen. How come? Well, Helen is already considered crazy - from her hoarder lifestlye, her growing number of cats, and her conversations with her husband. Only thing is that her husband, Bobby, has been dead for years. We find out that the finger is connected to the gruesome murder of her neighbor, Bebe.

The police bring Helen in for questioning because they believe she could be a witness to the crime, or a possible suspect. While in custody, the detective calls up her sister, Pat, who currently lives down in Phoenix. She comes to her sister's aid with her two teenage sons. Upon her arrival to the police station, detectives convince her to have Helen brought into a mental facility to be evaluated. After seeing the conditions her sister was living in, she felt she had no choice and that its what was best for her.

Helen goes AWOL from the facility, and shortly after she escapes another gruesome murder occurs. Will the detectives, Pat, and her sons be able to solve the case and find Helen? In order to do so, they need to find the truth in the insanity.

This book definitely surprised me! I wasn't expecting such a gripping mystery (based on the title). I was anticipating more of a journey of revenge (again, based on the title). The characters were so well-developed and diving into the mind of Helen was quite the ride! The hoarding, the cats, and her dealing with the grief of her husband's death 10 years prior. I was drawn in from the start and McKinnis didn't let go until the very end - I'm excited and hoping for a book two in the Las Vegas Mysteries series!

If you want a great murder mystery with a character that makes you feel almost as insane as she is, then this is the one for you!

I give this one 4.5/5 stars!

"I remember things, but sometimes I don't remember what I remember."

Helen...Helen...Helen...I love Helen....her discussions with her long-dead husband....her love of swap meets....and her love of cats!

Have you ever had one of your furry friends bring you a creepy gift? I sure have, (some still alive) and the one that Helen receives from Wary the cat wreaks havoc and brings out the police in full force....but Helen can't remember where the little piece of incriminating evidence came from.....so it's off to jail where colorful new friends are made and a murder mystery ensues.

A JUSTIFIED BITCH (ignore the cover) equals Great Fun in Las Vegas with a reunited family and a murderer too close for comfort!

Thank you to Goodread's friend Zoey....so glad I caught your review!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Imbrifex Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I agree with some reviewers not to judge this book by it's cover, title, or even its first chapter. At first I was like "what is going on with this Helen girl" and was somewhat rolling my eyes. Then I started reading more and got hooked when her sister, Pat/Cleo, was introduced.

This book was a very interesting and fast read for me. VERY unexpected, but I really enjoyed it. I read this on a Saturday/Sunday and just flew through the book 100 pages at a time.

This story revolves around both a detective mystery and a mental institution. It was a nice change of pace when the story split between different settings and themes (though all very intertwined and not random). I was hooked and wanted to learn more about what happened, what would come of Helen, and how the entire plot would play out.

The character development is well done. I felt really tied to most of the main and secondary characters. McKinnis did a great job making you feel connected to them - I felt like I knew them and what they were about.

Very entertaining read - highly recommend! I can't wait to see what the next books in the Las Vegas Mystery series are about!

*Thank you to Netgalley, Imbrifex Books, and Smith Publicity for the ARC, for which I have given an honest and unbiased review*

Not sure where the idea for the title name comes from, but it grabbed my attention and after that it was smiles and mysreries...and insane reveling all the way. There's a delightful fondness to the characters and their relationships with each other, even if some seem more detrimental to the protagonist's mental health than others.

This is an outstanding story on many levels. It includes a murder mystery, a family reconciled,emergence from grief, and coming of age.. The style of writing helps the story along with just the right level of description for the action being portrayed. Helen is a woman developed in so much depth she is like an old friend or as described "a wacky aunt." The boys are true adolescents, with a developing relationship with their mother. So many wonderful vignettes provide smiles or frowns, but everything truly connects with the reader. This book is worth several reads.

This is that true case for not judging a book by it's cover. That cover and the title totally suck for this cute little book. It's good. It deserves better. My thanks to my buddy Zoeytron's review for cluing me in on this one.

You meet Helen, she is the neighborhood crazy cat lady.


Literally.
Helen hoards junk for the swap meets and talks to her dead husband Bobby.


Helen is good people.

Then her phone sexing neighbor gets cut into a million pieces. The police know that Helen may know something about it but good luck getting it out of her. Helen isn't sure of taking a bath..why should she remember a killing?
Helen's sister Pat is called to come to see if she can help out with Helen and she heads to Vegas with her two sons to try and figure out her wacked sister. Poor Pat, between two teenagers in Vegas and her sister escaping the looney bin...she isn't having a good day.

Booksource: Netgalley in exchange for review

<b><i>Realistic!</i></b> That is the best description I can provide for this short, easy to read crime novel set in present-day Las Vegas. I received this book free from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review. It was written (skillfully) by H.G. McKinnis, and published by Flattop Productions, Inc. of Las Vegas in 2017.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It is very realistic. The dialogue is believable, and the descriptions of the Las Vegas environment is accurate and colorful. Written in the 3rd person, the book presents the perspectives of the protagonist (Helen), her sister (Cleo, or Pat) and Detective Madison of the Las Vegas Metro Police Department (LVMPD). Even though the author supplies a few hints during the story as to the identity of the killer, we can never be sure, so the element of suspense is present until the end of the book.

Helen is a hoarder. She lives on the East Side of Las Vegas, just off Charleston Blvd. Her sister Cleo (or Pat — short for Cleopatra) lives in Phoenix with her husband and two sons. Helen makes her living buying and selling used merchandise at a swap meet in Las Vegas. She owns her own home, but she became mentally unstable after her husband died in a climbing accident ten years earlier. She still sees her husband, and talks to him every day, even though he is dead. Now, her house is full of trash, cats, insects and other critters, and is not fit to be lived in. Unfortunately, Helen might have witnessed the murder of her next-door neighbor — a meth-addicted prostitute and telephone sex worker. The murder scene is gruesome, and one of Helen’s cats brings home a body part that police subsequently find in her yard, implicating Helen in the murder. She is jailed as a material witness, and she meets some interesting people, and makes some new friends, while in jail.

Helen’ sister and two sons, Jordan and Marc, drive up from Phoenix to bail Helen out of jail and try to help her straighten her life out. That’s when the adventures really begin in earnest. But the murders aren’t over, yet. Another woman is murdered, and Helen does not have an alibi. Police immediately suspect Helen. The conclusion to the story is satisfying. Loose ends are tied up. The story is an easy, fast read. What’s not to like? For a change of pace in murder and crime novels, try this well-written work by H.G. McKinnis. You’ll be glad you did.

Helen, an eccentric woman living in squalor in a seedy Las Vegas neighborhood with her many cats, still talks to her dead husband. A former English teacher, she now has a successful stall at a weekly sales market. When one of her
cats brings her a severed finger, the police arrive to find the dismembered body of Helen's prostitute neighbor. She's taken into custody to be questioned, but her mental condition makes her a bad witness. The police call her sister Pat for help and Pat and 2 teenage sons arrive to help Helen, who is then booked into a mental institution. She promptly escapes in order to return to her stall, successfully being run by her youngest nephew. The 2 have become close and unlikely partners in the business.
When Helen's psychiatrist is found murdered, she becomes the main suspect for both murders.
This was a fun book, a little uneven, but enjoyable with some good laughs. It promises to be the start of a new exciting series, reminiscent of Janet Ivanovich's books.
Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for the eARC.

Holy crap! What an amazing book. Gripping, well written and I could not put it down. Total page turner, edge of your seat tension and I am a new fan of this mad talented author!!!!

Some days can turn into a real nightmare, especially when your neighbor is dismembered more or less under your eyes. Of course, it's difficult to sort things out when you talk with your dead husband, have way too many cats, and a hoarding problem.

Helen Taylor is Det. Jake Madison's closest thing to a witness, but hardly a reliable one. She exists mostly in a dream world. Bebe, the victim, was extraordinary too - a whore past her prime, gardener, whose new profession provided phone sex.

Pat Henderson, Helen's sister, drives up from Phoenix with teenaged sons in tow to care for Helen and help the police. A complicated history and family life already have Pat at DefCon 3; Helen's disappearances and reappearances, almost put her over the edge. An urban cowboy detective, a swap meet business, flashy gay hairdressers, and another horrific murder move the story along.

If you like good characters, an interesting mystery, and the loyalty and conflicts of siblings, you'll enjoy A Justified Bitch. The title is accurate but does not indicate language issues for readers who don't enjoy coarse language. Recommended.

Review copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley.

This is a fascinating murder mystery and is sold with the tag line that is the first in the Las Vegas Mystery series which pleases me no end.
We start off a little awkwardly by viewing the world through the eyes of Helen, named after Helen of Troy. It is so confusing at the start until you understand that the person she is having a conversation with is her dead husband Bobby. Then we are confronted with a pet dropping a gift of love at Helens feet – a severed finger complete with French manicure. Turns out that Bebe, her next door neighbour / prostitute has been brutally murdered and Helen appears to be the only witness. Helens sister Pat (named Cleopatra after another renowned beauty in history) arrives in Las Vegas via Arizona to try and help the police to get Helen to talk. Which proves to be a challenge as Helen is living in a world of her own.
The course of the book takes place over several days. Helen is a filthy recluse and a hoarder and has actual conversations with her husband which tends to throw people for a loop. Pat is the sister who feels that she abandoned her sister when things really started to go badly for her. She couldn’t cope with her sister’s mental breakdown and feels a great deal of guilt for it and wants to do the right thing by her. But the underlying question is, despite her mental instability, is Helen a murderer? There are other players in this story, such as Pat’s two teenage sons who get up to their fair share of mischief in the city of sin and the smart detective who manages to keep all the strings to this mystery in hand as they untangle and it ends with a satisfying crescendo.
I loved the pacing of this book. There were no dead pockets of story that felt like filler. The characters are relatable and sympathetic and personally likable although at the start when Helen is at her sickest she is not so visibly attractive. The story unravels until the end all and the time I was wondering the significance of the title which reveals itself at the very end – and it’s worth waiting for.
A great cosy thriller. It’s a wonderful way to spend a day.

The title makes you expect a certain kind of story, at least, I did. It wasn't what I expected at all but it was an interesting read. I thought it was a little silly and unbelievable at times.

I would like to thank NetGalley and Imbrifex books for an ARC of "A Justified Bitch" by H.G. McKinnis for my honest review.
The genres of this book are Mystery and Thriller,Suspense, and General Adult Fiction.
H.G. McKinnis does an excellent job in describing the devastating effects of mental illness on a family.
The story starts when Helen Taylor, finds herself holding a finger and sitting near by her house, where a body has been found murdered next door. Helen lives in a delusional world with her cats and hoarding, and is very comfortable having conversations with her dead husband. When the police question her, she can't explain what she saw. The police take her to jail as a material witness hoping to get information. Helen hasn't showered and her hair is matted. While in jail, she becomes friends with two "jail mates" who own a beauty shop.
The police call Helen's sister Pat(Cleo), and ask her to come and try to get Helen to disclose anything pertinent to the case. Helen has not spoken to Pat for over ten years. Pat arrives with her two teen aged boys. She has the key to Helen's house, and when she opens the door she is horrified to see the hoarding conditions that Helen and her cats have been living in. Helen has a place where she goes and sells some of the things that she hoards.
Pat goes to buy clothes for her sister and get her out of jail. When she arrives at the jail house, a detective convinces Pat to bring her sister to meet with a Psychiatrist. The Psychiatrist convinces Pat that Helen should stay for at least six weeks and be on medication and counselling .
Pat and her two sons are staying at a hotel, and finds that her sons are finding ways to get into trouble. Pat is also trying to get Helen's house in order.
Helen finds a way to go AWOL, to get back to her job. While Helen is away from the health center there is another dead body found.
The author describes dsyfunctional, complex and complicated characters. Some of the teenage adventures are funny. The interactions with Pat and her sons is humorous at times.
Who is the killer? Is Helen involved? This is an intriguing, and enjoyable read with lots of action and adventure. I would recommend this entertaining book.

This is a witty funny book. The characters are lovable and you laugh at loud with some of their antics.