I really loved reading this book. Mystery, suspense and crime story and the first book in this series. Lots of twist and turns Caroline Fardig did it again. If you haven’t ready another of her other books please do they won’t disappoint.

In this series we are introduced to Ellie Matthews a former criminologist who left for personal reasons and became a professor in forensic anthropology department. When a murder strikes the university she is working at she finds herself in the middle of what she wanted to leave behind. She is then asked to consult on a crime scene and in order to help solve the murder.

If you enjoy Mysteries I highly recommend this book. It felt like CSI but so enjoyable to read I didn’t want it to end. Looking forward to the next book.

Those of you familiar with Caroline Fardig probably know her for her cozies. This is not a cozy. It is a good suspense story. Ellie is a well-known forensic criminologist now working as a college professor.
She uses her skills to help solve a murder at the college. There are many twists and turns in the plot. The heroine is strong and we need more of them in mysteries/suspense.

Solid and strong read. Ellie has a massive backstory and it's fully covered in this book. Ellie is an outstanding forensic criminology professor. I simply loved her as a character. She is solving cases and she is an amazing leading lady. I would welcome the chance to read more of this series. It's not too dark, it's good. I haven't read this author before, this was a good first impression, little twists included.

My copy came from Net Galley. My thoughts and opinions are my own. This review is left of my own free volition.

While I am a huge fan of this author's other works I simply didn't care for this at all. I attempted to read this multiple times and came up with the same thing. If at some point I read and complete it I will be glad to adjust my review at that time.

Ellie Matthew is a great addition to strong mystery female leads. She may look for love in the wrong places but her detective skills are quite good. Looking forward to the next volume in this series.
Goodreads

It was a great novel. I recommend it for those who like mystery novels

A brand new murder mystery series by Caroline Fardig, this one comes with a darker side. Ellie a college professor was once a criminalist for the police department. Ellie has an in depth back story and is a bit more thrilling than Caroline's other cost mysteries. I found the criminologist side of the story extremely interesting and we'll researched, which made the story and characters more believable. Great new series and can't wait for the next installment.

This was a great read. The main character brings a lot to the book, with a complicated past, a fierce attitude and enough issues to make things interesting. I also really enjoyed the science aspect of the book. Ellie is a criminalist who delves into the forensics of each case and the author did a great job of explaining the science behind what she is doing without getting overly technical or overdoing it. The plot of the story was easy to follow and had enough suspects to keep things interesting. The killer wasn’t a total shock, but I wasn’t sure until the end. The writing and pacing were well done. I am looking forward to reading the second book in the series.

Princess Fuzzypants here:
Caroline Fardig has done it again. This is the first of what I hope is a long series. I love Ellie Matthews. She is a strong and capable but she has some skeletons in her closet that get in her way, both in the career she has chosen after leaving law enforcement and the case on which she is asked to consult.
Her childhood was grim to say the least. It doesn't help as she goes through the forensic evidence at the scenes of two murders. Complicating things further is one of her friends and colleagues is the prime suspect for one of the them and his family wield considerable power both on campus and in the community.
She is surrounded by a cast of great, finely drawn characters. The story has a lot of suspense, and highly charged action. It is also fascinating as she teaches her students about the job she is doing on the side. It is just a great combination.
I give this five purrs and two paws up.

Ellie Matthews is a college professor teaching forensics. Her prior life as a criminalist came to an end when a case was too horrific for her to continue.

The story starts with 2 student protestors breaking into an old, creepy, deserted amusement park that is scheduled to be turned into a 'body farm' that will be used by the students for research. One is murdered.

Earlier that evening Ellie Matthews and her friend & colleague Dudley Cooper arrive at a fundraiser for the 'body farm' to find students protesting in front.

From there the story evolves into a great mystery with several unexpected twists.

I'm looking forward to reading the 2nd in the Ellie Matthews mystery series.

I received an Advanced Readers Copy from the author through NetGalley. Ellie Matthews is a professor at Ashmore College, teaching forensic science. She is happy to be teaching students in a field that she excelled in when she worked for the Police Department. The reader is told that a particularly horrendous case hit too close to home for her to continue at a job she loved so much. We are not told what the case was and this amped up the suspense. I know I was curious each time it was mentioned.

The story has dead bodies, interesting forensic techniques, protesters, suspect disappearances, a bit of sexual tension and the very likeable protagonist, Ellie. This is the first in a new series.but there was no cliffhanger at the end. I like the pace of the book and the characters are well developed.;some were snarky as in real life and others made me laugh. The mystery is good. I had my suspicions about who the murderer is but I was wrong. The ending was a surprise and very good. I recommend this book.

I love mysteries, I love reading and solving them so when I knew Caroline Fardig was releasing a new mystery book I want it immediately. I’m a big fan of her cozy mystery series Java Jive, so I asked for it. This one not only has mystery but it has suspense and thriller as well.

Ellie Mathews is a college professor, she teaches forensics at Ashmore’s College, she used to be a Forensic Criminalist who worked in murder cases, but after a fatidic case, she couldn’t handle anymore and quit. Her colleague Professor Dudley Cooper has this project to open a Forensic Facility in order to teach the different scenarios where a criminalistic can found a dead body, but there are a lot of people who is against this facility, so he will have it hard to raise the funds to open it.

In one of their visit to the facility, Ellie found a dead body, and this is where the mystery starts, the body belongs to one of the student who happens to be one of the students who was against this project.

Now Ellie is not only a witness of the investigation, she also is requested to help the police when other student is also find dead at his dorm. She wasn’t thrilled to go back to this world but her friend and Sheriff ask her to help them find the killer, she thinks she should find him, moreover that her friend and colleague is one of the suspects.

I always enjoy this series because they make me create a lot of theories, some I was right about, some of them I was totally wrong. Once again the author made a fantastic job, the descriptions and details about forensics makes me feel I was in one of Ellie’s class.

Can’t wait for more of this series, and to know what’s for Ellie next!!

Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) provided by the Author and Publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an fair and honest review.

I am so excited about this book. Caroline Fardig is the author of the wonderful cozy mystery series, "Java Jibe", and is branching out to mystery - thriller territory. I really enjoyed this book. Ellie has a lot of quirks and has a backstory that will make you cry. She also has terrible taste in men, a fault she shares with her sister. In fact, Ellie reminds me of another fictional character, a detective named Kinsey Millhone (created by author Sue Grafton). I can only hope that Ellie has as long a fictional life as Kinsey has had.

Ellie Matthews is a college professor who had to give up her career as a criminalist after a particularly nasty case. Ellie is exploring the site for a new forensic facility with her friend and colleague, Dudley Cooper, when she discovers the body of a student. With the campus already in an uproar over the proposed facility, the murder had everyone on edge. Gossip is running wild and both the local news reporters and the campus reporters are looking for a hot story. When another student dies Ellie is asked to help with the forensics of the case. While not at all happy to be back in that world, Ellie doesn't want to disappoint her dear friend, the Sheriff. She is working closely with Detective Nick Baxter and the two make a great team. After Dudley becomes the prime suspect, Ellie is forced to choose between the law and her friend. Ellie is determined to prove Dudley is innocent, but the students who can help are on the run and the evidence is not helping her. There are a lot of suspects and I love it when I can't guess who the baddie is.

Ellie Matthews is a college forensic criminology professor, former criminalist for the police department, and somewhat of a mystery person. She is thrust into a college related murder when her associate takes her to the site of his new "body farm" to discuss improvements. While there, Ellie smells death and discovers a student who has been murdered at the site. Before long her colleague is implicated in the murder. All too soon a second student is found dead in a dorm room of a supposed suicide, and Ellie is called in by the sheriff to assist on this case. What happens next is a fast paced criminal investigation and stunning conclusion to both murder cases.

The author has created believable characters who handle their jobs with respect and treat the victims with dignity. It is obvious that meticulous research has been done as the author is able to describe the various procedures and even options available as Ellie and others assess the crime scene and hunt for clues. This isn't done like on TV, but rather as an actual criminalist would act at a crime scene and in the lab. The research carried over to the portions of classes we read about Ellie teaching as well. She was a strong individual when related to her jobs. Her personal life was a little more lax with excessive drinking and questionable judgement about men. She has her sister and young nephew living with her, and it is obvious that these remaining family members mean a lot to her.

The author did a great job of describing the various settings throughout the book, whether it was a convenience store robbery scene, the body farm, or a crime scene. This exemplary focus on surroundings allowed the reader to feel like they were actually in the background watching the story unfold-both the grizzly and happy parts of the book. Combine that with the character descriptions and vivid recounting of lab work, and you have a dynamic book that feels less like fiction and more like true crime. Realistic in every way, this was a book that demanded to be finished without delay and won't disappoint any reader!

Ellie Matthews teaches forensics at a private college now, but she used to be a crime scene investigator, until one horrifying murder case turned personal. Now she teaches aspiring CSI students, and dotes on her young nephew. Then she finds the body of a murdered student, and suddenly her world is in chaos.

Ellie’s mentor asks her to consult on the case, and soon Ellie is in the thick of a murder investigation in which her closest academic colleague is the chief suspect. While Ellie races to make sense of the evidence and identify the killer, more bodies pile up, and soon Ellie has no idea who she can trust.

I’ve read—and loved—all the Java Jive books, so I was excited to read Caroline Fardig’s newest endeavor, and I was not disappointed. Ellie is a complex character, and her past haunts her, no matter how much she tries to pretend otherwise. She likes her quiet life as a professor, but her past as a CSI calls to her as well. I had to keep changing my guesses as to who the murderer was, and I didn’t quite get it right. I loved the premise, and the setting, and I look forward to reading more of Ellie’s adventures.

Caroline Fardig is the best-selling author of the Lizzie Hart Mysteries and the Java Jive Mysteries series. Her newest novel, Bitter Past, is the first book in the Ellie Matthews series.

(Galley provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.)

***Also reviewed on Amazon.***

This book was supremely captivating right from the very start. The plot line was absolutely riveting, and there were just enough twists and turns to keep you guessing. Ellie was a character with so many layers and complexities whom you could not help but to feel for. It was easy to experience her happiness, fears, sorrows and triumphs with her, as if she were a long time, trusted friend. The story line moved at just the right pace and kept you engaged with loads of nail-biting suspense and pulse-pounding intrigue.

I love a nice, cozy mystery, but the darker suspense thrillers are more to my personal reading taste, and Fardig served up a delicious and uber-satisfying literary dish of anticipation, suspicion and subterfuge on a silver platter. I can hardly wait to see where this series goes next!

*I received a complimentary ARC of this story from NetGalley & Smith Publicity in order to read and provide a voluntary, unbiased and honest review, should I choose to do so.

Bitter Past is the first book in a new series about Ellie Matthews by author Caroline Fardig. Ellie is a likable character, who it's easy to relate to and feel she is already a friend. Bitter Past will keep you guessing as to "who did it". I was given a copy to review.

Bitter Past is the first in Caroline Fardig's new Ellie Matthews novel series. Ellie Matthews left her position as a criminalist three years prior to this story, trading the stress and danger of police work for the safety of a professorship at a prestigious private college. With the appointment as administrative assistant for the proposed college "body farm", things are looking good for Ellie.

That is until she discovers the body of a student protestor on the "body farm" grounds. This draws her back into police work as she is approached by friend and mentor Sheriff Jayne Walsh to work as a consultant. As the investigation unfolds a second student is found dead under suspicious circumstances, thus bringing Ellie full force back into police work.

Ellie has stated she has horrible taste in men. Her friend and colleague, her new love interest, and the detective she is partnered with have all become close to Ellie. Problem is, one is a murderer, one is a suspect, and one she has gotten far too close to. One she tricks, one saves her life, and one tries to unlock her past. Thus creating a story of intrigue that is hard to put down.

This is an engaging new series with many twists and turns, not leading you to the truth until the very end. Although a darker series than Ms. Fardig's Java Jive Mysteries, this story is equally well done. I do recommend this book!

I really enjoyed Bitter Past. I have read several of Caroline Fardig's Java Jive series and liked each of those books as well but Bitter Past is very different and in my opinion much better. While the Java Jive is more of a cozy mystery series Bitter Past is more of a hard core criminal thriller. Ellie Matthews left the sheriff's office years ago and has been working as a college professor teaching forensics at a small local college. When one of her colleagues wants to open a "body farm" of sorts it is met with opposition. Then people start dying and her colleague is arrested for murder. Some parts of this book are intense. But one thing is for certain things are not always as they seem.

Well written mystery with a good plot. I enjoyed the author's writing, this was my first book by the author. I can see myself reading more of their work in the future.