Unfortunately this book did not hold my interest, I should have once again read the first books in the series, it would have been better to help me understand the storyline better..
Thank you for allowing me to view this title..

was a gripping thriller that took you to every aspect of trying to figure out what was really going on and what was going to happen next! This was such an amazing book and I can’t wait to see what else is released from this author!

Gin Sullivan is a pathologist/medical examiner specialising in advanced decomposition. She started dating Jake in high school Jake and they have both struggled with their issues. When his estranged mother is found dead of an apparent overdose she is called in to examine the body. She knows the dead are bodies waiting to tell a story.
Tuck is the police officer conducting the investigation and she soon feels a growing attraction to him. Will she risk what she has with Jake?
Gin and Jake's relationship appears weak at times with Jake inclined to bottle up his feelings. Jake didn’t have a big profile in this story but I’m sure we haven’t seen the last of him. I found him to be a little dark (and appealing) at times.
This is the third in the Gin Sullivan mystery series and the first one I have read. The story started well then seemed to lose momentum. However I did enjoy it when Gin slipped into her analytical mode and also when she described details relating to death and her role. There was also some dark humour which I liked eg comment “sometimes the dead are assholes”. I really enjoyed the ending and felt it was well put together just wish the rest of the book had held my interest as well.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a free digital copy of the book in return for an honest review.

This 3rd installment in the Gin Sullivan series follows a typical pattern of weaving together Gin's professional and personal lives, while seeking answers to the newest mystery. Although she is no longer a full time medical examiner, Gin's consultant work opens the door for her to insinuate herself into a police investigation. The complicated strands of the mystery in this book make it difficult to follow the connections between the different bodies involved in story. Gin manages to find danger by taking actions without thinking about the possible consequences. In the end, her life is saved by one of the male heroes in her life. With her high school sweetheart eclipsed from the storyline, her savior is a new love interest. As with each of the books, this one leaves you wanting more -- not a bad quality for a mystery.

Gin Sullivan moves back to her hometown of Trumbull, PA leaving behind her busy career as a medical examiner in Chicago. Gin has moved in with her high school sweetheart, Jake and is helping out in the local high school Science's department with a program that she hopes will get the young girl's more interested in the Sciences. She's also helping the county medical examiner as a consultant since it's suffering from a high rate of deaths due to the opioid crisis that's affecting the country.
The county and city law enforcement agencies are both grossly understaffed and are at odds with each other which makes this arrangement pretty uncomfortable for Gin since her mother is the Mayor of Trumbull.
Things are going pretty well until Jake's mom, who left him with his dad when he was was infant is found dead from an apparent drug overdose in the next town over from Trumbull. Needless to say, this shocks Jake because he was under the impression that she left the area altogether and then she's found dead so close to him? He has to identify the body, he's not handling this well at all. Gin goes with Jake to make the identification and he's pretty cold about it. He leaves to go back to work out of town after they leave the morgue. He promises he'll be back for the weekend because they have a dinner party planned on Saturday night and when he doesn't show up and he's not answering his phone everyone is getting ready to leave when finally shows up. Let's just say; Jake makes the statement "fashionably late" take on a whole new meaning.
He dragging a teenager into the middle of their would be dinner party who he's been watching sell drugs and convinced that this boy sold his mom the drugs that killed her. This boy is holding a baggie of drugs that is enough to get him arrested but Jake could be in trouble himself for his act of vigilante justice.
It comes out that this boy, Jonah is the son of a prominent doctor in town and things are not looking good for Jake or the Trumbull PD. This doctor is threatening to sue everyone involved in this matter.
Jonah does tell Tuck Baxter the Chief of Police for Trumbull that he knows where a body is located. Tuck reluctantly asks Gin to go with him to see if this is true. That's the deal Jonah makes with the TPD if there is a body where he says he thinks it is all the drug charges will go away.
This is where it gets interesting, I was held captive by this book. It just kept pulling me in.
If you like a bit of horror with your mystery this is must read, I will be reading the first two books in this series and waiting for the 4th one to come out. This is a fantastic series, the characters are well developed and very fast paced. Even though I hadn't read the first two books in this series, I wasn't lost. It's just a great read.
Disclosure: I would like the thank the publisher and the NetGalley for providing me with an e-galley of this book in exchange for my honest opinion, the opinions expressed above are my own.

Wow! Just released, September 11, 2018, I have to say that I was enthralled with this series! I am beyond appreciative for the advanced read. THANK YOU CROOKED LANE BOOKS! BTW, what a darling name.

So, let me begin with the fact that I’ve not read the previous two in this series of three, however rest assured that does not matter as this book can be read as a standalone in my opinion. Fantastic storyline, kept me entrigued and fast paced. Loved Gin’s character, she was believable and a strong woman. Suspenseful and plenty of times I caught myself wondering if I had the ending or not......

I highly suggest you add this one to your shelf!

I really enjoyed this book. I found the characters to be well written, the story full of twists and turns and overall, just enjoyable! I will go back and read the others in this series. I recieved a copy from NetGalley and the publisher and this is my honest opinion.

Anna Carlisle’s latest Gin Sullivan mystery is recommended for lovers of small-town mysteries who enjoy Chevy Stevens, Lisa Jackson, and Julia Maynard. But there are elements in In the Darkest Hour that are reminiscent of Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum series as well—like Stephanie, Gin doesn’t live in a big city, she’s surrounded by childhood friends and relatives, and her personal life is in flux.

Former Chicago medical examiner Gin is living with her former high school sweetheart Jake Crosby. Their life isn’t exactly idyllic, since Jake and Gin have lingering issues from their past. When Jake’s mother is found dead of a heroin overdose, her death sends him reeling—even though he has been estranged from her pretty much since he was born. Gin realizes that money for his mother’s funeral will be an issue for Jake. Like so many, his finances are precarious.

There was also the matter of the expense. A simple burial could cost thousands of dollars. Jake’s finances, never completely secure in all of the years that she’d known him, had suffered a setback last year when a job he’d sunk all of his savings into was struck by tragedy: a fire wiped out the nearly completed house, and the investigation into a body discovered on the property tied up the project longer than Jake could comfortably manage.

Bodies and near bankruptcy—that would push anyone’s stress levels into the red zone. Jake is unable to stand back and let the cops find his mother’s dealer, even though in recent years small towns have become increasingly adept at handling overdoses. Gin says as much to Tuck Baxter, Turnbull’s chief of police: “I hear from my colleagues in Cook County that they’re experiencing a similar surge.” Inappropriately, Jake goes vigilante, collaring Jonah Krischer, a high school student, to make him “face justice.”

But Trumbull police chief Tuck Baxter has to contend with the boy’s father, a prominent physician who threatens legal action over the unconventional arrest—even though Jonah admits to stealing his dad’s prescription pad to sell phony opiate prescriptions for cash.

For Jonah’s get-out-of-jail-free card, he proffers information about a body he “happened” to discover when running through the woods around town. Even if Gin wanted to devote herself to hand-holding Jake, her professional expertise is needed. She was once a “full-time forensic pathologist,” and dead bodies are her business. Her friend Rosa asks her, “Why not open a nice little family practice and deal with living, breathing patients?”

Gin took her time choosing her words, trying to craft the response that Rosa’s question deserved. “I actually feel … honored to perform my duty to the dead,” she said. “In my profession, you come to view death as being as natural as birth. You lose your fear of it, while at the same time recognizing that a person’s friends and family are experiencing a terrible loss. It’s true that I often feel inadequate in the face of grief, but I know that I can make a real difference if I can give them the answers they need to understand what happened.”

There’s a famous fictional detective who says something very similar: J. D. Robb’s Eve Dallas. How many times while investigating a murder has Eve declared that “it is her vocation to stand for the dead, to see that they get justice?” Gin Sullivan has that same dedication. Life in Trumbull is no panacea, but even though Gin’s personal life is on the rocks, she is determined to do her part to uncover the identity of the dead man in the woods and help find his killer. It’s not for the pay because, as Police Chief Baxter points out, she gets “paid whether the killer’s found or not.” Earlier in her career, Gin was part of a forensic team identifying bodies after the Srebrenica massacre in eastern Europe. The families “were desperate for answers.”

“For closure. For a chance to bury their dead with all the love and respect they deserved.”

That’s what Gin Sullivan’s doing in Turnbull, Pennsylvania: standing up for the dead and solving murders. In the meantime, she’s letting go of her need to control everything to just celebrate life, even though there are often more questions than answers in Turnbull, let alone a plethora of dead bodies and mysteries.

An unusual lead character in Gin- a semi retired medical examiner- and a small Pennsylvania town with issues make this an intriguing read. I've liked Gin in the previous novels (but you'll be fine if this is your first in the series). I like her better than I like her love interest Jonah, who has problems not of his own making. This starts with the death of his mother, the mother who abandoned him as an infant, and ratchets up into dead bodies found by teens, grave robbing, etc. Keep your eye on Tuck, who I think we will all agree is a pretty good guy. The mystery got a little less interesting to me than the personal relationships (and a tad nuts) but this was still a good read. Thanks to Netgalley for the ArC. I'm looking forward to the next one.

This was my first experience with Gin Sullivan. This is a little grittier and darker than my typical read. It is interesting and exciting, along with a little romance. Not too surprised at the actual villain, but it was an intriguing adventure getting to the truth.

This is the perfect thriller read. I found it had more then enough clues , dark charcters and a great plot. I found this to be the third in series and I have not read previous books by the author. I enjoyed this book very much and highly recommend it for your reading enjoyment. I look forward to further works by this author.

Thank you for the ARC which is my hones opinion.

I really enjoyed this book, the characters were well developed. It had an interesting plot. I would be interested in reading more

4 Stars out of 5
Having never read a book by Anna Carlisle before and starting in book 3 I can't help but wonder if the reason I wasn't a huge fan of this book is her writing style. She takes a long time to get into the mystery and the formal way people speak to each other in a small town took this readers out of the story several times.
The author catches up readers well enough but finding a connecting to the characters was a lot hard because of the violent natural of the make lead. Gin accepts a lot of behavioral issues that should have been a sign to cut and run.
Gin is a good character who is smart and willing to find the truth but the formal way she speaks makes it difficult to connect to readers. It sometimes feel forced. The thriller side was interesting but I can't say I didn't see the end coming.
I want to give this author another try and read the first in the series.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher Crooked Lane Books for the advance copy of Anna Carlisle In The Darkest Hour.

This thriller had some dark parts but it also had a lot of twist and turns that made it very satisfying to me. The book is well-written and the characters are well developed. I liked it very much. Thanks netgalley for gifting me with an arc of this book. The review is my own opinion

I was fortunate to receive this novel as an Advance Reader Copy, in exchange for an objective review.

Virginia “Gin” Sullivan is a pathologist with a specialty in disinterment and decomposition of remains, who on leave from her Chicago position as an ME, has returned home to Trumbull, Pennsylvania where she teaches, and consults for the local police departments. She is sharing a home with her boyfriend Jake, who’s mother is found dead of a drug overdose.

Distanced from his mother since infancy, Jake initially denies any issues stemming from her demise, until one night he drags home a teenager that he saw selling street drugs and accuses him of murder. While the teen is initially arrested, Jake realizes that he needs a break, and essentially ends his relationship with Gin and leaves town.

Then Gin is asked by Tucker Baxter, Trumbull’s police chief to attend the autopsy for Jake’s mother. And a remorseful teenaged drug dealer leads police to another body buried in the woods – but this body has been embalmed…leading Gin and Tuck into a search for a grave robber, as well as a killer…

I’ve not read anything from this series before, and I must confess, I thoroughly enjoyedit!! Gin Sullivan should rank right up there with Kay Scarpetta for all of you Cornwell fans, and is well worth the read!! I look forward to catching up on this series in it’s entirely and seeing more from Anna Carlisle! A fabulous find!!

In the Darkest Hour by Anna Carlisle (Crooked Lane Books) does not disappoint! Gin, a pathologist from Chicago, returns to her home town in Pennsylvania to live with Jake and for a different pace of life. Jake's mother passes away. Although Jake had not seen her since he was an infant, the pain is still there. Upon autopsy, it is apparent she died of an overdose and a tattoo with Jake's name is on her shoulder. Jake has a turbulent past and has to leave town in order to get his act together. It is questionable if he is doing this for work reasons or not. Gin moves back in with her parents. Tuck Baxter, Chief of Police, has always has a sweet spot for Gin but her feelings for him are dubious. Tuck is suspended, pending further investigation, yet the reader is not sure why. Tuck's friendship with Gin intensifies as they work together using police tactics and medical knowledge to sort out the dealer who supplied Jake's mom with drugs. Jonah is suspected because earlier Jake had collared him in a shady area as is his acquaintance, Logan. Logan comes from a background of low income and hassling by DCFS. The two boys had met for SAT prep at school.. Bodies are found and strange happenings result in a bang-up finish!!! This book brilliantly brings out the characters and their individual struggles. The conclusion is not as anticipated!!! A MUST read! Thanks to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for the opportunity to read adventure!

In The Darkest Hour was an exciting mystery. The characters were well developed with so much detail. There were many twists and turns. Especially towards the end of the book!! The plot was dark in some places, but that’s what I love in a thriller! Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book and give an honest review.

Gin Sullivan has returned to her hometown of Trumbull, Pennsylvania looking to live a quieter, more settled life than she lived in Chicago as a medical examiner. But life is anything but quiet in Trumbull when her old boyfriend Jake’s mother O.D.s in a local motel. Determined to exact revenge on the dealer that sold his mother the heroine, Jake brings high school student/drug dealer Jonah Kricher in to the local police station where chief Tuck Baxter is threatened with legal action by the boy’s father, a prominent physician. When Jonah tries to do a deal with the cops himself, he ends up leading them to a dead body that just happens to be one of his father’s patients. Small town politics, petty jealousies and long-held secrets simmer in the third Gin Sullivan mystery