Finlay Donovan and crew are back and this sequel picks up right where the first book ends. Somebody wants Finlay's ex husband dead and Finlay and crew take matters into their own hands!

There are some twists and turns that will have you laughing your butt off! I found this book very entertaining and can not wait for the next book in the series to come out.

Thank you so much Netgalley and St. Martins Press for the ARC! I laughed so much!

Finlay had hoped to leave the world of hired killings behind, but someone put a $100,000 bounty on her ex-husband, Steven. Even though she sometimes wishes he were dead, Finlay won’t let anyone take her children’s father from them, even if that means diving into the computer forum for hit(wom)men disguised as a women’s support chat or getting close to the Russian mafia—all while trying to finish her next manuscript.

Although Vero, her nanny, accountant, and BFF is as game —and sassy—as ever, Finlay can tell her secrets weigh on her. Meanwhile, Julian, the sexy-as-an-underwear-model law student and hot cop Nick vie for Finlay’s attention while Steven grouses in the background and her children underfoot.

Most of the cast of Book One returns, with more background on Vero as well as new adversaries—like the hitman EasyClean and Kat, the Russian lawyer who is even smarter and more ruthless than she is beautiful plus a teenager hacker who perhaps knows more than he should.

The Finlay Donovan series is outrageous and fun with such endearing characters and a fabulous friendship between Finlay and Vero. I’m fact, Vero’s teasing provides some of the funniest moments!

True, if you want a very realistic crime novel, this is probably not the book for you. However, if you want an amusing, feel-good, pick-me-up mystery with laughs, hijinks, and a dead body or two, you’ll want to read FINLAY DONOVAN! It has the same sensibility as DIAL A FOR AUNTIES or the Melissa McCarthy-Sandra Bullock movie THE HEAT.

Quirky escapades, and lots of fun and laughter if she could finish this novel in between these situations. Cute. Thank you #NewGalley#MinotaurBooks# FinleyDonovanKnocksEmDead.

This was a super fun book where Finlay, once again, finds herself in the middle of mayhem. As Team Cop, I enjoyed the romance in this one, and I always enjoy the parts of the story that include Vera. She's the coolest, and I'd happily to pretend to have kids that needed nannying if she'd come live in my house and run my life for me. (It that sounds like I missed her confession at the end of the book, I didn't. I just don't care if she's capable of bad decisions. I'd still let her make them all.)

This is the second book in the Finlay Donovan saga. It was just as entertaining and engaging as the first. I’m amazed at the amount of trouble Finlay and Vero can find when trying to avoid trouble. This story finds Finlay at yet another deadline with her publisher as well as a love triangle with the hot cop and steamy young lawyer. It also finds a hit on her ex-husband that she ends up involved in.

I love the humor in the writing and a lot the characters that are involved in the first book are in this one as well. The author did a great job bringing the reader back in to Finlay’s world. I did enjoy this second chapter, but feel it lacks the originality that drew me into the first book. Probably why I don’t read series very often.

I also had the luxury of listening along with the egalley thanks to @macmillionaudio for granting me the audiobook as well. The sarcasm and wit is perfectly captured by Angela Dawes, the narrator.

4 stars

Thank you to @netgalley and @stmartinspress for a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book was everything I hoped it would be and more! Dare I say I even love it more than the first one?! Finlay, Vero and the gang are all at it again-somehow finding themselves in the middle of dead bodies, the dark web, and the mob! It’s witty, sharp, and full of all the things! The love triangle with Finlay, Julian, and Nick just gets better and better 😍.

Thank you for my gifted copy in exchange for an honest review

I enjoyed this book as much as I did the first in the series.  The story is highly engaging and thoroughly entertaining.  Both Finlay and her sidekick Vero can get into more trouble than Lucy and Ethel in I Love Lucy (yes I’m dating myself).  The fact that Finlay has the added pressure of being a single mother with two small children with looming deadlines for the book she’s writing just makes Finlay so relatable to many women.

The book Finlay writes very much resembles the mystery unfolding in her life and I adore this about this series. In her quest to save her ex Steven, she meets a whole gamut of seedy characters.  Indeed, she is so focused on her quest she disguises herself to meet a mob boss currently serving time.

There are many characters in this story and it took a while to remember these from the first book which I read almost a year ago.  The author does a great job of bringing the reader back to Finlay’s world.  The writing is witty and easy to follow but there are a few scenes that may be offensive to more sensitive readers.

Our favorite hot-mess mom, the accidental assassin is back. She is still fumbling through her life as a mom, a girlfriend, a writer, a friend, a sister, a daughter, an ex-wife and more as she tries really hard not to kill anyone while solving the mystery of who wants to kill her ex-husband. Finlay Donovan Knocks 'Em Dead is funny with enough suspense/mystery to keep you turning the page. This sequel is just as entertaining as the first. If you loved/liked the first one, don't miss out on book two!

Thank you to Netgalley and Minotaur Books for the electronic advanced copy.

Finlay Donovan has returned, along with her usual cast of humorous and willful characters in Finlay Knocks 'Em Dead, the second book of the series. This time she is determined not only to get out of a nasty writer's slump and finish her second book, but also to discover the person behind an ordered hit on her ex-husband. It is messy and ridiculous, and the deeper she digs and harder she tries to fix things the more everything goes haywire for her and Vero.

I love how chaotic and ridiculous this series is, but also how Cosimano grounds Finlay by making her a relatable "hot mess", she's just your average recently divorced, diaper-bag carrying, late night hustling single mom. Sure, her life is far from ordinary, she does after all spend the majority of this book narrowly avoiding serious trouble while hunting for the woman trying to kill her ex-husband... but there is something about her that you can't help but love and root for.

The mystery is very smart in my opinion, and the writing style really keeps you on your feet. I always enjoy how Finlay's writing and her fictional characters' twists always seem to make their way into her life and vice versa. My best example without spoiling would be "the return of the hot cop", I think that it is probably even more difficult for Cosimano to write and I have that much more respect for her craft as a result. Overall, very enjoyable and has already left me pining for the third book in the series!

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, Minotaur Books, and Elle Cosimano for an advanced digital review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I loved the first book in this series so I was super excited for this one. It was still good but just didn’t have the same wow factor as it’s predecessor. This one had a few too many plot holes and eye rolls, even for a cozy…

Will I read the next one? Most likely yes

I was gifted a copy of Finlay Donovan Knocks 'Em Dead by NetGalley, Elle Cosimano and St. Martin's Press in exchange for my honest review. The book releases February 1, 2022.

I found the second Finlay Donovan book as engaging and funny as the first. The situations she gets into are hilarious, and her live in nanny Vero is always pulling her deeper into situations she'd rather avoid. We get a bigger look into Vero's life, and the shenanigans are sure to give you a laugh. Or groan and want to face palm yourself.

The first book left off with a hit on a woman's online forum for Finlay's ex husband Steven. Trying to navigate keeping their children safe while figuring out who wants him dead. And the ending definitely leaves us hanging a smidgen, so I'm looking forward to the third book whenever it comes out. Elle Cosimano will be an auto buy for me going forward, her characters are so flipping entertaining.

#FinlayDonovanKnocksEmDead:

Our girl Finlay is back, and is a hotter of a mess, if possible. Hot mess express.

I cracked up, like always, listening to the ridiculousness of her trying to come up with a story for her editor. She actually kind of reminded me of Lucy Ricardo in this instance with her quick wit and the situations she gets herself in.

Angela Dawes is back with the voice of the series, and she again makes it happen. The snark and sarcasm from Dawes hits perfectly in the right moments for a wonderful comedic performance.

Unfortunately, I was a bit distracted, which caused me to feel bored as I felt this story was kind of all over the place. We have a forum, a best friend, Teresa, hot lawyer/bartender, a roommate, don’t forget Felik! Arson, sketchy partner, a hacker, some accelerant, it’s just.. everywhere. While it all came together in the end, I think it was just too much packed into one story.

Cosimano definitely knows how to write a cliffhanger, and I’ll be waiting to see what Finlay and my favorite, Vero, get into next! Thank you so much @minotaur for the gifted copy. Finlay Donovan Knocks ‘Em Dead is out February 1st!

Finlay and Vero are at at it again and I don’t think there’s any stopping them now.

Finlay has a book to write and coming across a contract hit on her husband was the last thing she was expecting on a women’s forum. With Vero as her ride or die, Finlay decides she must find out who wants Steven killed and stop it!

Elle did not disappoint with this fabulous duo! She delivered us the kind of book you can’t put down and want to last forever. I've dubbed it as a 3-in-1; romance, mystery and comedy. We get romance, bartender/law school student Julian vs Detective Nick all while trying to figure out the mystery of who is trying to kill her husband and the laugh out loud shenanigans they seem to be getting caught up in.

Finlay Donovan Knocks Them Dead is an amazing sequel that lives up to the hype of Finlay Donovan is Killing it!It ticked off all the boxes of my expectations for this sequel.

I had read the first book in the series when it first came out and although it wasn’t a 5 star for me, I still enjoyed it! The series is considered a mystery but it still has those funny/quirky moments that make it good! This one however was a bit of a stretch and I also felt that a lot of the things that happened weren’t properly thought out. Maybe it’s just me being picky lol but In one chapter, Finlay loses her phone and gets a new one (with a new number) and Steven happens to call her minutes after she got it 🤨 That’s just an example of what was happening a lot throughout the book. Most of the characters were the same as the first one. Finlay was a hot mess like always and Steven being his natural born asshole self! Two characters that were acting a bit different this time around were Nicke and Julian. Nick was annoying and Julian was giving me some major FBoy vibes 🥴
I was a bit disappointed. Would I read the third book if it were to release? Yeah, maybe 😅 don’t judge lol I’m invested now! But I will hope that it’s better than this one.








Thank you to NetGalley for giving me an early cozpy in exchange for my honest review!

I received Finlay Donovan Knock's 'Em Dead as an ARC through Netgalley. I absolutely adored this sequel to Elle Cosimano's first book. Finlay and Vero pick up where they left off trying to figure out who has put a hit out on Finlay's ex husband Steven. All the favorite characters from book one. I loved all the twists and turns and was left guessing all the way to the end. Laughed out loud in so many parts. Hoping there will be a third because I don't think Finlay is done yet!

3.5 stars

While I did not enjoy this second book as much as the first, it was still an overall enjoyable read.

Finlay is back with Vero – her sidekick nanny/accountant/partner in crime. The duo has to figure out who took out a contract on Finlay’s ex-husband before it’s too late.

The characters are so much fun and very lovable. Just an over the top, funny, cozy mystery!

And the set up for the third book is really great and I will definitely be reading it when it comes out!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing a free advanced copy of this ebook in exchange for an honest review.

Finlay Donovan, our favorite accidental hit-woman, is back in the smash hit sequel to Finlay Donovan is Killing It. Warning…if you have not read this first book, go back and read it. This book picks up right were the last one left off and there is really no recap to the first book.

When this book picks up, Finlay has writer’s block and is still dealing with her ex-husband, raising her two kids with the help of her lovable nanny and sidekick, Vero. She is back to looking at the boards, which led her down a rabbit hole in the first book, when she sees someone requesting a hit on her ex-husband. While Finlay dislikes Steven immensely, and this would answer all of her problems, she really does not want his life to end.

What ensues is a fun romp, with body parts, hot detectives, arson and pretty much anything else you can think of. Everything that can go wrong for Finlay and her crew does, but with the help of detective Nick Anthony, who is protecting her, without having a clue what she is really up to, she might just be able to save Steven’s life after all.

This was a fun read. It did lack some of the sparkle that the first book had, but Finlay is just so fun, I definitely want to read more of what she is up to in future books.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an Advanced Reader’s Copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Finlay Donovan Knocks ‘Em Dead is the second book in Elle Cosimano’s new series “Finlay Donovan” which follows the misadventures of author and divorced single mother, Finlay Donovan. For those who haven’t read the first book yet, Finlay finds herself accidentally hired as an assassin when a woman overhears her and her agent discussing the plot of the thriller she is writing. The woman thinks Finlay is the perfect person to “off” her husband and practically starts throwing money at her. Finlay could really use the cash, and thus begins a surprisingly hilarious journey into murder-for-hire, organized crime, and all the while, Finlay is still trying to write her book.

This latest book opens with Finlay learning that someone out there actually wants to murder her ex-husband. As much as she hates Stephen, she doesn’t want her kids to lose their Dad and so she makes it her mission to find out who is responsible and convince them to call off the hit. This sends her on a dangerous yet surprisingly comical adventure, full of twists and turns, that takes her, amongst other places, way closer to the Russian mob than she would ever wish to be.

It’s hard to talk about details from the story without spoilers and I definitely don’t want to spoil the plot as it pertains to her ex-husband. I’ll just say that I adore Finlay. She’s sarcastic and funny, quirky as heck and very resourceful, and she has clearly learned a lot from writing her crime thrillers. It impresses me how she and her roommate/nanny, Vero, constantly get themselves into dangerous and often ridiculous predicaments, but somehow always manage to get themselves right back out of trouble. I’m also a big fan of Vero and was pleased that we got to learn a bit more about her in this book.

Finlay Donovan Knocks ‘Em Dead is well-plotted and fast-paced, so much so that I flew through the book in just a couple of sittings. The Finlay Donovan series may involve serious topics like murder-for-hire and organized crime, but it’s truly one of the funniest and most entertaining series I’ve ever read. I really hope there will be more books in this series because I need more of Finlay and Vero. What a team they are!

Finlay Donovan Knocks 'Em Dead is the second book in Elle Cosimano's ultra-modern and uber-witty Finlay Donovan Cozy Mystery series. I fell in love with Finlay and her best friend/nanny, Vero, when I read Finlay Donovan Is Killing It last year.

The humor was spot on for me and the storyline entertaining from beginning-to-end. Going into this installment, I didn't even read the synopsis. Frankly, I didn't care what they were up to, I just wanted to be back with these characters. Unsurprisingly, I found this second book to be just as fun as the first. I also feel even more attached to Finlay and Vero now. We've been through so much together.

After the contract killer fiasco of book one, you would think that horrendous and dangerous chapter in Finlay's life would be ancient history. Alas, it is not. Now she fears someone may have put a hit out on her ex-husband, Steven. Granted, he's pretty terrible, but her children are with him a lot and they love him. She needs to keep him safe.

As if that weren't stressful enough, she also has her literary agent breathing down her neck wanting her next book, as well as two handsome, eligible-men circling her like sharks. Finlay's life is non-stop chaos and I'm telling you, it is so much fun to go along for the ride!

Reading through Finlay's perspective is hilarious. She has such a dry, matter of fact way of relaying what's on her mind. You can tell she is a Mom who is juggling a lot. She doesn't have time to beat around the bush. I love her relationship with Vero. Even though they were sort of thrust together, they're committed to one another and I love that type of unconditional friendship.

I have no idea how many books are currently slated to be in this series, but you better believe I will be picking up every single one. I am personally hoping for maybe ten or twenty...

Thank you so much to the publisher, Minotaur Books and Macmillan Audio, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I love this series with my whole heart. If you haven't picked the first book up yet, now is the time to do so!!

Not every book can hit back to back home runs but trust this reader, Finlay Donovan is back and it's another fantastic read. It was so good that I wasn't bothered by being snowed in and dealing with Covid isolation. I was having a blast with Finlay and her sidekick, Vero. They have another mess to sort out. Somebody in a woman's forum has, pretty much, put out a contract on her ex, Steven. Now, he is a jerk, and so much worse but he loves his two children and what he lacks as a decent human being he makes up for as a father. If Finlay and Vero can't figure this mess out, there goes Steven.
From the first chapter with the goldfish to the very end I was hooked. The laughs kept coming and I finished it all too soon. I want the third book now if not sooner, this series is that good.
My thanks to the publisher Minotaur and to NetGalley for giving me an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.