This mystery had a great plot with plenty of twists and turns. I was kept busy guessing.
Many thanks to Mason Hill Inc and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book investigates the life of Callie McFee, a reporter and the daughter of a prominent Texan. Trevor Birdsong, a young lifestyle marketer, hangs himself when Callie's father, Buddy McFee, botches a simple legal case involving a DUI charge. Buddy fears that his name will be tarnished and his secret, that he is in the early stages of dementia, would be revealed. But as Callie digs more into Buddy's background, she unearths a new discovery that might land him in jail - and result in the death of Callie as a result. This book has the old school policies that you would expect in this area, and the suspense is great

In Texas, Buddy McFee is known as a mover and shaker, king maker, and rescuer of the fallen. He’s still sought after but is well-guarded by his assistant, Gil, and his daughter, Callie, both of whom want to make sure no one finds out Buddy’s mind is failing him. He covers it well and they only schedule meetings for when he’s at his best but they worry.

Callie is dealing with a friend from school. She’d felt sorry for the girl when they were kids, lost track as an adult, and now was approached to help make a documentary about Buddy. Too bad Melissa isn’t interested in the past but wants an interview with Buddy and won’t take no for an answer.

Trevor is accused of driving while intoxicated, running a red light, and hitting an older woman in the crosswalk. He wants Buddy to make the charges go away. Buddy’s deal making does manage to avoid jail time for Trevor, but he now has a felony conviction on his record. Trevor claims Buddy didn’t tell him of the possible consequences and failed to research enough to find Trevor’d had a prior arrest—not that he told them about it himself, of course. Fearful Buddy’s reputation could be tarnished or worse, Callie and Gil prepare to do damage control.

Before that can happen, tragedy strikes, and it could backfire on Buddy. Callie is determined to find out the truth, even if it risks her own life and could send Buddy to jail. Melissa gets involved, along with an old friend of Callie’s mother. Trevor’s job and favorite pastime play a role in the solution as well.

Callie is a flawed but sympathetic character, often at odds with family and in her job as an investigative reporter. It’s her good instinct for clues that carries her through in depth research for work and those messes she finds herself in, thanks to family. Conrad does a good job of bringing all the loose ends together for an ending readers won’t see coming.

The first book in the series, The Fixer’s Daughter, was reviewed here. Conrad has also written four Mr. Monk books plus three Amy’s Travel mysteries.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, so 5 stars it is!

This is the second book in a series, but it was the first book I have read from this author.
Callie, a daughter of a Texas fixer (?) is pulled into a whirlwind time with a mistake, an apparent suicide, a dying aunt and a return of a childhood "friend" - and she still holds on to a full-time journalism job, despite being born into a very affluent family, the kind with a cook, an aid and a cleaner.

I found the pacing and story development to be great, the characters well fleshed out and believable enough (minus the green Tesla), and the twists and turns and revelations along the way made me hold on to my imaginary hat! The main character was likeable and relatable and that is something I rate highly in the books I enjoy reading.
Truly, I had fun reading this book, it really sucked me in, very well written and intriguing!

I took some time to finish this book, just about a week, as it was so good I really wanted to savour it.

The author is new to me, but I already have added the first book of this series to my "to be read" list. Can't wait for the next book!

Thank you, NetGalley for the ARC copy of this book!

#bookreview Sins of the family by Hy Conrad is available now.

Sins of the family is my first book by the author and while I haven't read the first one in the series, The fixer’s daughter, I enjoyed it without feeling overwhelmed by the unknown characters.

Callie McFee is a journalist by profession and her father is one of the most influential Attorney general in Texas. With ageing, it comes challenge and for Buddy McFee, that challenge has a name that he and his family and close friends won't say it out loud.

A new client comes along and the charges are at high stake for Trevor Birdsong as he can lose everything he builds up till then in life, whether it's been done with clean hands or not. That's when he takes his life away and the one that finds him is Callie.

From here on, Callie starts her own private investigation into this case and what she finds will bring to surface lots of long buried secrets.

Did I get to guess what exactly happened pretty early in the story? Yes, I have. But that still made me want to finish reading and see for myself where is the author taking this story because it was engaging with a few interesting characters, not all of them likeable but probably that's what I liked the most.

I'm looking forward to read more by the author in the future and I’m very grateful to the publisher for my review copy through NetGalley

Interesting read. Buddy McFee, Texas’s legendary fixer, is trying to hide his failing mind from the world. He takes on what should be an easy case, the DUI arrest of a young lifestyle marketer. When Buddy botches the case, his client, Trevor Birdsong, locks his front door and hangs himself with a necktie.

Buddy’s daughter, Callie, had grown to like Trevor. She was the last person he contacted before his death and she feels guilty that she hadn’t been there for him.

Meanwhile, Buddy worries that the suicide will tarnish his legacy. Out of desperation, he claims that Trevor’s death was a murder, and Callie latches onto the notion, defying all the evidence to the contrary.

As an investigative reporter, Callie enters the world of hip, holistic healthcare, convinced that Trevor’s death was connected to some secret within his company. But her murder investigation unleashes another secret, one from deep in Buddy’s twisted past, that may just send him to prison for the rest of his life – and get Callie killed in the process.

I wasn't a huge fan of this book; the main reason being that I didn't like a single one of the characters. Maybe this problem might have been helped by reading the first book in the series (there are mentions of previous events from that, but it doesn't seem integral to the plot), but generally, I do not think it would have fixed the issues I had.

Callie mainly comes across as petty and grandstanding, without much to back that up. There are numerous hints to who the antagonists are and none of it seems like a major surprise in how the book sets it up, but rather it just has a lot of plot mechanics turning and turning in order to get to the reveals. I especially wasn't a fan of everyone around Callie's father covering up his dementia and allowing him to continue getting involved in the law and other people's lives. Characters act like he was a major player and someone who people respect but the reality is that most of what he does seems to be covering up accidents and DUI/DWIs for rich people which is not an admirable quality in a person...

ARC provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is the second book in the Callie McFee series. Callie is the daughter of the former Speaker of the House in Texas a very influential and powerful man. She is a journalist who finds herself investigating a death. The question is, is it a murder or suicide? Along the way, the reader learns more about Callie’s family and the secrets her father holds.
Mr. Conrad expertly crafts a mystery dropping hints throughout the store. Just when you think you have solved the case, there is a twist to the story. I look forward to reading more Callie McFee mysteries in the future.

Thanks to Mason Hill Inc. and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review an eARC of Sins of the Family.

For Lawrence “Buddy” McFee, legendary Texas fixer, the Trevor Bridsong DUI case should have been…would have been a simple matter to resolve. Unfortunately Buddy’s mind isn’t the razor sharp weapon it once was and he screws up the case and it isn’t long before Birdsong ends up dead from apparent suicide. Not wanting his reputation tarnished, Buddy claims Birdsong was murdered.

Being the last person in contact with Birdsong before his death, Callie—Buddy’s daughter and an investigative reporter—digs into the situation determined to find out of the truth…a truth that could send her father to jail for the rest of his life as well as get her killed.

I enjoyed the heck out of this book. It features excellent characters and a wonderfully complex storyline. This is the second book in the Callie McFee mystery series.

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Sins of the family by H.Y. Conrad.
Buddy McFee, Texas’s legendary fixer, is trying to hide his failing mind from the world. He takes on what should be an easy case, the DUI arrest of a young lifestyle marketer. When Buddy botches the case, his client, Trevor Birdsong, locks his front door and hangs himself with a necktie.
Buddy’s daughter, Callie, had grown to like Trevor. She was the last person he contacted before his death and she feels guilty that she hadn’t been there for him.
Meanwhile, Buddy worries that the suicide will tarnish his legacy. Out of desperation, he claims that Trevor’s death was a murder, and Callie latches onto the notion, defying all the evidence to the contrary. As an investigative reporter, Callie enters the world of hip, holistic healthcare, convinced that Trevor’s death was connected to some secret within his company. But her murder investigation unleashes another secret, one from deep in Buddy’s twisted past, that may just send him to prison for the rest of his life – and get Callie killed in the process.
A very good read with good characters. I liked the story. 4*.

A Catalogue Of Events…
The second Callie McFee mystery and a worthy follow up to ‘The Fixer’s Daughter’. Buddy takes on a case that he mistakenly presumes to be straightforward- whilst trying to hide his own distressing symptoms- and so begins a catalogue of events involving Callie herself and beginning with a tragic death. Swiftly moving and red herrings abound as the tale unfolds and the premise delivers. Characters are more well developed as the story moves along and secrets uncovered. A satisfying mystery.

This book was OK for me. Perhaps, my sentiment is clouded by the fact that I did not read the first book, The Fixer's Daughter. The events from that book, were mentioned in passing with no specifics.

Callie McFee is a journalist who happens to find a dead body. Unfortunately, the body is Trevor Birdsong, a former client of her father. Buddy McFee, is a famous "fixer" , former Attorney General of Texas. What people do not know is that Buddy is in the early stages of dementia.

Trevor is charged with a DUI and seeks Buddy out to represent him. Trevor follows Buddy's advice, but is charged with a felony. Trevor's employer fires him. Trevor loses his company stock and blames Buddy. Meanwhile, Callie gets to know Trevor and likes him. Trevor texts Callie, what is construed to be a suicide note, but Callie gets to him too late. Buddy insists Trevor was murdered and Callie begins to investigate.

I was not impressed with Callie. I thought she was a lush. I never really understood the relationship between her and her boss, was it just business? I may have missed something from the first book. The author throws us a few red herrings. There are a couple of subplots, a family friend doing a documentary on Buddy, another family friend looking for a lost child.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC. The review is my own.

This was a fun read but at times I was a little lost as I haven’t read book one of the series. I’d definitely read any book by this author in the future,

The McFees are a powerful family in the Austin scene especially Buddy. A lawyer who is known in Texas for doing favors. He is presented with a case that seems like it should be easy for him to figure out or is it? Is he getting older and not as capable as he used to be? His daughter who works for a newspaper gets swept into the case and continues to dig as the story goes on.
Well written and keeps the reader entertained throughout.

This was a very interesting read, very different from a lot of books I have read before , I did feel that it was slightly slow to get into but once you got into it there was twists and turns and full of suspense, such an a amazing story and read.

Sins of the Family by Hy Conrad is the 2nd novel in the Callie McFee series, which I did not know when I downloaded this on Net Galley! Callie is the daughter of a longtime powerful Irish Texas "fixer" named Buddy McFee, yet tries to distance herself from him. When her ailing father takes on a case and the client winds up dead, she uses her job as a reporter to begin investigating the suspicious death.

I have to say when I first started reading this book, I was not a huge fan of the main character but Conrad does such a great job of developing her! Callie is frustrating as hell, makes a lot of really stupid choices but you can't help yourself from rooting for her. I also really loved some of the supporting characters especially her boss and her brother. I also appreciated that even though i hadn't read #1, it didn't hinder my enjoyment of this book at all.

My only gripe is I figured out one of the twists pretty early on, I wish one of the red herrings was more distracting but it was easy to see through it. However watching it play out was still enjoyable because the characters are done so well! I would definitely read the next novel in this series.

Thank you for the ARC!
This book really hooked the readers into the book and really did well in painting people at their worst and had a lot of emotions involved (it was more than what I was expecting). I really enjoyed the game of finding clues and paying attention to details.

So many characters with so few redeeming features and yet I found myself heavily invested in their fate! The setting of a “fixer” in the wheeling and dealing Texas context was new to me but so fascinating and the author made it very credible and realistic. Many twists and false trails to keep those of us who like to try to solve the mystery as we go paying close attention to every clue, too!

Buddy McFee, Texas’s legendary fixer, is trying to hide his failing mind from the world. He takes on what should be an easy case, the DUI arrest of a young lifestyle marketer. When Buddy botches the case, his client, Trevor Birdsong, locks his front door and hangs himself with a necktie. Buddy’s daughter, Callie, had grown to like Trevor. She was the last person he contacted before his death and she feels guilty that she hadn’t been there for him. This is the second book involving Callie McFee and it's even better than the first. I love anything this author produces and this did not disappoint. Everything in the storyline seemed relevant to today and was so very well-plotted with believable dialog and really interesting characters. I am hoping there will be a 3rd book coming up. Thank you NetGalley for the advanced readers copy for review.

Sins of the Family
A Callie McFee Mystery
by Hy Conrad
I really enjoyed this book. It was full of the "Good Ole Boys" from Austin, Tx. I love Austin as we go often. and it seems the greed and evil sound believable to me. I despised Buddy McFee and all his dealings and the HUGE mistakes as a lawyer. He thought anyone could play with, judges, the law, and his own daughter.
I was deep into this book. The writer Hy Conrad made the book come alive and painted a true grime picture of people at their worse. I love a book where you get so into the story you are there. It is a book I would recommend to anyone that loves a story you can feel such emotions.
Thanks to NetGalley, and Hy Conrad for being an amazing writer.. .




Description
Buddy McFee, Texas’s legendary fixer, is trying to hide his failing mind from the world. He takes on what should be an easy case, the DUI arrest of a young lifestyle marketer. When Buddy botches the case, his client, Trevor Birdsong, locks his front door and hangs himself with a necktie.

Buddy’s daughter, Callie, had grown to like Trevor. She was the last person he contacted before his death and she feels guilty that she hadn’t been there for him.

Meanwhile, Buddy worries that the suicide will tarnish his legacy. Out of desperation, he claims that Trevor’s death was a murder, and Callie latches onto the notion, defying all the evidence to the contrary.

As an investigative reporter, Callie enters the world of hip, holistic healthcare, convinced that Trevor’s death was connected to some secret within his company. But her murder investigation unleashes another secret, one from deep in Buddy’s twisted past, that may just send him to prison for the rest of his life – and get Callie killed in the process.