An almost gothic like, police procedural story.
The third in the series!

Black Harbor, the town the story is set in is a dying town that no one wants to be in. In books 1 and 2, you meet some of the characters in the town.

This story, you get meet a family. The town and weather also play characters in this book. This book will grip you from the beginning and you won’t be able to put it down!!!

Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free, electronic ARC of this novel received in exchange for an honest review.
Expected publication date: November 7, 2023
“When I’m Dead” is the third novel in the “Black Harbour” series by Hannah Morrissey. In no way do you need to read any of the previous novels in order to follow along (I, myself, have only read this one and its predecessor, “The Widowmaker”) but I recommend doing so all the same.
Medical examiner Rowan Winthorp is used to grisly scenes and dead bodies. But nothing quite prepares her for the chilly night when she discovers the murdered and mutilated body of her daughter’s best friend, butchered and left in a gulley. Things go from bad to worse when Rowan, and her husband, police officer Axel, realize that their daughter, Chloe, is missing. Haunted by a tragic mistake in her past, Rowan wonders if she is finally paying the price for her biggest regret. Has karma come to collect?
Although Rowan and Axel are the main protagonists here, the story has some chapters narrated by various other characters, including Libby, Chloe’s neighbour. As each character is introduced, they provide an interesting viewpoint that makes them a suspect in the police’s eyes- and the readers. The suspense slowly builds as the case unfolds and the ending was both unexpected and believable.
Black Harbour is a town where everyone is (sometimes literally) dying to get out, as the crime rates, specifically murder, skyrocket. As a cold and dying factory town, Morrissey sets the perfect stage for the dead bodies to start piling up. Black Harbour on its own is enough to cover you in goosebumps, and that’s before young women are murdered. It is the ideal location for such dirty deeds, and I was riveted.
“Dead” is addictive, with a well-developed plot and a creepy setting, it pulled me in from the first page. Morrissey’s brilliant coupling of Medical Examiner Rowan and police officer Axel provides a complicated family dynamic to an already entertaining plot. I need to go back and read the first novel in this series (Hello, Transcriber) and you better believe I’ll be watching for more from the Winthorp pair!

How many times can I praise Hannah Morrissey and her ability to provide magical prose while writing such dark stories?! I love the way she throws you into the scenes and makes you feel like you’re in Black Harbor. Every time I sit down to read her books, I know she is going to deliver a book that is hauntingly beautiful. This is her third book, our third time visiting Black Harbor and arguably her best yet! The way the storylines come together and how she is able to get into the minds of not only various adults, but also teenagers and switch back and forth so effortlessly 🤌🏼 All of her books can be read as standalones, but reading them in order of release only enhances your reading experience, as you get little nods to previous characters. The worst part about finishing her books is trying to adequately express in words how truly gifted Hannah is as a writer. Highly recommend this book as well as all of Hannah’s previous books! I cannot wait to see what is next for her!

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review. When I'm Dead by Hannah Morrissey releases on October 31st, 2023.

I am conflicted about this book. First, I did not realize it was a series when I requested it. That was fine, it didn't dampen the reading experience. Second, some of the plot seems....awkward? Unbelievable? I'm not sure how to explain it other than there were a few scenes that had me skeptical. Overall, though, the book is relatively fast-paced and a nice thriller. Not the best book I've read this year, but not the worst either - just...average.

My first from this author! I didn't know what to expect, but I really enjoyed this one - and I want to read more from her!

Rowan, the medical examiner and her husband Axel, a detective, are called to the site of their daughters best friends’ death. Hours later, they learn that their daughter, Chloe, is also missing.

Random clues force Axel to wonder if they really know their daughter. As they work to peel back the layers of the case, they begin to uncover some unsavory secrets about their daughter, ones that threaten to tear them apart.

As time goes on, and the case continues, Rowan is forced to reconcile the sins of her past, and nothing is truer than, karma.

I really enjoyed The Widowmaker, so was excited to read the next installment in the series. The author does a really good job writing complex characters and bringing them to life. She also does a really good job of keeping readers on the edge of their seat. I felt so many emotions while I was reading this one, and I loved it. I couldn’t wait to find out the twists in this one, and they were good! I really enjoyed the different points of view on this one. Most were Rowan and Axel, but Libby also had a few chapters, and then there was one surprise point of view. It was really interesting and a lot of fun.

If you are looking for a fun suspenseful murder book, then check this one out, you won’t be disappointed.

Thank you so much to St. Martins Press, Minotaur Books, and Netgalley @Netgalley for this e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

My thanks to Net Galley and St. Martin's/Minotaur for allowing me to review this arc .

I was not aware that this was a series . This was my first one that I read. I was a little on the fence with this. It was decent. Rowan Winthrop, a medical examiner, has to autopsy her friends daughter while her own daughter is missing. Her husband. ,a cop works on their daughters case. Now in reality this would not be allowed. Had a bit element of Psycho, which I've seen before. Still a decent read.

A murder mystery in Black Harbor Michigan. A teen goes missing after another teen is murdered. A great read!

A great read that has some major twist, it left me believing I thought I knew who the person was and boom another twist…. I felt like it did have a slow start, but over all it did turn out to be a good read!

Being new to the Black Harbor series—and to this author—I didn’t know what to expect. But who doesn’t like a hood thriller, right? When I’m Dead delivered and kept me on the edge of my seat. I particularly loved the dynamic between Rowan and Axel, their respect of one another, their muted love, fears and doubts. I thought the novel painted grieving parents and their complicated journey into the unknown in stunning, beautiful way. I really connected with them, felt and fell for them. Up until almost the end, I couldn’t say whether their daughter was dead or alive. It’s a superbly-crafted story, and the writing is elegant, which makes the whole thing all the more enjoyable.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC, I’ll definitely check the other books by Hannah Mortissey.

When I'm Dead by Hannah Morrissey is my favorite of the Black Harbor mysteries so far. Gothic and creepy and yet there is engagement between the main characters that goes a bit farther than the usual creep show.
Black Harbor is a fictitious town full of crime and poverty with a definite divide between the down and outs and the rest of the residents. This town has a personality and it isn't a pleasant one -running to dark moods and murder. I also need to mention When I'm Dead borders on a horror story with depictions of the murders and well, I can't say what else!
Perfect for a SPOOKTACULAR weekend of fall reading. This can be read alone but there are snippets referencing characters and cases of the previous two books in the series. I say jump in and get all three, if that is how you roll.
4.25*

Thank you to Minotaur Books and St. Martins Press for access to an early e-copy via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

When I’m Dead
Written by Hannah Morrissey
Publisher St. Martins Press
Release Date October 31, 2023

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“One girl murdered...another one missing...and a medical examiner desperate to uncover the truth in When I'm Dead, the latest Black Harbor mystery by acclaimed author Hannah Morrissey.”

With a blurb like that who would pass this up.

Rowan Winthrop, town medical examiner, is married to a local police officer and they have a daughter Chloe. One night Rowan is called to a gruesome scene to find her daughters friend dead. Rowan is devastated and rushes to talk to he daughter but to her dismay, Chloe is nowhere to be found. She hopes that maybe she is just sleeping but soon realize their are clues that lead them to her disappearance. Things that no parent wants to know about their child. And things that could potentially destroy them as a family.
Can Rowan find her daughter in time or has karma come for her?

Certainly this is a great book with may twists and turns inside the story line. I enjoyed the premise of the book and found the writing to be well done. There were a few places where the descriptions lingered too long as well as fillers that took up too much of the evaders time. I read the entire book in one sitting and enjoyed the suspense build up as well as he characters.

4 stars

Thank you to NetGalley as well as the author and publisher for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my unbiased and honest review.

I didn’t love this book which surprised me because the story was appealing to me and I typically get really into reading about medical examiners, detectives, and typical thriller mysteries. It was a slow start, and some of the details just didn’t seem believable to me. For starters, Black Harbor is described as a dangerous place with lots of crime but the parents were letting their teenagers go out (while there is a murderer running loose) without any supervision or warning. That felt off to me. And the way Rowan and Axel reacted to their missing daughter was odd to me. There wasn’t a lot of emotion described and I didn’t feel invested in the characters. I didn’t realize this was the third book of a series so that could be why I had some reservations. Overall a decent but not great book.

Thank you to Hannah Morrissey, NetGalley, and the publisher for the advanced reader copy of this book.

I loved it, great addition to an already great series. Very suspensful, but thought it was paced well and had me on the edge the whole time.

I loved that the town in these books is as much of a character as the humans. When I'm Dead is a suspenseful and heartfelt entry into the Black Harbor series that will keep you turning the page to see where the story goes next.

I wanted to like this, but there were way too many hiccups along the way. The story and the characters felt unbelievable to me. I wouldn't advise against reading this book if someone's interested in it, though.

I struggled with this one - I wanted to like it, but there were some things that made that hard for me. One was the way that the town is the most dangerous, crime-ridden, terrible place, but all these rich people are letting their kids wander around a dark forest alone at any time of day or night? It was hard to see the town as a place where these people all lived alongside all of the ways that it was described as terrible. If this was a book about poorer people who had no choices, or about criminals ,it would have been a little easier to swallow, but as it stood, this part just didn’t work for me. The other thing I didn’t love was how heavy-handed the author was with the clues about the killer - they just kept getting piled on, one after the other, to the point where you wondered how these people could be detectives and not see what was going on - and with how much the teenagers kept secret in the face of violent murders. Yes, teenagers don’t want to talk to adults, but if their classmates are being killed like this, I think they’d be a bit more open to talking it through. With all of this, it was hard to like the characters or find the story really believable, so ultimately this one was a miss for me. I did finish it, though, so it at least kept me entertained enough to want to get to the end (and I am one to abandon books, so that says something).

One teenage girl is murdered and the daughter of a detective and medical examiner goes missing in the eerie town of Black Harbor. Follow Rowan and Axel as they work to solve the mystery of their daughters disappearance and her friends murder.

When I’m Dead is the third book in Hannah Morrissey’s Black Harbor series. While this book can be read as a standalone, I’m interested in what other chaos has gone on in Black Harbor and plan to read the other two!

While I didn’t absolutely love this book, it kept my interest and had a twist that I did not see coming. I enjoyed the dynamic between Rowan and Axel and loved how the author was able to weave breadcrumbs throughout this story.

If you enjoy crime/psychological thrillers and want to learn the ins and outs of a creepy Wisconsin town, When I’m Dead is for you!

Thank you @netgalley and @stmartinspress for this ARC!

This book started off really slowly for me, and failed to pickup enough where I could really enjoy it. The story was a good concept, but I felt absolutely zero emotion from the characters about *ahem* their own daughter being missing? The investigation seemed to go in circles, and then suddenly we were reading a sex scene between the couple *ahem* amidst their daughter still being missing?? The emotion expressed by the characters didn’t match the situations. It just gave me a funky reading experience. Overall I wouldn’t discourage you from reading this book, but if it’s not on your radar already I wouldn’t add it.

Thank you to the publisher for the gifted ARC

I received “When I’m Dead as an ARC from NetGalley. This is the 3rd book in the series, but my first novel by Hannah Morrissey. I think I would’ve benefited from having read the first two but honestly, I was able to pick up on the back story pretty well.

This is a page turner that hooks you from the very beginning. This book was written very well and was very fast paced. The tension and suspense in this story builds throughout and does not let up until the very last sentence. I thoroughly enjoyed this read!

Thank you to NetGalley, Minotaur Books, and Hannah Morrissey for an advanced reader's copy.