This was my first Hannah Morrisey book and definitely won't be my last! I didn't know this was part of a series so hopefully I didn't miss or have something spoiled by reading out of order. I would definitely love to see if the others are just as good! I am such a sucker for a police procedural type of thriller. This is told through multiple POV's to discover the murder of a girl and a missing girl. This turns into a dark and twisted cat and mouse chase with the killer. This gave us just the right amount of creep factor and suspense to keep you reading along. I was committed to finding out the killer!

When I’m Dead is the newest installment in the Black Harbour series. As each book focuses on a different couple, these books don’t need to be read in order and can be read as standalones. However, as with many series like this, you get the most out of them when you read them in order.

The third installment of the Black Harbour series introduces us to medical examiner Rowan Winthrop and her Black Harbour detective husband Alex Winthrop. The murder of a young girl throws both Rowan and Alex’s lives and marriage into turmoil when they discovery the girl to be their daughter’s best friend. As the investigate deepens, the pair’s daughter goes missing and another young girl is found dead. If they are determined to find their daughter in time, they’ll need to dive into secrets long buried and may even realize they never knew who their daughter was.

I thoroughly enjoyed the first installment of the Black Harbour series a few years ago. I loved the dark and gritty atmosphere and getting to know our primary characters. I’ve liked the two newest installments less and I think it’s 100% because I wasn’t able to connect with our leads as much. With both Rowan and Alex being a part of the Black Harbour Police Department, I found that both their perspectives were filled primarily with police procedure instead of more intimate look into their lives. That’s not to say we don’t get to know them; I just didn’t feel connected as much. In addition, Rowan is constantly referring back to a particular event in her pass, and I thought too much emphasis was placed on that event rather than just stating what happened and moving on. Her guilt from the event felt a bit overdone. It did add some drama to the storyline but it felt forced.

While the story itself was interesting, the ending was slightly predictable for me but even with that it was a solid mystery. The first half of the story was on the slower side, but once the pacing picked up then things really heated up. I’ll continue to read this series as her books are well crafted dark thrillers and I tend to enjoy a grittier mystery.

What Lies in the Woods is out now. Thank you to Flatiron Books and MacMillan Audio for my advanced copies in exchange for my review. If you liked this review, please let me know either by commenting below or by visiting my Instagram @speakingof.books.

When I'm Dead is the third book in the Black Harbor series. Although they can be read as standalones, I enjoyed them in order as we see characters from previous novels pop up.

This one follows Rowan and her family. Rowan is the medical examiner in Black Harbor but once her daughter goes missing she is thrust into the newest mystery of this cursed town.

I really enjoyed this one. I like that Black Harbor is really a character in these stories. The town is gritty and nothing good ever comes to it. I liked the search for the missing daughter and twisty murder mystery all intertwined.

As always the audiobook was fantastic.

loved this romance and how the journey stated and ended. loved the friends and all of the trials that they went through on the journey. loved the cast and i can't wait t read more.

I ended up dnf this book. I wanted to love it but the first chapter was way too graphic for me. I didn’t realize it would be this graphic.

“You will love me more when I am dead” rings throughout this book as a spiteful teenager wounds her mother with words which may be her last. As Chloe has recently spiraled into a goth method actress, she clearly resents her parents’ work. When her mother and father are called to investigate the death of a classmate and miss Chloe’s play, they soon realize Chloe has gone missing as well. As the death count rises the suspects do as well…. I enjoyed this book by Hannah Morrissey. I definitely had suspicions, but the end had some good twists that kept me guessing. I received an ARC of this book, all opinions are my own. 3.5 stars

When I’m Dead
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Author: Hannah Morrissey

I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press and Macmillan Audio and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased.

Synopsis: On a bone-chilling October night, Medical Examiner Rowan Winthorp investigates the death of her daughter’s best friend. Hours later, the tragedy hits even closer to home when she makes a devastating discovery—her daughter, Chloe, is gone. But, not without a trace.

A morbid mosaic of clues forces Rowan and her husband to question how deeply they really knew their daughter. As they work closely to peel back the layers of this case, they begin to unearth disturbing details about Chloe and her secret transgressions…details that threaten to tear them apart.

Amidst the noise of navigating her newfound grief and reconciling the sins of her past, an undeniable fact rings true for Rowan: karma has finally come to collect.

My Thoughts: This is the third book for the Black Harbor series. This was a psychological thriller that was compelling, gripping, and kept me guessing until the end. While this is part of a series, it can be read as a standalone. I have read all of the series except the first book. The creepy atmospheric setting mixed with the lies, secrets, multiple viewpoints, the unique plot premise, and the unexpected ending makes for a perfect read. Close to Halloween, when Medical Examiner Rowan Winthrop is investigating the murder of her daughter’s best friend, her own daughter, Chloe goes missing. As the investigation unfolds about both girls, Rowan and Axel being to uncover details about their daughter that they did not know. Will the family be reunited? Or has karma finally come to collect on Rowan?

The story is narrated in multiple POVs. Once you get the characters straight, then you should have no trouble following along. Morrissey has the storytelling ability to weave sub plots into plots in twisty layers that will keep you on the edge of your seat, breezing through the chapters. The author creates a stellar claustrophobic atmospheric setting that is creepy, dark, and disturbing. The characters were well fleshed out with depth, mystery, unpredictably, and were creatively woven. The author’s writing style was complex, intriguing, suspenseful, twisty, and just brilliant. Morrissey writes with such fluidity that switches suspension and creates tension, and creating this perfected web of entanglement. The story starts with a bang, builds the characters, delivers the plot into twisty subplots, and has the most unexpected ending that will leave you stunned, or at least it did me. The author not only captures what it is like to be a teenager (jealousy, mean girls, and hiding truths from the parents) but also captures how the adult feels when their heart (child) is ripped away (desperation, helplessness, and worry).

I had the pleasure of having both the digital and audio book versions. I have absolutely enjoyed being taken to Black Harbor with each of the characters providing enrichment and complexity, with the author’s fantastic storytelling ability. I highly recommend this book and the whole series.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This book is book #3 in a series. Unfortunately I DNFd it. I just couldn’t get into it.

Thanks to St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Medical examiner Rowan, and detective husband Axel have to leave their daughter's high school play early to tend to the murder of a girl that their daughter, Chloe, used to be friends with. Chloe never comes home from the play and another ex-friend is murdered. Rowan and Axel wonder if Chloe is being held somewhere or she is actually responsible for the murders.

This was ok for me. It was quick read. I felt like it was trying too hard to be creepy. The taxidermy elective class at the high school seemed odd. The town, which was a crime ridden cesspool seemed like an odd place for all of these upper middle class people to be living. Rowan and Axel working on the case seemed odd considering their connection and I really didn't feel like they felt a lot of urgency around finding their daughter even though they said they did. I mean Axel was doing jujitsu while his daughter was missing. All of this just didn't allow me to connect with the characters or the story. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't good enough for me to want to read more of the series.

This is a book series that I want to love because 1) I feel like all my friends do and 2) the author has been so nice via Instagram. I initially wanted to round my rating up for those reasons, but I just can't bring myself to rate this book higher than three stars. A three isn't bad (seriously! that is a good book rating IMO), but I'm scratching my head over the hype.

This book was pretty far-fetched and predictable to the point that I didn't really want to continue reading it once the killer was introduced. At the same time, I thought I must be wrong because why else were so many people claiming this book was THE book of the season. I could overlook the predictability if the plausibility was there, but all that combined with the never-ending descriptions of teeth made this one hard for me to finish.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for my ARC!

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the gifted copy!

I read this one in October, and it was the perfect spooky season read. This was my first book by Hannah Morrissey, but it won't be my last! I loved the twists and turns and the shocking (and creepy) ending. Overall, I definitely recommend this one.

When I’m Dead by Hannah Morrissey (Black Harbor #3) is a thriller that was very interesting. I did not read the first 2 books but this read like a stand alone for me. I will probably read one and two just to put some pieces together. Rowan Winthrop is the town’s medical examiner and there doesn’t seem to be a day that she isn’t being called into work and leaving her daughter. So much so that her daughter often alludes to her mom that she will have time for her, when she is dead. On this particular night, Rowan is called to the seen of a murder of one of Chloe’s friends. She leaves her daughter’s play and asks her best friend to get her daughter home. But her daughter didn’t go home with her friend and after finishing up at the crime scene Rowan and her husband realize, Chloe is not home. She is seemingly gone. As the crimes are investigated, secrets come out about Chloe. Nobody is talking and it is unclear where this mystery will end. Rowan can only hope they can find her daughter before it is too late. I love a good mystery and this one did not disappoint. I kept reading to see who was guilty. I didn’t piece it together until the end. I want to thank Netgalley and the author for my copy for an honest review. It was my pleasure to read and review this book.

This is my first book by this author. I really enjoyed this thriller and I am excited to go back and read books 1 and 2 in this series. This book is part of the Black Harbor series but could be read as a standalone. This author writes many different POVs very well, and kept my attention the entire time. I can’t say that I wasn’t expecting the ending, as I thought it would be interesting and something very out of the ordinary. However, the ending fell a tad flat for me personally, I was hoping for a big *gasp* moment that I personally never got. Instead this reads like more of a whodunit / mystery solved book. Still very interesting and I will be reading more by this author in the future!

When I'm Dead was a great read. Imagine being a parent who also happens to be a Medical Examiner but not only are you a Medical Examiner, you're the Medical Examiner investigating the death of your daughter's best friend. With her daughter missing and her daughter's best friend dead, Rowan Winthorp and her husband must face the truth that they may never have really known their daughter. Digging through the past and the present and coming to terms that their missing daughter just may have been the one to kill her best friend, they have to fight to find the truth.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the free obook of When I'm Dead by Hannah Morrissey in exchange for my honest review.

2.5 Meh stars.

This entire book was completely unbelievable. I had such a hard time with the writing, plot and characters. It's hard to become immersed in the world when a realistic plot was just so bonkers. There is no way that a medical examiner is performing an autopsy on a person she knows. I don't know. This one just wasn't for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press, Minotaur Books for this eARC. All opinions expressed are my own.
#netgalley #WhenImDead

didn’t read the previous books in the series and that was ok. this book can stand alone. It was an easy read, lots of back and forth as the story progressed. I could tell who was really behind the whole thing early on, don’t think the author did a great job hiding it but it was interesting if not flimsy to read about why and how it all fit together. Solid book.

I was drawn into this story from the first words. I thought it was an interesting dynamic to have a medical examiner and detetective as a couple and link this to these roles causing them to be away from their daughter. I loved that it jumped right into it with the discovery of the first young girl. I really enjoyed the red herrings that the author sprinkled throughout the story which led my thinking in one direction and kept me guessing throughout. While I enjoyed the story, I found myself pushing through the middle portion, feeling like the story wasn't progressing. The ending tied everything up neatlt but it felt a little unbelievable and I wanted something more from it. I would still recommend this book and will definitely read anything from this author.

Unfortunately this book was not for me. I was interested in the initial mystery but the storyline just got more and more farfetched. The two main characters are a married couple who are a medical examiner and police detective. Their daughter's best friend is murdered and their daughter goes missing the whole night. In real life they would absolutely not be allowed to work on this case. In addition to the murder mystery, there were too many little side plots to even keep track of.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press, Minotaur Books providing me a digital reviewer copy in exchange for my honest thoughts.

Thank you, Netgalley, St. Martin's Press and Minotaur Books for the EArc in return for an honest review.

This book centers Medical examiner Rowan Winthrop and her husband, Detective Axel Winthrop, as they work together to try to solve the murders of local teenage girls.

The same night that Madison was murdered, The Winthrop's daughter Chloe goes missing. The next day, another teenager dies. With so many shady people with motives in town, they have to sort lie from truth and hopefully stop the killings before they find Chloe as the next victim.

This book was frustrating. The parents spent more time focusing on the dead teen girls than finding their daughter. They didn't form a search group. They didn't even take days off work to look for her. The focus on her could've well, should've been more on her disappearance, but it felt like an afterthought.

Apparently, I was so excited for this book, I bought it AFTER i had received an ARC and tried reading it a second time. It did not hold my interest anymore the second time around. This was a DNF for me.