3.5 stars
Thank you Macmillan audio for the audiobook and extra goodies and to Minotaur books for the digital ARC. Finlay Donovan Rolls the Dice is the fourth book in the series and these books must be read in order. First off, the audiobook is the way to go. Angela Dawe has been consistently great at narrating this series and because this is a fast-paced story, I think she does a great job of keeping up with the energy of the book. In this book, Finlay and Vero travel to Atlantic City to find Javi. Of course to make things a little chaotic, we also get Finlay's ex-husband, both kids, her mom, and some surprise guests along the way. As soon as they arrive in Atlantic City, the craziness begins and it doesn't stop until somehow everything works out without her family finding out the truth about just exactly what Finlay and Vero get themselves into. There are a lot of characters in this story! Personally, I struggled a little with this book, but I think it may have just been the mood I was in. The story is outrageous and the characters are extreme, and the book just started to feel silly. I love a good laugh and the humor from book 1 is what pulled me into the series, but this one felt over the top with the shenanigans and coincidences. If you're wanting a book that will make you laugh though, I recommend trying out the audiobook. It was a fun light read, with a little romance and multiple mysteries.

Thank you to NetGalley, Elle Cosimano, SMP & Minotaur for the digital ARC of Finlay Donovan Rolls the Dice in exchange for an honest review.

I was sold on the Finlay Donovan series from Book #1, so it was a no-brainer that I needed to review this one! I even treated myself and re-listened to the audiobooks of the first three prior to starting #4 and was reminded of just how much I love this series! I am so excited that we are getting at least 3 more!

In this installment, Finlay, Vero & the whole crew travel to (or end up in) Atlantic City. Finlay & Vero are on a mission to save Javi, get the Aston Martin back & get rid of Vero's gambling debt. If the reader is on Book 4, they know what kind of chaos & antics follow Finlay & Vero and this books was just as fun & hilarious as the previous three!

Elle returned with her unmatched humor & gave us everything we were hoping for. We got to have a storyline more focused on Vero's issue, but still primarily involved Finlay. We got to know Finlay's mother a bit more, we learned more of Vero & Javi's backstory, and, of course, the heat turned up some more with Finlay & Nick!!! Eeeeeekkkkkkk!!!

My favorite part of the book was early on when traveling to Atlantic City & Finlay was working on her next book with a sex scene & Steven mentioned that those sex scenes were so unrealistic & that no guy can make love to a woman standing against a wall or while she has her legs wrapped around his waist while he's standing. And then Finlay gives him a look that shuts him up. I can just visualize that look so perfectly in my head! Steven shut his mouth real quick! I mean, HELLO!!!! Have you MET Detective Nick??

Needless to say, I absolutely loved this one & can't wait for the next ones!

***Please forgive me with any spelling errors with Javi or Steven's names. I have listened to the audiobooks since Book 1 & have never actually seen them spelled out, so I apologize if they're spelled incorrectly.***

The perfect blend of badass and hot mess, Finlay Donovan is back with another story that is a wild ride from start to finish. The Finlay Donovan series starts strong and just doesn't stop. With characters that you just can't help falling in love with and laugh out loud scenarios, Finlay Donovan Rolls the Dice is an absolute winner of a book. Her adventures in Atlantic City are every bit as fun to jump into as her previous escapades, keeping the stakes high in Finlay Donovan Rolls the Dice.

It was amazing how easy it is to fall for Finlay. Her antics are endearing, silly, and just a little bit mad. As a mom, it is wonderful to see a mother who, despite not having it all together, would do absolutely anything to keep her family safe. Her relationship with Vero has grown into a beautiful ride-or-die friendship. That growth and development is beautiful to see on the page because it shows how strong the female friendship can be when both women go all in. Despite how much of the story involves Finlay’s various romances, past and present, the majority of the plot is simply about friendship and how to build up those you are closest to.

While most of the story is indeed about friendship, I will be the first to acknowledge that Finlay’s relationships are absolutely binge worthy. Seeing Finlay finally throw herself into what she wants, while still having the support of those closest to her, makes her relationship advancement even better. As unpredictable as ever, Finlay never seems to get out of a situation without a laugh for the reader.

5/5 stars for a book that is filled with laughter, friendship, romance, and of course, danger.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s press for the opportunity to read this eARC in exchange for my honest opinions.

I think this was probably my second favorite Finlay Donovan outside of the first one. This one focused on a solid mystery and very little description of the kids' stinky diaper!

I received an advance copy. All thoughts are my own.

Once again the Lucy + Ethel of cozy crime get into a debacle of their own creation! You never know what kind of trouble those two are going to get into, or how they will get out of it! But it’s always fun to read and see!

3.5 rounded to 4 stars
This was an enjoyable read. Finlay and Vera are at it again. Their lives have turned wild and just when you thought it was over… another dead body pops up at the end (not a spoiler). So we will be seeing them again.

I forgot that these books take place over the course of like a month. It makes the story more “believable” because it’s not like they’re out here chasing mobsters for years.

This story was, as always, funny. I love Finlay’s and Vera’s relationship. I also enjoy all of the side characters, even Stephen. 🥲 He’s learning what it takes to be a real dad and I can appreciate that from him. Officer Nick is a bonus lol. I love Georgia and her side story, but we don’t see too much of it. I love how this novel sticks to the main story and doesn’t stray. It’s a quick read and I appreciate when authors can do that.

Thank you to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the free ARC in exchange for an honest review!

4.5 Stars!!

This was both laugh out loud worthy and heart racingly thrilling!! I am so obsessed with this series. This is the first one I've read and not listened to the audiobook. I actually really missed the narrator!! I found myself reading parts with her accent lol.

There better be a next book!!!! Omg I loved how this ended. If you haven't gotten into this series yet here's your sign to just jump the gun! ;)

Thank you netgalley for this earc in exchange for an honest review.

Pure fun, escapist reading! Finlay and Vero are so often a hot mess, which just adds to the series enjoyment. The author has done a great job of creating characters that readers are going to love and root for. In this installment their madcap escapades continue as they race off to Atlantic City to recover a stolen car and rescue Vero’s friend Javi, who was snatched during the car theft! Their rescue and recovery mission is complicated by Finlay’s mother, the children and her ex husband tagging along. The situations they find themselves in are so over the top, but yet are outrageously entertaining. Start the series at the beginning and settle in for some fun, laugh out loud reading enjoyment.

This was a fun book in this series! I love that these books are always a great combination of humor, mystery and completely ridiculous situations that somehow Finlay and Vero are always able to get out of. This one also saw a lot more of Finlay relying on others and I enjoyed her own personal journey in this one as well as Vero’s. I hope this series continues because I swear every addition to this series just feels so fun

Book 4 in the Finlay Donovan series is just as fun and creative as the rest. I love how some of it…ok, MOST of it, is so outlandish, but written in a way where we’re invested in the characters and their well-being. I can’t wait for more adventures of Finlay and Vero.

While I enjoyed my time reading Finlay Donovan Rolls the Dice, it wasn’t a new favorite. The things I liked were all still present: Vero, the banter and sarcasm and of course the over the top situation they found themselves in, there was something off. I haven’t figured it out yet. Maybe it was Steven and the kids. lol!

Regardless, Finlay Donovan will still be a fun, comfort read.

Finlay Donovan is fun for the whole family!
⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ✨

We're 4 books into the Finlay Donovan series and I am still enjoying every new entry. While this one was not my favorite of the series, it does a good job of moving the story forward and introducing new plot points that keep me coming back every year. In this iteration, Finlay and her family hit the road with a trip to Atlantic City where the chaos continues to follow them.

Similar to a cozy mystery, the Finlay Donovan series is lighthearted, comedic fun. It's often a series that I recommend to coworkers, family, and friends who want to get into reading. It feels like a safe option to recommend to anyone while still being entertaining and unique.

The series differs in that it's one continuous story throughout the series and not a new mystery to solve every book like a transitional cozy mystery. So you need to read the series in order to understand. I would say Elle Cosimano has been breaking ground on a new genre all together, cozy thrillers!

The first Finlay Donovan book, Finlay Donovan is Killing It is a 5-star read for me and I highly recommend getting into the series. My ranking as of now is 1, 2, 4, 3. I think it's absolutely worth getting into if you're interested in dipping your toe into the genre. And if you're starting to feel a bit burnt out on Finlay and her shenanigans, this 4th installment wraps up nicely and could be a good stopping point for some reads. Personally I'll be eyeing the next one when it comes out next year!

This was a fun installment in the series. It mostly redeemed itself from my disappointment in book 3. Finlay and Vero are getting themselves in more hot water per usual, or it might have been a little icy this time. I enjoyed them in the setting of Atlantic City. It tied up a lot of the loose ends from book 3. You’ve got a couple cliffhangers at the end of the epilogue but it is a much more put together book.

I'm still loving this series! Finlay and Vero head to Atlantic City and of course end up with some tagalongs...the kids, Finlay's ex-husband Steven, and her mom! They're out to rescue Javi, negotiate with a loan shark and find the stolen car, and of course they get themselves in all sorts of ridiculous situations. These books are always full of laugh out loud moments and I also enjoyed seeing Finlay and Nick's relationship grow as well as seeing Vero and Javi reunited. Definitely pick this series up if you haven't already.

we’re back to Finlay and Vero’s shenanigans and it’s a good one!

🎰 Atlantic City setting
🔍 hiding murders, discovering secrets, searching for the right & wrong people
⏩ story moves quick, it’ll keep you busy!
🎧 highly recommend listening on audio
🧗‍♀️ left us on another cliffhanger, leaving me guessing what I thought I knew??

the Finlay Donovan series proves to be the best kind of popcorn mystery thriller with good splashes of romance and comedy. it always delivers!

I have dearly missed having Finlay and Vero and all of their shenanigans in my life, bringing chaos and excitement with them. Seriously though, this series has brought so much enjoyment to my life, and it now feels like these two are friends that I get to tag along with for a while every now and then. Naturally, I was thrilled to jump into this book and see what these two have gotten themselves into now.

What I discovered was that Finlay and Vero picked up immediately where they left off in the last book, and somehow managed to get themselves into the biggest mess yet. And just to make things a little more interesting, they find themselves on an impromptu road trip to Atlantic City with Finlay’s mother, her ex-husband Steven, and her two young children who are borderline feral. But wait, there’s more … because a certain hot detective shows up with a few law enforcement buddies to add some extra tension to the story.

I have to admit that part of the draw of these books is the ridiculous, over-the-top fiascos that Finlay and Vero find themselves in on a regular basis. There’s at least one situation that occurs in each book that never feels believable, like two petite women being able to move the bodies of full-grown men, but honestly, the entire storyline of any of the books in the series would be about as likely to happen in real life as a petite woman being able to move the dead body of a full-grown man. But that’s what makes the series so charming to me, that I can willingly suspend my disbelief and lose myself in a silly, fluffy book.

The other draw, for me, is seeing Finlay’s character evolve throughout the series. She’s so much more confident and assertive than she was when we met her in book 1, and she seems to be able to juggle life’s stressors better. I wanted to shout a cheer for her when she learned how to stand up to Steven, since he has spent three previous books kind of walking all over her and not really doing much when it comes to being a dad. I’m hoping that he has learned his lesson and makes some changes in the next book. And while Steven hasn’t shown much growth, the relationship between Finlay and Vero seems to be rock solid and as full as trust as ever, drawing them closer with every illegal act that they find themselves mired in.

I’m a sucker for a good, fast-paced book with plenty of action and lots of humor, and I know that a Finlay Donovan book is going to give me that. I found myself laughing out loud often while reading, and the fast pace of the story started early, and kept up right until the end. There were plenty of characters from earlier in the series that made appearances, some good guys, some bad guys, and we got to meet some new characters too, but they’re all so distinct that I never found it difficult to keep them straight in my head.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It gave me a little more insight into Vero, but it still left me frustrated at how rash she was at times. She jumped into situations and made things worse more than once, and I wanted to reach into my kindle and shake her, and I had to remind myself that she was acting on her emotions rather than logic. Other than that, I loved how this story included a little bit of other genres: themes from women’s literature in the relationship between Finlay and Vero and Finlay’s journey towards standing up for herself against Steven, romance in the slow-burn relationship between Finlay and Detective Nick Anthony, and now that I think about it, they’re reminiscent of the Stephanie Plum novels in a lot of ways. This is a book that I can wholeheartedly recommend, with a caveat: these books are better when read in order, since you’ll be lost if you don’t.

Finlay and Vero are at it again! This series has been so fun to read and I’ve loved it so much. I’ve laughed out loud countless times. I wanted to love this one, but it just didn’t feel the same as the other three books in the series. So much of this one felt like a stretch and felt rushed. I still enjoyed, but it definitely wasn’t what I was hoping for. Thank you Minotaur Books and NetGalley for this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

Finlay is back! And this time she is on her way to Atlantic city, not only with Vero, but with her kids, mom and ex husband… talk about a trip!

This series is so fun and I absolutely love Finlay and Veros characters and dynamic. Atlantic city was the perfect setting for the mob, dirty cops, loan sharks, gambling and crazy adventures!

This definitely wasn’t my favourite in the series, but still a fun read and I can’t wait to see where this adventure takes them next as the ending of this one left us on a huge cliffhanger and sets up the next stories plot!

my rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Finlay Donovan has been a consistent four-star series for me; this book was no exception. Finlay and Vero are such a funny and unlikely pair and I love following them along on their hijinks. This book has everything I've loved from the series so far plus we got more backstory about Vero and got to see her character develop more in this book. I listened to the audiobook and as always, the narrator does a great job bringing these characters to life. With the cliffhanger ending and a couple of other things set up in this book, I think the next book will be one of my favorites in the series.

Thank you NetGalley, St. Martin's Press and Macmillian Audio for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

Finley and Vero’s journey through their continued chaos felt like a high stakes race in this book. Finley seems to have a knack for making really bad decisions, which can be occasionally frustrating as a reader. However, Finley and Vero’s dumb luck keeps the pages light and easy to keep turning!