Veronica Ruiz Breaks the Bank was a fun and light addition to the series, but I was hoping for more from Vero’s backstory. While the story was enjoyable, it felt a bit predictable, and I missed the quirky, fun personality that makes Vero such a standout in the main books.

I was also thrown off by the audiobook having a different narrator than the rest of the series, which made it harder to fully connect. Still, it was a cute novella and a nice little detour between the full-length Finlay Donovan books!

Veronica Ruiz Breaks the Bank is a short and snappy dive into Vero’s past, offering fans of the Finlay Donovan series a chance to see what made our favorite partner-in-crime tick long before she joined forces with Finlay. While it wasn’t as gripping as the full-length novels, it was still a fun and quirky ride that gave me a deeper appreciation for Vero’s character.

This story takes place before Vero meets Finlay, which felt a bit like missing half the magic, but it was still refreshing to get the spotlight on Vero. She’s as loyal, hot-tempered, and resourceful as ever, with a knack for turning impossible situations into opportunities. Watching her navigate small-town drama, a cleaning job at a bank, and her infuriatingly irresistible crush, Javi, was both entertaining and chaotic in all the best ways.

That said, the mystery of the bank theft didn’t feel quite as compelling as the stakes in the main series, and the short story format left me wanting more depth and twists. Still, seeing Vero’s wit and resourcefulness shine—even before she became Finlay’s ride-or-die—was worth the read.

If you’re on the fence about the series, this short story could be a great place to start, though I’d still recommend diving into the full novels for the complete Finlay-Vero experience. For longtime fans, it’s a fun little detour that fleshes out Vero’s backstory and gives us a glimpse of how she became the fiercely loyal (and slightly unhinged) character we know and love.

We get Vero's backstory in this fun short story! This falls #3.5 in the series but the events of the story take place before Book 1 (Finlay Donovan is Killing It) begins. I loved getting to know Vero more and what she went through before making it to living with Finlay in book 1.

This gives the same fun but tense vibes as the rest of the Finlay Donovan series. Vero is trying to solve a mystery and through this there are some tense moments, some red herrings, and a whole bunch of laughs too.

Vero takes us back to how she met Finlay. Vero has fled college after being accused of theft from her sorority. She’s moved in with her cousin Ramon and is job hunting. She applies at a bank but the job turns out to be a janitor. As she takes the job she becomes aware that an employee is stealing from the bank. And thus, Vero’s career as a detective begins. And yes, you will discover how she met Finlay. This is an interesting interlude between the Finlay books. #netgalley

This was another fun one. I love Veronica in the Finley books so getting to see a new story focused on her was delightful. Such fun! Elle Cosimano has crafted wonderful and relatable characters- even if I have never gotten into these kind of issues!

The Finlay Donovan books have been the bright spot of my reading this month so I was especially disappointed as I read this one. Vero is a wonderful character and I was excited to read a book from her perspective and see how they met, but this was predictable and disappointing. I suppose it’s good to know the origin story of their duo, but honestly the meeting in the garage was a much better origin story. I understand these are mysteries with romantic tension, and I like the tension with Javi, but this book could have done with that being cut and more focus on Vero and Finlay’s meeting.

This is the backstory for Vero from the Finlay Donavan series. IT's entertainoing, but not nearly as good as the series itself. It's a fun short, nonetheless.

My thanks to NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I love the Finlay Donovan books and getting to know Cero’s origin story was so fun!! I loved seeing a little before she became and nanny and learning more about her!

This was a fun quick read to learn all about Finlay’s friend Vero! It was great to get the back story even though it wasn’t as great as the Finlay stories.

Thanks so much!

I was so happy to get a taste of a backstory of the amazing Vero. She is a favorite. She is spunky and full of great come backs. I enjoyed seeing her relationship with Javi since it’s been mentioned in Finlay’s books. And Vero’s troubles with the law.

Vero is such a central character in the Finlay Donovan series, I really appreciated this glimpse of her before she met Finlay.

Thank you to the publisher for the Read Now option on NetGalley. All views are my own.

This was a fun, quick read. The mystery was just okay - what was great was the characters we love returning and hearing Vero’s back story from her POV.

After all of this time, we finally get more details in the backstory of Veronica Ruiz, best friend and reliable sidekick to Finlay Donovan. In this short story we get a rundown of all that took place with Vero before that day at the bank where she met Finlay Donovan and her entire life changed. We learn about Vero's relationship with her mother, cousin and Javi. We also learn about her backstory from University and how she ended up in VA with her cousin (and eventually Finlay).

This was the perfect (and perfectly timed) complement to where we're at in present-day antics with Vero and Finlay. It also gave us some quality time with Vero and a glimpse of the story from her POV which I didn't realize I was craving. It also reminded me of how far we've come since that day in the garage.

Highly recommend reading this short story as part of your Finlay Donovan adventure.

If you ever wondered how Finlay and Vero became friends, this is your answer. They were destined to meet and aren’t we all glad of that. Learn Vero’s back story in this novella.

Very rough copy. Very few spaces between words.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press | Minotaur Books for an early copy of this book. I loved this book and hope there is more to continue this story. I would definitely recommend this book.

3/5

Veronica Ruiz Breaks the Bank" was just okay—not my favorite in the series. I appreciated getting a glimpse into Veronica’s backstory, but the lack of communication between characters drove me nuts and made the story frustrating at times. Add in the over-the-top purse scene, and it just didn’t fully work for me. It’s a quick read, but it felt more like filler than a solid, standalone installment.

Felt a little rushed (I mean, I guess it's a novella) but I did enjoy hearing more of Vero's backstory and doubt it would have fit into the present day story line in a smooth way

I just finished book 3 before this one and it was nice to only have to manage a small cast of characters or remember what happened in prior books with just a glimmer of explanation

This was a nice littler holdover until the next Finlay Donovan novel. Nothing too impressive but this satisfied my appetite enough to get me through!

This has been my least favorite so far. Didn’t feel like we got much more than what we already knew about Vero. Definitely would have liked to know more about what happened with Javi.

What a fantastic read. I am loving this one so much.
Thank you NetGalley for letting me read it one

Book 3.5 in the Finlay Donovan series…a super short novella focusing on Vero before she met Finlay. It was a fun, easy read but was missing the funny banter and spark that Finlay and Vero have together in their stories. I enjoyed a peek into Vero’s past and finding out how she met and came to work for Finlay. On to book 4, so I can then read the ARC of the newest one in this series!