Member Reviews

This is a twisty thriller filled with mystery and drama to keep you intrigued through the last page. This is part of a series, but this can be enjoyed as a stand-alone read. I enjoyed this one and will look for more from this author.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an e-arc in exchange for an unbiased review.

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Detective Margaret Nolan is with the Homicide Special Section in LA. She’s in a relationship with Remy, which isn’t allowed since they work in the same unit. It makes work and personal complicated. Nolan and her partner are on a case of the death of a wealthy man found in a seedy area. Nothing is what it seems as the more they uncover the more questions arise. The plot had me jumping to one suspect then another as more clues came to light. There are many people hiding secrets and the truth was unpredictable. It’s an easy read, an edgy Crime/Police Procedural series that I’ve read several of and look forward to more.
An Advance Reader Copy of “City of Secrets” Detective Margaret Nolan #4, by P. J. Tracy, St. Martin’s Publishing, publication 08/20/2024, was provided by NetGalley. These are all my own honest personal thoughts and opinions given voluntarily without any compensation.

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I received a free copy of this book from the publisher. The opinions stated in this review are all my own.
This is only the second book in this series that I've read and I really like the development of the characters.
I really enjoy the P.J. Tracy books.
Detective Nolan has her hands full with a rich dude murdered in a very sketchy part of town. So many crazy "coincidences" make this such a great read. Keepanyou on your toes trying to figure out how this all ties together.

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I didn't realize when I started reading this that it was Book #4 in a series.. (Detective Margaret Nolan). Just as a heads up.

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It's been a long time since I read a PJ Tracy, but it was not hard to fall into the current situation. I enjoyed the characters and plot twists. Nice fast paced read

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I found the plot well paced and the story as a whole a page-turner. It managed to be realistic without being unduly violent and there is a fair amount of humor too. There were a couple of plot points I might quibble about - would audits etc really have missed what was going on at the pet food company? what was with that decision taken by one of the police officers at the end? - but overall, recommended.

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“City of Secrets” by P.J. Tracy
Puzzle Pieces and How many Puzzles !?!
This story kept me turning the pages for one more chapter, again and again. What a tangle of unrelated events, or, maybe not so unrelated after all. If you like puzzles… I am thinking you too will love your time in this story. Happy Reading ! !

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Margaret Nolan #4. When police detective Margaret Nolan and her partner are called to the scene of a man found shot in his car it appears to be a car-jacking gone wrong. However as they interview the victim's colleagues and family they begin to suspect there was a darker motive. When his former partner's wife is abducted the next day they are caught scrambling to uncover the motive and suspects quickly. This was the first narrative I have perused by this author. I found it to be a gritty police procedural with realistic seeming authentic depiction of contemporary LA and its violent underbelly of gangs and crime. Margaret Nolan was a strong female protagonist and the supporting cast of characters were well drawn. The plot was multi layered and kept me guessing with the tension increasing steadily as the story unfolded. If you enjoy a solid police thriller this would be a good choice. An engaging read.

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Detective Margaret Nolan fought hard to get her position in the LA SWAT Division. How could she have known over 13 years ago just how much she would grow to hate the job and the idiots assigned to her as her partners? She had hoped to be kicked upstairs into management but instead is dragging inept partners to investigate cases.

When Bruce Messane and his wife are found brutally murdered, Detective Nolan is assigned to bring the killer to justice. She will have to drag one of the rookies with her to teach them the ropes. Just the thought of this task makes her groan and turn even more caustic. What a lucky junior trainee/partner!

With a rather slow start, the action is evenly paced and the results are predictable. I enjoyed the characters and can recommend it as a great distraction. 3.5 stars – CE Williams

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This was a highly enjoyable detective procedural with great pacing, some surprising twists and turns, and likable characters. I had absolutely no idea that this is part of a series, but I don't think that took away from my enjoyment of the book. It kept me engaged and guessing until the end, with lots of potential motives and perpetrators. This author really does a nice job making the police work entertaining, which keeps you turning the pages.

Thank you!

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Thank you to NetGalley for the early read. I enjoyed this book as I like the character of Margaret Nolan’ as a police detective. The book was action packed from start to finish with many twists and turns to keep the reader on their toes. Margaret and her partner are an act to follow through out the dark world of violence and business.

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Detective Maggie Nolan investigates the fatal car-jacking of the owner of a company about to sell for millions. The compelling case also involves the kidnapping of the dead man’s partner’s wife. The evolving relationship between Det. Nolar and her partner Remy add to the level of complications that arise.

P.J. Tracy writes a richly complex mystery that keeps readers turning the pages. Fans will enjoy this visit with Ms. Tracy’s well-developed and growing team of characters.

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I'm loving this author. Great writing skills. The characters are full fleshed and plot well developed and very believable. I started in the middle of the series and no difficulty following.

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Book 4 in a series, my first read of this character and series. Once you figure out the characters it does work as a stand alone. A pet food CEO is murdered and we find out he was keeping a LOT of secrets.

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City of Secrets by P. J. Tracy was so good I stayed up all night to finish reading it..
The story is set in Culver City, under LAPD Detective Margaret Nolans oversight, the murders begin with LAPD detectives trying to connect the dots. There are SO many dots,
But the ending is the shocker! What!
I figured it out before hand, but I’m good at that. I would give this book 10 stars for keeping me interested all the way through!
#CityOfSecrecets
#PJTracy

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This was the fourth in a series starring Lt. Margaret Nolan, a homicide detective in Los Angeles. The story had many twists and turns and many other areas of law enforcement were brought in before this story came to a close. It was refreshing when characters from the previous installments were mentioned.

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City of Secrets is the latest installment in a crime series that follows LAPD detective, Margaret Nolan, but definitely can be read as a standalone. The book begins with a murder of a rich executive whose body is found in a seedy section of LA. As Margaret investigates, she's taken down a rabbit hole of deviant behavior and violence. This is the second book I've read in the series, and I really enjoyed the City of Secrets. The characters and dialogue feel authentic, and there's a little of everything, romance, crime, mystery. I definitely recommend! Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC.

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Los Angeles Police Detective Margaret Nolan and her partner have worked many different cases, and sometimes things weren't as they initially appeared. When they’re called to the scene where it appears a man may have been killed in a car-jacking. Then it's discovered the victim was a founder of a company about to sell for millions of dollars. (Wouldn't it be called an attempted carjacking since the car wasn't stolen??)

I have to admit to finding the beginning of the book to be confusing. There were so many characters and none of them had even a bit of a backstory for the reader, so my head was spinning. It didn't help when I found out Maggie, Nolan, Margaret, and Mags were all the same person. (I wish writers wouldn't do that.)

HOWEVER!! Once things started making sense to me, I found myself fascinated by the storyline! There was quite a bit of mystery and a few twists to keep readers on their toes.

A note to my dog-loving friends: The dog-napped Corgi wasn't harmed, and the emaciated street dog was taken to the Humane Society. (That led to my favorite line in the book: "The pathetic creature broke her heart and it would probably be euthanized, but at least it wouldn't suffer anymore. Seeing a hurting child or animal was like a gut punch.")

Many thanks to both #MinotaurBooks and #NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review an early copy of City of Secrets. This book is #4 in the Detective Margaret Nolan series, with the expected publication date of August 20, 2024.

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One of the best detective series out there! Strong, well-developed cast of characters, complex and intense plot, layers of secrets and red herrings with the right mix of personal interaction - everything you need to keep you gripped to the end. A must for all detective fans.

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City of Secrets is #4 in P.J. Tracy's Margaret Nolan series, but you don't need to have read the earlier books to enjoy this one (although I think it would have helped me keep better track of the characters if I had read the previous books). This time, Nolan is investigating the murder of a pet food titan which at first looks like a carjacking gone wrong. But when his former business partner's wife is kidnapped, it becomes clear that there's more to the story.

This book was action-packed with lots of different threads and characters to keep track of. The story was a bit convoluted at times, but it definitely captured my interest. Some of the characters, especially the bad guys, were pretty one-dimensional, but the fast-moving plot helped to gloss over this fact.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

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