This is the 4th in the Transcriber series and felt it was rather sluggish to start. Hazel returns to Black Harbor and this police procedural pulls Hazel and Kole together. Black Harbor is much the same - kind of dangerous filled with drugs. However the plot fails to really pull me in this time around. Thanks to NetGalley for the read.

Best book of the Black Harbor series so far. I was hoping we’d get more of Hazel and Kole and the author did not disappoint. If you are looking for a crime/mystery book with a bit of drama and romance this book is for you.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

The Unlucky Ones is my first experience with Hannah Morrissey, and to my surprise, it’s the fourth installment in her Black Harbor series. Despite not having read the earlier books, I found myself thoroughly enjoying this one. It worked well as a standalone, but I’ll definitely be going back to explore the earlier books to understand the characters and their backstories better.

The story follows Hazel, a woman who left her crime ridden hometown, Black Harbor, and her abusive ex husband, Tommy Greenlee. Hazel returns to town 8 years later after hearing that Tommy has been brutally murdered. Determined to uncover the truth behind his death, she sets out to figure out who killed him.

In charge of the investigation is Sergeant Nikolai Kole, Hazel’s former lover from her time married to Tommy. Hazel worked as a police transcriber in the past, which is how she crossed paths with Nikolai. The two call a truce and end up working together to solve the murder. As they dig deeper into the murder, they uncover connections to past events and suicides that seem to lead to something much darker lurking in Black Harbor.

This book was a great police procedural read, and I absolutely loved it. Fans of Karin Slaughter’s work will likely enjoy this, but it’s a bit more toned down in terms of intensity and detail. I’d rate The Unlucky Ones a solid 4/5. It’s a fantastic read on its own, and I’m looking forward to diving into the earlier books in the series. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing the book.

The unlucky ones is the latest installment in the Black Harbor novels. I was so excited to read this book and go back to Black Harbor. These books don’t need to be read in order but this one feels like a sequel to Hello Transcriber so I would recommend reading that one first.
Premise: Tommy is murdered, shot 5 times. When the police search his apartment they find all of his guns are missing. Tommy’s ex wife Hazel suspiciously returns to black harbor at the same time as Tommy’s murder. Detective Kole begins to dig into the case as more bodies start showing up. During the early investigation Kole discovers that Tommy recently found a large amount of drugs that are also missing. The bodies are linked by several matching lottery tickets and Kole discovers this could also be linked to his brothers death. Hazel being back in black harbor makes her a suspect, but everyone in Black Harbor is a suspect. Kole and Hazel have a complicated past and as the case unfolds so does their relationship.
Overall I give this 3 stars. I was so excited to read this because I loved Hello Transcriber and Kole and Hazels relationship. However this one was definitely more a slow burn, police investigation. I found a lot of the middle to be boring and not much happened to keep my interest.
The unlucky ones is out now!

I have thoroughly enjoyed this series, but this book was spectacular. I had not read anything about it before I started reading. Imagine my happy surprise to see right from the first page that Hazel was back. This book was a doozy from the first page to the last. I caught myself holding my breath so many times at the end, the suspense was a real killer!
Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this amazing book. I can't recommend this series enough!

The Unlucky Ones is the fourth thriller in the Black Harbor series. Hazel is back in Black Harbor after clawing her way out eight years ago. Her ex husband’s murder brings her back to the place she swore she’d never return to even though it is the last place she wants to be. When her path crosses with Sergeant Nikolai Kole her past is brought back full circle, haunting her. They were once lovers, but what are they now? With things growing more dangerous in town, Hazel and Nik might just need to work together. Will they be able to call a truce or will their pasts come back to haunt them?

I’ve read one other book in this series and enjoy to so I knew I needed to give this newest one a chance. I am not typically into thrillers and at times this book was too gory for me, but I knew what to expect going in and I enjoyed it nonetheless. The town of Black Harbor is a terrible place to be, but described in such a way that you feel like you are there right along with the characters. This story is gritty and dangerous, but it pulls you in and won’t let you go until it’s over. I enjoyed Hazel and Nik together and want to go back to the early books in this series to see how they got their start. If you are a thriller fan, this book is a great one to check out! If, like me, you tend to like cozier mysteries you can enjoy this one if you go in knowing there will be violence and gore. I really enjoyed this book, even though it was out of my usual genres!

When you sign up to read one of Hannah Morrissey’s books there are a few things that’ll always be true; her books are dark, gritty and a visit to Black Harbor always means trouble.

Let’s get one thing straight here, Black Harbor has got to be one of my favorite settings in this genre. The atmosphere is creepy, dark, and full of criminal activity. While I felt like this story moved a bit too slow for my taste, it was still edgy, tenuous, and I loved that the author brought back favorite characters from Hello, Transcriber (which has been my favorite book). You can read these books as a series or as standalones. I definitely recommend reading as a series!

Thank you NetGalley and Minotaur Books for this eArc of The Unlucky Ones. I can’t wait for Hannah’s next book.

So excited to be back in Black harbor with Hazel! Hannah has done it again and I hope our time in black harbor is not over!!!

"We either bend to your power or we break. And if we're lucky, we are set free."

After loving the first three books in the Black Harbor series, I always hoped that we would see Hazel again. After her role in Hello, Transcriber, I always wanted to know more, and The Unlucky Ones is exactly what I hoped it would be. While it wraps up some of the loose ends from earlier in the series, more are unraveled. This series and dark and gritty, but, as evidenced by the quote at the beginning of this review, there's also hope and resilience. I love this series. It's one of my favorites. I've said it before, but I'm going to repeat it here. I am always fascinated by my visits to Black Harbor, but I definitely wouldn't want to live there.

i am in my crime procedural thriller era and im not even mad at it. this one was GREAT!

i did find the beginning to be a little confusing because we were thrown into the major crime this story revolves around and since i didn’t read the other books in this series i had whiplash. i feel like you don’t NEED to read the other books but maybe it would be helpful because the beginning of this book starts off with a bang and context and background would’ve been useful.

but as the story goes on and the plot progresses i was hooked. i love the way the author is so atmospheric and detailed in the way she describes the town and the tug and pull that hazel and kole experience with it. they are both complex but their addiction to each other was fun to read and was an excellent tie-in.

this book was chilling, intense, dramatic and all around a great read. i loved the high stakes ending and i can’t wait for the next book in this series!!!! im definitely going to read the other books in this series too!

thank you to st. martins press, netgalley and hannah morrissey for the advance readers copy of this title in exchange for my honest review.

When I’m Dead was my first book in the Black Harbor series and I enjoyed it, so when I saw this new one coming out I had to snag it. I was intrigued by The Unlucky Ones, it was captivating and action-packed and full of suspense. It had great pacing and I loved the dual POV.

I wish I had read the first two books in this “series” though first; there was a lot of context missing that probably would’ve made me enjoy the book even more if I had. It definitely makes me want to go back and re-read them!

Also, I’m a Swiftie but the Taylor Swift lyrics scattered throughout the book were driving me nuts. They annoyed me, rather than enhancing the story.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this copy of The Unlucky Ones! Hannah Morrisey is my newest auto-buy author, and I loved this return to Black Harbor. This book had everything I love in a thriller: perfect pacing, an atmospheric setting, and memorable characters. Bravo.

If this is the last black harbor book I will be devastated. I’m so emotionally invested in Hazel. Anywho, I loved this. It’s dark and gritty. Morrisey isn’t afraid to push the limits. Maybe I am partial as a former Wisconsinite but this small town and its darkness is so visceral throughout the series but especially this installment. The mystery itself is engrossing as well. There’s not a lull to be found.

A nice circular ending - starting and ending with Hazel.

This wasn’t my favorite foray into Black Harbor but I’m happy with how this series ended. And I’m especially glad to see Hudson again 🥹 that’s baby boy.

Will always be excited if Hannah Morrissey writes anymore but either way that I’m happy with how this wrapped up.

Pub date: out now!!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this arc in exchange for my honest review

This was my first book by Hannah Morrissey. I didn’t realize that The Unlucky Ones was the fourth book in a series. I think they can all be read as a stand-alone.
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This was a crime/thriller/police procedural book with a dash of romance thrown in.
Hazel returns to Black Harbor to look into the death of her ex husband. She also has a complicated relationship with the Nikolai, the lead detective.
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This book was all about the violet crimes and drugs in Black Harbor.
3 stars

Dark and gritty, Morissey delivers a mystery/crime/police procedural work of fiction with quality prose.

Black Harbor is a cesspool of evil. Crime rules the city, and Nikolai Kole is doing what he can to combat it. When a brutal murder occurs, the ex-wife of the victim, and Kole’s former lover, returns to Black Harbor to find out why.

Fans of the series will undoubtedly enjoy this one, as well as anyone who reads this genre. It can be read as a stand alone (which I did) but I do think it would be appreciated more for those who are familiar with Hazel and Kole.

Thank you to Minotaur books and NetGalley.

Oh, Hannah's Black Harbor series just keeps getting better! This is only the second book of hers that I've readybut I 100% enjoyed it! It kept me on the edge of my seat the ENTIRE time, waiting to see just what else was around the corner.
A small desolate town, with an impossible drug problem, and Hazel is back in town to find how how and why her ex-husband was killed. I loved the intensity of the characters and the interconnections they all have.
An exciting crime detective thriller, I loved it!

Thank you to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for this early release in exchange for my honest opinion.

Pub Date: 25 March 2025

The Unlucky Ones is the fourth book in the Black Harbor series and my second book by Hannah Morrissey and it solidifies that I need to go back and read the first two books in the series especially since Hazel came back to Black Harbor.

Hazel is the police transcriber from the first book in the series and who got a behind the scenes look into an investigation through Detective Nikolai Kole and now she’s returned to Black Harbor after learning about her ex-husband’s death. Nik doesn’t know what to make of Hazel’s return; she left once but she came back and he wants to know why but finding out could cause more harm than good for both of them.

Nik and Hazel are both complex characters and the town of Black Harbor takes on its own persona as well throughout the series being the driving force behind the criminal underworld. It takes a lot for Hazel to return to Black Harbor and Nik because both have a way of consuming you whole if you aren’t careful. Hazel has changed but hasn’t since leaving but now she understands Nik and herself better and how he’s needed in Black Harbor she just has to decide if she wants to be with him too.


Thank you publishers and netgalley for this eARC in exchange for my honest feedback.

Hannah Morrissey, does it again

The Unlucky Ones

This book is DARK. Morrissey introduces us to some pretty intriguing characters, well developed and flawed... . Black Harbor, a character in itself. A town thick with corruption, tensions and secrets. Morrissey does an incredible job creating a sense of dread that lingers behind every corner.

This is book 4 in Black Harbor series and the return of Nikolai and Hazel . Their relationship riddled with tension and unresolved issues plays out throughout the book and you can feel the emotion within both of them.

What happened to Tommy Greenlee?

The mystery surrounding the murder of Tommy Greenlee is intricate and engaging, Morrissey skillfully weaves together multiple story lines while always keeping you on your toes. So many twists and turns, I could never see what was coming next.

5 stars

Check out this teaser :

Black Harbor is a tinderbox. Temperatures and violent crime have both risen to all-time highs, a new drug razes the city, and the scene to which Sergeant Nikolai Kole responds is anything but a rote homicide. In the back of a clubhouse lies a body wrapped in garbage bags and doused in bleach.

It isn’t just any body. Tommy Greenlee, the ex-husband of Kole’s former lover, Hazel, has been shot several times and left for dead. What’s more…the killer left what appears to be a calling card.

Elsewhere, Hazel is haunted by her memories of Black Harbor. Lured there after eight years, she returns to find out who killed Tommy and why. Now back in Kole’s orbit, their love affair can hardly pick up where it left off. They both used each other to their own ends before, which begs the question: would they do it again?

With the atmosphere growing more volatile by the second, Hazel and Kole call a truce, and as they work together to solve this murder, they will not only unearth Black Harbor’s deepest, darkest secrets―they’ll each have to face their own.

The Unlucky Ones
By @morrisseybooks
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

-Murder Investigation
-Crime-filled city
-Cops & Drug Lords
-Relationship/Love
-Touches a little on Domestic Violence

Hazel is a beautiful, 30-something, successful new author with a history of overcoming domestic violence and starting a new life in Brooklyn. After nearly a decade, she learns that her ex-husband has been murdered and she returns to the crime-filled city of her past to learn more about the murder and maybe get a bit of inspiration for her next book too!

Nik is the lead detective investigating the murder and also a past love interest of Hazel's but who still has feelings after 10 years?

The book started off slow and I initially struggled to have a clear distinction of the individuality of each of the members on the detective's team, but i'm glad I stuck with it, because it all came together, was a great story and it picked up quite a bit.

This is a great book for true crime fans and murder mystery genre. This is a little outside of my usual reading because it was heavily focused on the detectives perspective of the investigation.

Happy Publication Month to @hannahmorrisseywriter and thank you to @netgalley and @stmartinspress for this digital ARC!

This novel is brand new and was published 5 days ago - will you be adding it to your spring back bag? Let me know what you think!

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