Jackie’s Reading Corner

SYNOPSIS

When Fi went to support her best friend’s drag debut, she didn’t imagine a killer would be going to watch it too. And they’re waiting for their grand finale…

Fi McKinnery is full of nerves as the gorgeous Mae B (aka her best friend Robyn) takes to the stage for her debut at drag club TRASH, but Mae B is dazzling…that is until local queen Eve lampoons her performance and ruins the show. So when Eve turns up dead later that night, face down in the gutter of a rain-soaked Dublin street, the timing seems awfully suspicious…

The police are quick to rule Eve’s death an accident, but Fi is convinced it was foul play. When her ‘Hagatha Christie’ amateur sleuthing backfires, it drives a wedge between Fi and Robyn. But when another friend is targeted in a hit-and-run, she’s determined to get this twisted killer caught, no matter what the consequences.

Even as the rest of the gang start to distance themselves, Fi is certain that they’re all in terrible danger. Something dark is lurking beneath the feathers, glitter and sequins of Dublin’s drag scene. And it’s not just the sticky floor and cracked mirrors. Someone is targeting the queens. When another member of the group is gunned down, it’s clear the danger is coming ever closer. Can Fi stop the killer before any more of her friends are hurt?

MY REVIEW

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this one, I’m not sure I would call it a cozy crime perhaps more a mystery/thriller. There are some great characters in this book. Fi is best friends with Robyn. Robyn’s stage name is Mae B they are both excited as it’s Mae B’s first night as a drag artist in Dublin’s premier drag club TRASH. Mae B’s performance goes well but a short while later. One of the other drag queens Eve Harrington mimics the performance Mae B has just done. To make it worse the audience are enjoying it. It’s the final straw for the owner of TRASH Eve has gone one step too far. She ends up being thrown out of the club and sacked. But Eve seems to think she will be back.

Later that same night Fi is walking home when she comes across the body of Eve she is lying face down with her head in a puddle of water. But the Irish police put it down as an accident saying she must have fallen and she drowned in the puddle of water. All the Queens at TRASH call Fi “little straight girl” when she says she thinks the Eve was murdered. Her best friend Robyn/Mae B turns on her. But it’s not just Mae B but all the others turn on her as well. They don’t want to believe that Eve was murdered, Fi finds herself no longer welcome.

Fi is like a dog with a bone and will not the death of Eve go. But then someone else is murdered. Who is doing this? Why?

This really is a fun read, some of the antics the drag queens get up-to and their performances are quite amusing and you can literally picture the whole thing. As the story starts to come to the end with the PRIDE parade in Dublin, it seems like finally everyone believes Fi is right. She puts camera’s around the bus so everything can be seen. Fi believes someone has been the target from the start. She just needs to catch the killer now, before someone else dies.

This is another great character driven read, they are all believable, relatable and mostly likeable, as the author describes each one you can picture them. I did feel a bit for Fi when Mae B wouldn’t speak to her or anything, especially as they share a flat together. Fi has her own blog and likes to take photos of the bridge they can see from their flat. She doesn’t seem to belong anywhere especially when the Queens aren’t being nice to her. She can hide behind her camera.

I found this to be a good murder/mystery read. With some big characters that you would love to go on a night out with and know you would have a laugh. I believe this is book 1 of a series so I look forward to see what comes next.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Kitty lives with her husband, Roger, on the very westerly edge of Co. Clare, Ireland. She adores drag in all its forms and crime fiction in all its chilling splendour. Kitty is bi/queer. From a well-spent youth divided equally between the library and the LGBTQ+ scene, it was only a matter of time until both worlds collided in a flurry of fictional sequins. Follow Kitty on Instagram @kitty_murphy_writes.