First time reading from this author and now awaiting a sequel or series based on the characters in this book. Chicago based MD returns to small town life to see her ailing father who is also an MD & medical examiner. She finds herself caught up in a murder mystery with her high school sweetheart who is now the sheriff. Thankfully, the book has no profanity,no steamy sex. Good balance of mystery and main character 's realization of what is truly important for her life and future. Characters are well developed and the story lines hold your inerest. Enjoyable read. I would definitely read from this author again!

Emily Hartford is a third year surgical resident in Chicago and despite coming from the small town of Freeport, she has made a new life for herself in Chicago's bustling metropolis. Out of the blue she receives a call from an old friend back in Freeport, her father has had a heart attack and she is needed immediately. When returning to her home town she is instantly drawn in and begins to realise that small town life has its advantages. Emily's father is the town coroner, and he pleads with her to take over his role, to help solve the murder of the local Senator's young daughter. Despite being a surgeon by training, Emily spent her childhood working along side her father and his death investigations. All at once life is changing and Emily is suddenly torn between 2 men, her handsome, wealthy fiancee and the local Sheriff, who just happens to be her high school sweetheart.
The title of this book was what drew me in, I have loved reading Patricia Cornwell and Kathy Reichs and this book did not disappoint. Jennifer Graeser Dornbush has written a thriller that hooks you in from the very beginning. As the book was left with such a cliff hangar ending, I am assuming that this is not the last we will hear of Emily Hartford and I am truly looking forward to what comes next.

I received a copy of The Coroner from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The publication date for this book is August 7, 2018 (USA release date).

Emily Hartford is in her third year of a surgical residency in Chicago, has recently become engaged and is enjoying her life with lots to look forward to in the future. She is not fond of looking back at the past as she has been estranged from her father, a medical examiner, for a decade. When her mother died in a motor vehicle accident, her father shut down emotionally and refused to give Emily any answers about the suspicious accident. Emily fled Freeport MI, the only home that she had ever known and began a new life in Chicago.

Ten years later, Emily receives a phone call advising her that her father has had a serious heart attack and she needs to come home. There she finds her father alive, but frail and refusing his doctor’s recommendation that he have open-heart surgery. Emily’s ex-boyfriend, Nick, is now the Sheriff of Freeport and is investigating the sudden death of a Senator’s teenage daughter. As Emily’s father is incapacitated and cannot perform the autopsy, Nick asks Emily if she would perform the autopsy so that the case can move forward.

Emily declares the death to be a homicide and soon finds herself totally engaged with this mystery of who killed this young girl. In between assisting Nick with aspects of the case, she is busy making living arrangements for her father, stick-handling wedding plans with her finance via phone and still attempting to get answers about her mother’s death.

This is Jennifer Graeser Dornbush’s first mystery novel and this book grabbed me from the beginning. The characters were so well described it was like being in that same small town with them. I understand that the book was inspired by her own experience of growing up with a father who was a medical examiner.

The ending of the book certainly leaves the door open for further stories with Emily and Nick and I certainly hope that the author continues with these characters.

Thank you to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Publishing for an advanced copy of this book. I highly recommend it!

Amazing read. When a daughter goes home after an extended length of time to care for an ailing parent you think they will do anything for their parent. Including help the police catch a killer since her Dad is the county coroner. Fantastic read and I can not wait to share this book with others.

The Coroner is a great romantic suspense. Loved the plot and the characters. I throughly enjoyed the author’s writing and will definitely be reading more of her books. I highly recommend to fan of suspense.

Recently engaged to the man of her dreams, Emily must rush home when she receives news on her father... after ten long years, she's back, trying to face the fast that she thought she put far behind her. Jennifer Graeser Dornbush has written an incredible novel -- with wonderful characters and a plot that twists and turns at nearly every chapter. Everything Emily thought she put behind her after her mother's death, is not front and center... and we are left wanting more at the end of the last chapter. I cannot wait for the next installment of this series -- Emily is a character I can't wait to read more about!

I thank Netgalley and Crooked Lane Books for this partnership.

I was immediately attracted to the blanket and we see Emily from back wearing a red coat.

It all starts when Emily's forensic doctor is called to help because there is a suspicious death, as any beginner the first bodies are hard to see.

She must return to Freeport that she had fled ten years ago her forensic father also having had a massive heart attack. She'll have to team up with Nick the Sheriff and old love. She will discover that Julie has been murdered.

A story that holds water, moving, captivating filled with suspense and twists. Emily's character is endearing, eager to read another book by this author with potential.

The Coroner was a good read if you liked quick paced, small town, mysteries. The characters are well developed. The plot drew me in and kept me guessing until the end. The overall relationship storyline was predictable and seems to set up a series involving these characters. I would definitely read a sequel.

The Coroner was much more in the cozy/romance field than I expected but the story was an interesting one. I suspect this is a first novel by a new writer due to typical "cozy" characters. I hope this is the first of a new series...as hinted at by the cliff-hanger ending...and the characters will be developed more thoroughly in future stories. I debated on whether to give it a 3 or a 4 but decided on the 4 in order to encourage the author to continue the story and to grow in her craft.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced readers copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I thought it was a smart, original and well written mystery with a dash of romance.
As other readers have mentioned, I hope that this is the 1st in a new series.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading mysteries.

I really got stuck on this one! Granted, I've always been fascinated by the work of coroners, so I guess I was predisposed to loving this book. It didn't hurt that Dornbush has a great way with words, and the characters are easy to imagine as real people. Lots of tension with a bit of science thrown in; what could be better?! Very highly recommended.

Nothing unusual here... another mystery with nothing that makes it stand out. maybe a good beach read.

Thank you to Net Galley and the Publisher for a free ARC novel in exchange for an honest review.

This was a brilliant read and extremely hard to put down! Jennifer created characters that you cared about, wanted to know more about and were just incredibly irritated by.

Emily Hartford is the main character in the book and she's a surgical resident in Chicago. She returns to her hometown when she learns that her father has suffered a massive heart attack and will need surgery. Her father is Dr. Robert Hartford the medical examiner. She's been estranged from her father since the death of her mother. Emily is engaged to Brandon, an overpowering surgeon but she realizes that she still has feelings for her high-school sweetheart.

There is an accident, which according to the autopsy was more likely murder. Since the medical examiner is in the hospital, Emily steps in and performs the autopsy. She gets involved in the investigation after promising the family that she would help. The longer she stays in town, the more she realizes what she wants from her life and that might not be life in the big city.

The ending left me wanting more, so I'm hoping for a book two. This book was expertly written with well researched facts. I'm invested in the characters - I want to know what Emily decides to do, what happens to Dr. Robert and Nick the high-school sweetheart, now town sheriff.

Fabulous debut novel that had me gripped from the very beginning!! Great story, and I hope to see more of the characters soon!

Very good read, definitely engrossing. I was not doing things I needed to be doing in favor of reading this book. I was swiping my kindle pages quickly to drink in all the suspense and drama. I liked the way she came home and started to pick up her old life from before. Maybe you can go home again. Great mystery, the information on the race horse world was interesting. I would give this book at 5 star rating, but it ended so abruptly! I was like, No! there has to be more pages to read.

Just finished it , and while I did enjoy it ,the ending felt like it was a bit of a cliffhanger, with that said I want to think Netgalley for letting me read and review it in change for my honest opinion

On the same day Emily Hartford, a medical resident in Chicago, accepts an engagement ring from her boyfriend of two years, she receives word that her father, a county medical examiner in her hometown of Freeport, Michigan, had suffered a heart attack. After being away from her hometown for twelve years, she returns to see her father and with the hope to learn the secret he has been keeping about the unexpected death of her mother. While there, she steps in on behalf of her incompacitated father to perform an autopsy on a young female homicide victim, and in her role as coroner, she finds herself assisting her former high school sweetheart in the search for the murderer. You will have to read the book for yourself to find out if she finds the answers to her unresolved issues.

I wasn’t expecting it to end with a cliffhanger, and am uncertain if this is the beginning of a series or is intended to be a stand-alone. Overall, a good read.

I really enjoyed this book. Am hoping that the abrupt ending means that there is a sequel ? So much more left to explore there. Fingers crossed for another book after this ! This book has it all, family drama, secrets, murder, love...................... and it all comes together and unfolds with a few twist here and there. I loved the main characters ( not the fiancé though lol ) but I would certainly be interested in reading other books by this author ! Read it in a day and enjoyed every minute spent reading it !!!

Really enjoyed The Coroner. It was well written. Lots to keep you interested. You followed Dr Emily as she returned to her home town. Having moved away years ago. You learn she hasn't been speaking to her father due to some secrets when her mother died. Her fathers had a heart attack, so shes back to see how he is. Can she get to the bottom of all the secrets? Back in her home town faced with her 1st love and gets caught up in a murder. Loved the plot and all the characters

Promising start to a new series. Hopefully! Emily Hartford goes back home to help her father. She’s drawn into a mystery that brings up feelings that she’s long suppressed. The book is full of engaging characters with a history that I want to learn more about. Since there is a bit of a cliffhanger, fingers are crossed that there is more to come!

*ARC provided by NetGalley for an honest review.