I was very disappointed with this book. The mysteries were fairly pedestrian and I was extremely uncomfortable with the portrayal of a young girl with autism. It felt like a filler book. The first five books were great but this is a pale imitation.

Terriffic series with interesting characters—especially the Capone Club—and twisting plot. It lagged a bit here and there but well worth your time

Last Call is the sixth book in Allyson K. Abbott’s Mack’s Bar Mysteries series and the first book I had read in the series. While it can stand on its own, it does provide spoilers of the previous books. The author does a stellar job at creating suspense. I love the concept of The Capone Club, a group of amateur sleuths and a couple of real detectives that meet to discuss crimes. They meet at Mack’s Bar, a bar she inherited from her dad. When her dad was murdered, Mack began helping the police with the gifts of her synesthesia condition. It is now the one-year anniversary of her dad’s death and Mack is helping to investigate a murder involving a suspect whom Mack knows well. I have to admit that I had a difficult time getting into this book. The details of Mack’s synesthesia simply interrupted the flow of this book too much for me personally. However, the author spins a terrific story.

Last Call is the sixth book in Allyson K. Abbott’s Mack’s Bar Mysteries series. Both mysteries are presented well throughout the entire book. There are lots of red herrings and twists and turns to sort through and the characters are well developed and likeable. There is some adult language in this book, but no graphic violence or adult situations. The author is talented in creating suspense and tension with her written words.

Mackenzie “Mack” Dalton owns Mack’s Bar in downtown Milwaukee and has a neurological condition called synesthesia, which causes her to experience sensations in multiple modalities, such as a voice triggering a taste and a lie tasting different from the truth. This makes her an asset to Milwaukee Homicide Detective Duncan Albright and her crime-solving group, The Capone Club, which is comprised of a diverse crew of amateur sleuths and a couple of detectives. Mark Holland, chief of police and Tony Dixon, the current DA, recently invited her to work with them on a consulting basis. Previously, Mack received letters with puzzles that she must solve within a specific timeframe to prevent the death of people she knows and cares about and she’s currently recovering from an accident that prevented her from making it to one of those locations.

On the anniversary of her father’s murder, Mack’s boyfriend, Milwaukee Homicide Detective Duncan Albright receives a call about a murder. Given the emotions she’s feeling, Duncan offers Mack an out, but in her new role as a consultant, she insists on going to the crime scene. The victim is identified as Sheldon Janssen, the number one man for Wade Klein, a construction company owner who is under investigation for conducting business in a very unprofessional manner. Duncan and Mack’s good friend and undercover cop, Malachi “Mal” O’Reilly’s fingerprints are on the murder weapon and no one seems to know where he is. Mack’s synesthesia leads her to a scared little girl inside a hidden space in Sheldon’s house. Mack bonds with the girl, Felicity, who is Sheldon’s daughter, and believes she is autistic and might have some form of synesthesia.

Sonja West, one of The Capone Club’s members, brings Mack’s second official case to her attention. Sonja, the owner of an upscale hair salon, suspects one of her clients, Caroline Knutson, murdered her husband, Oliver. The case isn’t in Duncan’s district, but he agrees to look into it. Detective Roberta “Bobby” Dillon agrees to allow Duncan and Mack investigate the case with her.

I received an Advance Reader Copy of this book from NetGalley and voluntarily reviewed it.

I had a difficult time getting into this book. I did like the storyline surrounding the child, Felicity, and Mack’s synesthesia and how that played out in the clues and the storyline, but I wasn’t really invested in the other characters or the Capone Club. I will check out the earlier books of the series, though, and see how those stories develop.

I enjoyed this book very much. It is great to see Mack using her abilities to help people, to help her friends and a scared little girl and get her dream of a relationship with Duncan fulfilled. It helps if you've read the previous books in the series but you don't have to as this books explains everything you need to know. #LastCall #NetGalley

This is a great series and I loved it so much I read all the rest in the series. I have a feeling this is the last week. Excellent.