Enjoyable medical examiner book for people who like books in that genre. A rookie medical examiner takes on an opioid overdose case that develops into much more. A simple read, but has trigger warnings with the overdose. Jessie Teska is a new character and I am hopeful she continues in future books.

I am a member of the American Library Association Reading List Award Committee. This title was suggested for the 2021 list. It was not nominated for the award. The complete list of winners and shortlisted titles is at <a href="https://rusaupdate.org/2021/02/2021-reading-list-years-best-in-genre-fiction-for-adult-readers/">

An excellent addition to the forensic procedural genre. A recommended purchase for collections where crime and thrillers are popular.

The Review
A brilliant read, this novel perfectly blends the expertise and gritty reality of forensic work and the work of the medical examiner's office with the harrowing and heart-pounding action that comes with a good thriller.

The story cuts into the complex web of lies uncovered by Jessie Teska, from drug kingpins and dirty lawyers to colleagues she thought she could trust and beyond. Haunted by a painful past, Jessie finds herself fighting to uncover the truth behind a horrific crime, with only her brilliant mind and determination to aid her in her fight against politics, criminal empires, and more.

The Verdict
A fantastic thriller for anyone who enjoys a heavy mix of medical forensics and suspense, authors Judy Melinek and T.J. Mitchell have created a masterful story that will give readers a protagonist to root for, a story to engage with, and a brilliant race to the finish that will keep readers on the edge of their seat. If you haven’t yet, grab your copy of Final Cut today!

Thank you, Harlequin for my gifted review copy in exchange for an honest review.

I love a medical examiner's story. I am so interested in Forensics & this story is suited just for me. Te writing is fast-paced, detailed & thrilling. Fans of CSI and anyone interested in Forensics would love this suspense novel. I hope there is more to this series!

Thank you for the opportunity to be an early reader.

With much of the action taking place in the autopsy rooms and offices of the San Francisco Medical Examiner, fans of medical investigation will enjoy this book. I enjoyed this different take on the typical cop detective story. There were a couple times, however, that the autopsy descriptions were a little much for me (I like to read at lunch). Some more squeamish readers may not like the somewhat graphic descriptions of autopsy procedures. I also did not like that the book was very clearly set up for a sequel and that some of the story was not resolved.

Medical mysteries are not a type of book I normally read but I actually found this to be pretty interesting. The main character is smart but flawed, which made her more enjoyable. The plot was a little complicated but nothing too hard to keep track of.

I really enjoyed this. It was an interesting angle to be from the ME’s perspective instead of a detective. The main character is like able and the story kept me intrigued. I’ll definitely read more if this character becomes a series.

First Cut is the debut novel of wife/husband team Judy Melinek and T.J. Mitchell and the first installment in a new mystery series. I've never really read mysteries the medical examiner point of view. It apparent that the authors have an extensive knowledge of the field - the terminology kind of went over my head a bit and some of the descriptions were a bit graphic. The writing is good and the story was good.

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Avid Reader – ☆☆☆☆
M/F Mystery

This is the first book that I've read by these authors. It resembled the Kay Scarpetta novels that I absolutely love by Patricia Cornwell.

While this is a more procedural novel, with a lot of medical jargon, it didn't detract from the story for me.

I really enjoyed the twists and turns that this book took. It was well developed, and you really want to pull for Jessie, the newest medical examiner. But when she finds that something is strange about her new job, Jessie isn't one to let things go. She wants to know the truth. She wants justice.

While the story has a lot going on, I think it was almost a letdown when it came to an end. I still had questions and while it isn't a cliffhanger, I felt that it didn't feel finished either. I am hoping that more will follow Jessie's new adventure.


Veronica – ☆☆☆
We meet Jessie Teska when she is starting her new job with the medical examiner’s office in San Francisco, having moved there from LA. The start, Jessie’s story is really slow and 15% in I was wondering what the point of the story was and I was bored. I decided I probably wasn’t going to bother reading any further. But later the same day I decided I was being too hasty and gave the book a second go and I’m glad I did.

It still took me to more than a third of the way into First Cut to get really involved with the story, for me to see how that different cases, people, and things in Jessie’s new life weren’t entirely random. I liked the way all of the parts of the story came together and there were a few good suspenseful action scenes that got my blood pumping. Ultimately, First Cut was good reading, it just had a slow start. At the conclusion to the story I got the impression that maybe there would be more books featuring Jessie. I hope there will be.

Not terrible as far as crime procedural/thrillers go. Pretty heavy on the forensics and pathology details, if you are into that kind of thing.

Dr. Jessie Tesla has moved from Los Angeles to San Francisco to work in the Medical Examiner's office. San Francisco plays a huge role in the book: diverse characters (Jessie stands for the Polish name Czeslawa), computer technology such as bitcoins, and the fog. She is feisty and strong; she scolds herself, "Brain first then mouth, Czesla."
Jessie tells the similarities and differences between autopsies she performed on two women, one is LA and the other in SF. Both women are 12-weeks pregnant. Jessie runs into trouble with her bosses and with others who do not want her findings published.
There are explicit descriptions of autopsies -- all the better because the co-author is a forensic pathologist and writes what she knows. Interesting readings, although some of the homicide and autopsy scenes made me queasy.
Thanks to #Netgalley and Harlequin for permitting me to read this book!

I won't lie, part of the reason I was drawn to this book was because it is set in the Bay Area and that is one of my favorite settings for a book, but I was also really interested in the plot. I have not read from the M.E.'s point of view before, especially one that dives into cases and tries to unravel the mysteries of them. Needless to say I was intrigued.

This story was full of twists and turns, sometimes due to Dr. Teska's decisions and assumptions, sometimes because of the actual crimes and criminals. I really enjoyed how things starts falling into place throughout the story. I also loved the personal touches such as Teska's propensity to curse in Polish, her interactions with her brother and the hijinks of her dog.

I would keep in mind that this is told from the point of view of a M.E. so there are autopsy descriptions that are graphic, though matter of fact. If that kind of thing makes you squirmish please be aware of that.

This was an unexpected surprise. I am a true crime fan so I really got into the details in this book, especially since there are a few shows I watch that are from the MEs perspectives. I loved following Jessie around through this thriller. I had to keep reminding myself it was fiction! I can't wait for another book from these authors. I highly recommend.

This was a great read. I love a good medical thriller. I thought this was going to be something like Patricia Cornwell's Kay Scarpetta series, but it was so much more. I loved it. I thought the premise might be a little far fetched with bit coin and drug dealers, but it worked.

Thank you #NetGalley for an early copy of #FirstCut to review.

I love a good forensic mystery, and this one pulled me right in. In First Cut, Dr. Jessie Teska has just started her new job at the San Francisco medical examiner’s office. She’s got to jump right in, because the caseload is slammed and the office is, to put it kindly, decrepit. Her first case is described as a slam dunk, a probable overdose. Shortly after, she picks up a homicide. What she doesn’t yet know is how these two cases will overlap and intertwine, and what her investigation will reveal.

I was interested in this book because Melinek was an assistant medical examiner and Mitchell is a writer with an English degree. I majored in English and went to law school. Had life turned out differently, I would have stuck with a science degree and gone into forensics. So I expected First Cut would be right up my alley. Let me tell you, it did not disappoint.

This book has twists and turns and action aplenty. In the course of her investigating, Jessie gets on the radar of some pretty nasty dudes, and one comes after her with the intent to kill. That doesn’t happen. Jessie is tough and persistent, and she does what she feels is right without much concern that the consequences to her may be unpleasant. I like her! I also love the little detail that her house is a converted cable car. Jessie sounds like someone I could really get along with.

The book ends in rather open-ended fashion. Don’t worry, you won’t find major plot line cliffhangers – it just reads like there could be more story yet to come. I would love to see more books set in Jessie Teska’s universe. Thanks to Harlequin Hanover Square for the review copy of the book.

3.5 stars

I'm not usually a medical thriller fan, but I really enjoyed this. Often I find myself confused by medical terms, but the authors wrote this so it makes sense and you can follow not only the story but not get overwhelmed with foreign medical terms. It was a fast read and I would definitely read another!

This was my first time reading a medical mystery. I’ve watched numerous tv shows that revolve around medical mysteries and loved them, but never thought of picking up a book of the genre.

It wasn’t as gripping as my usual thrillers/mysteries, but I think that’s due to the fact that there’s a lot of medical terminologies and descriptiveness of the medical procedures which isn’t really my thing but overall, I still quite enjoyed it!

Speaking of descriptiveness, the book goes into very vivid descriptions and it can get really gross. It’s not for the faint of hearts let me tell you! I usually read while eating and for this one couldn’t do it!

Regardless, I really loved the main character, Jessie, she is a San Francisco City medical examiner and she’s the one that solves death of the bodies she deems as homicides.

The book did pick up near the end as we learn more about the multiple intertwined stories which make the ending even more surprising!

First Cut by Judy Melinek and T.J. Mitchell has Dr. Jessie Teska starting over in San Francisco. Jessie along with her beagle pup, Bea rent a converted cable car. She then dives into her job as assistant medical examiner. Jessie notices an alarming number of drug related deaths that are similar. It starts her investigating that takes her down a dangerous path. Readers who enjoy forensics will be thrilled with First Cut. The authors experience shines through in First Cut. The story is well-written and the story proceeds at a thoughtful pace. I did find First Cut to be a slow starter, but it soon becomes engrossing. I thought the characters were realistic and developed. I liked Jessie with her Polish background, cute little dog named Bea, and her quirky abode. I thought she was spunky. She leaves a job with her mentor along with state of the art facilities behind in Los Angeles to get a fresh start. We do not find out why right away. Clues are dropped with the full story emerging later in the book. The descriptions are detailed allowing readers to visualize the scenes which brings the story alive. Be prepared to handle the gory details related to the autopsies (the sounds, smells and what the medical examiner sees during the examination). There is one corpse that was truly repulsive courtesy to the explosion of fluids. The mystery is complex and multifaceted. I enjoyed following Jessie as she delved into the case searching for the truth. It is a modern case that involves more than drugs (I do not want to spoil it for you). You will be amazed at how it all plays out in the end. First Cut is a story that will you keep you guessing.

Favorite Quotes:

Dr. Stone struck me as an overgrown nerd, brilliant and opinionated and completely unfiltered. I like nerds, and I’ve been told many times— many times— that I could use a stronger filter myself.

He speaks Bengali like I speak Polish— fluent in curse words, proverbs, and food.

People from happy families can’t comprehend what it’s like to live in a hostage situation with people who tell you they love you.

We don’t work in a justice system, Jessie. It’s a legal system. We take what we can get.


My Review:

This multi-layered tale was cunningly plotted, cleverly complicated, and shrewdly paced. I suspected everyone, and for good reason, as each had their own hidden agendas and they were all actually up to something. While the storylines and characters were complex, I enjoyed the authors’ surprising wit and engaging and descriptive writing style. Their contributions meshed seamlessly and I never would have guessed it was a team effort. The book was written in the first person POV of a newly hired medical examiner in San Francisco, a place I’ve never been and a vocation that gives me the willies to contemplate, yet I was as intrigued by the story as much as the oddly compelling characters and I was truly fascinated by her delightfully unusual living accommodations in a cable car house.