Roberta Gately (https://robertagately.com) is the author of more than a half dozen novels. _The Frozen Girl _ was published in 2021 and is the second novel in her Jessie Novak series. It is the 23rd book I completed reading in 2024.

Due to scenes of violence, I categorize this novel as R.

The young 27-year-old Jessie Novak is only 5' 3", but she has established herself as a respected ER nurse at Boston City Hospital (BCH). She recently began working part-time with the Boston Police as a forensic nurse. At first, she meets resistance from some of the police. But after she is involved with the care of Danny Coyle, a police officer shot during a routine traffic stop, she is accepted as one of the team.

The body of a dead woman is pulled from the Neponset River. At police headquarters, Novak gets to see evidence found on the body. That is when she realizes that she used to work with the dead woman. Sheila Logan had been a nurse supervisor at BCH until she had disappeared months earlier.

At first, Novak is excluded from the investigation because of her connection with Logan. That does not stop her from investigating some on her own. She learns that Logan had been having an affair with a BCH surgeon Dr. Tim Merrick. Novak also uncovers what appears to be evidence of financial fraud. Eventually, Novak is brought back into the police investigation. In a national database, they find a West Virginia nurse who had been strangled and dumped in the Blackwater River. The crimes are similar but there is nothing to tie them together.

A few other things are complicating Novak’s life. There is a budding romance between her and Detective Sam Dallas who is leading the murder investigation. A woman claiming to be Novak’s mother shows up on her doorstep. Novak thought her mother had abandoned her. The woman’s story is far different from the one her father had told her. A travel nurse, Kate Wagner, was hired to help fill in at the ER when Novak is working with the police. While the woman has good recommendations, Novak is having to train her on the job.

The deeper Novak digs into the murder, the more she thinks there is to it. Before long her interest in the case comes to the attention of the killer. Novak finds herself in more than one dangerous situation. Will she survive long enough to bring the killer to justice?

I enjoyed the 7.5 hours I spent reading this 252-page mystery. This was a good, but not outstanding novel. I like the chosen cover art. I give this novel a rating of 4 out of 5.

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ER Nurse Jessie Novak is now working part-time at the hospital and part time as a liaison between homicide detectives and the medical examiner

When a woman is found in the frozen river, she is devastated to identify the victim as a previous nurse manager that she had worked with for years. Did she drown ... accident .. murder?

There are several different story lines to follow in this one. First, the victim having ties to the hospital, especially when Jessie discovers that the victim was involved with a well-know doctor. Jessie also finds connections to a cold case ... another nurse, found in a frozen river. An older woman seems to be following Jessie ... who is she and what does she want? Jessie is being warned off ... he apartment has been broken into .... a purse-snatcher has accosted her ... a car has tried to run her over. And then there's the possibility of a romance for Jessie.. but can he be trusted?

Although 2nd in the series, this is easily read as a stand alone. I do recommend reading in order because the characters are stand-out. There's plenty of action, engaging twists and turns, and a breath-taking conclusion. As the author is an experienced nurse herself, I expected a great deal of credibility in handling the medical portion of this book ... I was not disappointed. I was happy to see that medical terminology was explained in language for those who have not been in the medical field.

Many thanks to the author / Bookouture / Netgalley for the digital copy of this crime fiction. Read and reviewed voluntarily, opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

The Frozen Girl by Roberta Gately is the second book in the Jessie Novak series and I really enjoyed reading this book. It was full of twists and turns that had me hooked again

I highly recommend these books. Great series.

Big thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture for an advance copy of The Frozen Girl,

Jessie Novak is a busy ER nurse. As if her time isn't already at a premium, she joins the Homicide unit in the Boston Police Department as a forensic nurse. Jessie will be working along with Sam Dallas, a close friend, and perhaps soon to be more. With one of Jessie's workmates at the hospital is discovered to be missing, it is disturbingly shocking to discover that she was a murder victim, found frozen in a river near the ocean.

The body belongs to Sheila Logan, identified at the autopsy Jessie attends as part of her new job. Jessie's job does not entail being a homicide detective, but she does whatever she can to try to determine why Sheila was killed and who could be responsible. Sheila did not have a good reputation. In fact, she was not well liked, by Jessie and others. But, professional to the core, Jessie puts those feelings aside to try to unravel the pieces to what proves to be a complicated case.

Rumors were already floating about that Sheila was having an affair with a colleague at the hospital, but even more, she very well might have been pregnant. While Jessie is searching for clues, she has a major distraction. Abandoned by her mother while very young, a woman approaches Jessie saying that she is her mother. Jessie wonders how much she can trust the stranger that knows some details about her early life, but trust is far from her reach.

When another murder occurs, Jessie and Sam cannot help but wonder if the cases are connected, especially when their appears to be a similar clue with the new body. Meanwhile, the closer Jessie gets, the more dangerous things get for her. There was a character right from the start that I did not trust, so it was interesting to see whether or not I was on the right track.

I am enjoying Jessie and her take on things as she proves to be quite adept as a detective. We first met Jessie in Dead Girl Walking, the first book in this engaging series. As a resident in a small town near Boston, I loved reading about familiar locations as the story progressed. I am eager to read more in this exciting series.

Many thanks to Bookouture and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

This is the second book in the series featuring Jessie Novak. I hadn’t read the first book but this was fine as a stand-alone. Jessie is an ER Nurse at a Boston hospital but also assists as a liaison officer between the police, medical officer and the victim. When the frozen body of a woman is found in the river Jessie is shocked to discover that it is the body of Sheila Logan, her old boss at the hospital who has been missing for a few months. Jessie had a difficult relationship with Sheila and finds herself a suspect. She wants justice for her former colleague and starts to uncover evidence when she finds some emails in Sheila’s office. But someone is watching her and her life is soon in danger. We learn about Jessie’s background, how her mother had left her a as a baby and how the relationship between her and Sam, her leading officer develops. I really enjoyed this book and look forward to the next book in the series.
Thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.,

The second book in the Jessie Novak series, I found it a little slow going at first but then it picked up and was an enjoyable read. Jessie’s character is beginning to develop so interested on how things in her private life will go. Looking forward to the next one in the series

A sweet thriller it was when a frozen woman brought out turned out to be her missing boss. So Jessie started her own covert investigation and get to the truth. This was a fast moving story with many suspects and an explosive ending. I liked Jessie much more in this book than the earlier one. Enjoyed it.

Good addition to this series,with Jessie Novak at it's centre. She is an ER nurse who works with the police and helps solve murders.
Good characters but I don't find it realistic that Kate who was so bad at her job,wasn't sussed out sooner.

I liked that the MC, Jessie was a nurse working with the police and not the usual detective common as lead characters in crime thrillers. The character of Kate was strange though, a nurse who didn't seem to know what she was doing. Her characterization here felt off to me.

This story had a lot of good ideas and the bones of it were really good but the execution was a bit clumsy to me.

Jesse Novak, ER nurse, is back, but she has a new job. She is now part-time with the ER and part-time with the police homicide department, as a medical liaison helping with autopsies and investigation of crimes. This job is the result of how Jesse impressed the Medical Examiner (Roger) and the Homicide Detective (Sam Dallas), and she is just getting her feet wet, when a new case involves her old boss whom Jesse did not like and who is now a murder victim. First, Jesse must convince Same and the police that she is not a suspect. Then, she pursues this investigation with all that she has and somehow ends up in danger again. In the meantime, Jesse's personal life is a roller coaster. A woman has appeared who claims to be her mother, who abandoned Jesse according to her father's version of the story. Immediately, her suspicions are high. In addition, she and Sam make a good team at work, but they seem to be dancing around a possible romantic relationship. The story is suspenseful and leaves you wanting more.

This is my first time reading the author. This is the second book in a series. I plan to read the first book because I enjoyed The Frozen Girl so much. In the book, Sheila is portrayed as a lot older than the blurb implies which threw me a little. I was expecting someone a lot younger. Other than that, this is a good thriller. I liked the fact Jessie works in the ER and is a consultant with the police, a pairing I haven’t come across in a thriller before. The Frozen Girl added something new to the well-worn genre. I enjoyed everything about this book; the characters, the fast pace and the writing style. This is a solid thriller.

Absolutely fantastic read. I have loved this and been completely unable and unwilling to put this one down.
This is a great read which I will be highly recommending.

Jessie Novak is an ER nurse working in liaison with the police. A body is found with a link to the hospital and Jessie is determined to find the killer but uncovers a host of personal and professional secrets along the way...
The Frozen Girl is the second book to feature Jessie but it is the first that I have read. There are no spoilers about events in the last book.
I loved the beginning of the book with the garbled and hesitant 911 call. As someone who has never needed to call emergency services, this felt very realistic! We then get into a dramatic scene in the emergency room where Jessie shines, and then the murder takes priority. There is some forensic detail of the autopsy but it is objective rather than grisly.
Jessie had an antagonistic relationship with the victim but is shocked to find herself a suspect as well as investigating the case. She is also uncertain in her new role liaising with the police, especially as the lead officer is giving her mixed signals.
Jessie also has issues in her private life in the form of her mother who turns up after abandoning her as a child. This, combined with the romantic tension, adds a more emotional tone to the book and makes her more engaging as a character.
The murder case itself is dominated by the hunt for the killer and the danger to Jessie which ensues. Evidence seems to point in one direction but Jessie is adamant that the police are being misdirected by the real killer.
The Frozen Girl is an engaging police thriller with a personable lead character, and I'll be off to search out the first book in the series!

Jessie Novak is an ER nurse also working with ME office, liaising with Detective Sam Dallas. A woman’s body turns up frozen, who turns out to be Jessie’s boss who disappeared months earlier. Due to the connection, Jessie returns to working in the ER but still gets involved in the investigation.
A reasonably good crime thriller, but lacking a certain spark. Still an enjoyable read.

This is book 2 in a series and although you can read this on its own, reading them in order kind of explains Jessie’s role. I enjoyed the first book more than this one though. I would say that you have to suspend reality to enjoy this series as Jessie’s job does not make sense. She’s an ER nurse working/assisting the ME which is fine but somehow she also gets to watch interrogations and work on the actual investigation.

I struggled with Jessie’s character more in this book as she came across as quite whiny and couldn’t understand why the rules had to apply to her. She was also constantly leaking confidential information. I really like Sam’s character but I found the constant description of his sparkling eyes a bit much. The case was pretty predictable and a certain character stuck out like a sore thumb. Overall it’s an okay easy read.

I received a copy of the ebook via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

The frozen girl was the second book that I’ve read by the author. It’s as intriguing as the first one and the mysteries and story overall kept me guessing what actually happened there throughout the book.

It was interesting to see more of Jessie’s personal life and love interest interactions. I love when a character is honest and while she haven’t liked her nurse colleague , still goes on the hunt for her killer.

There are so many twists and turns here that I haven’t predicted and that’s what makes a great story for me.

Another must read crime police procedural investigation for the lovers of the genre.

I liked that Jessie was a nurse and as well as working in the ER, she was working with the police. That would be very interesting, I think. I didn't read the first book in the series but this book can easily be read as a standalone.

The character of Kate was a strange one. A nurse who didn't seem to know what she was doing, and even accounting for the fact that she was supposedly a new grad, she was particularly inept. She also swung between being innocent and clueless and having a hard edge. The characterisation here felt off to me.

I also have a bit of an issue with the frozen girl herself. This is Jessie's boss, senior management, so I am thinking she is in no way a girl and I also had a hard time visualising her, in terms of her physical self and/or age range.

This story had a lot of good ideas and the bones of it were really good but the execution was a bit clumsy to me.

3.5 stars from me. Sorry :(

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture.

'The frozen Girl by Roberta Gately is a thrilling who dunnit that will keep you interested till the very end.

Jessie Novak is an ER nurse who also works with the police to help solve crimes or bring a medical perspective to it, like a liasion. She is smart, self driven and has passion for the truth. Her nursing managar has been missing since a few months and suddenly one fine day she gets called to see an autopsy of a deadbody of a girl found frozen in a lake. After the autopsy she realises that it was her nursing manager and then begins her journey to understand why she was killed and you will need to read the story to get there,

I loved Jessie Novak's character, almost self made, headstrong yet kind and compassionate. Her chemistry with Sam in the police force is very sweet. Her passion for the truth and her heart in being an ER is very visible. Loved her relationship with Rus, her neighbour and Eddie , the homeless man. She also has a smartness to get to the truth.
If you love stories where layer by layer the protagonist come to the truth, then you will love this story
I thank Bookouture, Netgalley and the author for accepting my request to review the story. The opinions expressed are all mine.

Jesse is an ER nurse that will rotate in and be a liaison from the morgue to the police department. She’s devoted and good at her job. She ends up caught in the middle when a body found by the river turns out to be her missing boss that she didn’t get along with.

I didn’t read the first book in the series, but it didn’t hold me back from enjoying this book. Jesse has such heart and you can’t help but root for her. She is very likable.

This book has a little of everything. The police solving a crime, multiple suspects, a little romance, friendship, a mother back from the abyss, and twists and turns. I like that this book was a little chatty, meaning there was a lot of conversations between the characters. You don’t just watch it unfold, but feel in the middle of it.

I read so many crime and mysteries that I’m quite good at figuring things out and while I knew a small piece, the author kept me guessing until the end and I suspected most of the characters at one point.

I really think crime lovers will love this book!

The Frozen Girl is the second book in the series with ER Nurse Jessie Novak and Detective Sam Dallas as primary characters. While I did not know that when I started the book it became apparent throughout that this was the follow up story. It could easily be a stand alone read. The book is an easy read that kept you wanting to read more.

Jessie is a ER nurse at a hospital in the Boston Area completing her shift before she starts her new position as a liaison with Boston Police Department. A body is pulled out of the Neponset river and sent for autopsy which Jessie is attending. Detective Sam Dallas shows her the multi-colored silk scarf that had been wrapped tightly around Jane Doe’s neck as well as a black pearl necklace. Immediately, Jessie recognizes them as belonging to her old boss at the hospital. Removed from the case due to being a person of interest Jessie is determined to conduct her own investigation. Jessie, due to her position at the hospital, will be able to gather clues that might not have been discovered by the police.

"The Frozen Girl" is a little upbeat, solely due to the very likeable characters and their relationships.

I received an advance copy from NetGalley for an unbiased review.