This book had the usual , suspense, intrigue, action and a decent storyline! Its definitely worth reading, I did like the book but it wasn't an omg chilling thrilling book! But it was still good! Just not one of my top favorites! Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for sharing this book with me!

Fun characters elevate this otherwise humdrum middle-of-the-road mystery. This book falls into a category I refer to as a "pleasant time waster" - A quick, enjoyable read that will likely be forgotten in a few days.

One night ex-boxer turned bouncer Hudson Miller chooses to let several calls from his estranged father go to voicemail. The next morning he finds out his father is dead. Murdered. Hudson is now the less than proud owner of his father's business. Having few options, Hudson decides to try his hand at running the family business; a Pick-a-Part junkyard complete with watchdog and a cantankerous employee who isn't sure he even wants to work for his dead boss's son. One thing leads to another and the two men soon find themselves the reluctant accomplices of a fiesty teenage girl looking for answers in the recent disappearance of her older brother.

For whatever reason I was expecting more of a suspense-thriller. A dark tale of hidden secrets lurking beneath the surface of a seemingly idyllic small town... This is more along the lines of a Nancy Drew Mystery with a lot of 'F-bombs'. Not necessarily a bad thing, but not what I had expected.

It's okay. I think probably a portion of the target audience will be turned off by the strong language. It doesn't bother me but without it this could easily become a book for teens. Other than the adult language it's pretty mild in terms of graphic content.

A compelling story, gritty hard scrabble lives, and two unsolved murders. Hudson, Lucy and Charlie are unlikely allies, and at least for two of them, reluctant amateur detectives. In a small town with little help from the local law enforcement, someone has to care. Thanks to Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this advanced reader's copy. A debut author to watch.

This was a very good story, it has that Appalachian noir feel, good thing since it takes place in North Carolina. Hudson 'Hud' Miller is a down on his luck boxer, suspended after hitting the corner man of an opponent and causing the man to fall and hit his head, video of the incident went viral and contributed to the suspension decision. Hud works at a bouncer/bartender at a dive bar and lives with his boss in an apartment. All that changes when his father, whom he is estranged from, is murdered at his business, a pick-a-part salvage yard, and Hud finds out he's inherited the place. To help run the place he asks Charlie, who had worked for Hud's father, to help. Not long after they make a grisly discovery, a body in the trunk of a car that had been buried with another car placed on top. The police have no leads on the death of his father and Hud doesn't think they'll have any on the new one either. Into the picture comes Lucy, the sister of the person found in the trunk and she's determined to find who killer him. The three of them, Hud, Charlie and Lucy find clues that lead them, eventually, to someone that knows what happened and why. The author does a good job of keeping the suspense high and I really enjoyed these characters, I hope they make an appearance in another book. Thanks to #Netgalley and #Crooked Lane books for the ARC.

4.5 stars for this debut novel from Scott Blackburn!

The characters totally made this book. Each one was loveably imperfect and added the variety that made this book compulsively readable.

A slow burn that I would classify as more of a drama than a mystery or thriller but overall an excellent read.

Hudson Miller, part-time bouncer and currently suspended boxer (for hitting an opponent's corner man after a bout, causing the man to fall through the ropes and onto the apron around the ring), fails to answer not one, but two calls from his estranged father one night. The next morning, he receives a call he does answer: from a detective, telling Hudson that his father has been murdered - one shot to the back of his head.

Miller returns to his small town, determines what the cops know (nothing), visits his stepmother (useless), calls his mother (sad), then goes back to the big city. Things change, though, when his father's will is read: he left Hudson three rental properties and his salvage yard operation, none of which are anything Hudson knows anything about. He also inherits his father's helper at the yard, Charlie, an old Vietnam vet, and the proverbial junkyard dog, Buster.

Frustrated with police, and lacking a steady job, Hudson decides to move back to the town, living in the empty rental and figuring out how to run the yard, and starts digging around in the mystery surrounding his father's death. The police do come up with something, though: guns. Stored in a vault under a fake floor, it appears Hudson's father was involved in gunrunning. Hudson, for his part, thinks it possible his father would be involved in that, because his father wasn't exactly a pillar of good deeds.

One night, Buster starts barking and digging at something under one of the cars. Charlie and Hudson manage to drag him away, move the junked car, and discover another car: buried. When they unearth the crushed car, there' a dead body in the trunk. While Hudson thinks his old man could have been involved in guns, he doesn't think his father was a murderer.

With the yard shut down while the police do their thing, Hudson returns to the city to do a few shifts at the bar. One evening, he gets a call to turn on the TV. The news has broken not just about the body in the car, but the young man's name. The story goes on to mention the salvage yard. Hudson, now tremendously mad, goes to the police station and asks the detective what is going on?

The detective points out the mother and sister of the young man, Mo Reyes, are right there in the front of the office. Hudson calms himself and leaves, but not before Reyes' sister Lucy puts a dent in the hood of his Jeep.

Lucy shows up at the yard, and instantly becomes the leader of the very small group: following her lead, both men assist in gathering information about what happened to Reyes, which in turn would help them with Hudson's father's murder.

15-year old Lucy has a couple of instances of not quite believable behavior: she takes an Uber to confront a man who was arrested smuggling guns, only to be bailed out by Hudson and Charlie, for one.

At the end, though, they've followed the trails, collected the clues, and formed a scenario of how these events transpired, and who the killer must be.

It's a good read, without any real slow pieces, and the only infodump is from someone they've confronted about Reyes' death - no ding for that. Beyond Lucy being a tad too impetuous, the characters are excellently drawn.

Four and a half out of five stars, rounded up to five.

Thanks to Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley for the reading copy.

This is a fantastic debut novel that I thoroughly enjoyed. I got right into the characters, as well as the story line.
The main character is 29 year-old Hudson Miller, a former boxer who works nights as a bouncer/bar attendant. He receives news that his father has been found dead with a bullet to the head, and makes the journey back to the small town where he spent his childhood to try and uncover what happened to his dad.
The mystery surrounding his father's death is slowly put together piece-by-piece, making for a highly entertaining novel. I couldn't fault it and look forward to reading more from this author.

IDWY by S. Blackburn, published by Crooked Lane Books, is a story that had me in suspense from start til the last page. An unputdownable, read it in one sitting cover to cover, book with a story that gave me all the feels.
Hudson Miller, a 29 year old boxer, takes ajob as bouncer, he needs the money. And then in the blink of an eye everything changes when his father leaves and Hudson has to take responsibility. Only what he discovers runs deep, dark, frightening.
Set in a rural southern town, this debut novel has everything I love in a great mystery read. They right pace, characters to connect with, the right amount of twists and turns, a great read, 5 stars.

It Dies with You is a delightfully gritty southern crime thriller that drives home an optimistic message of finding your purpose in the unlikeliest of places.

Written in the first person POV narrative-style, the story infuses readers with 29-year-old Hudson Miller, a former boxing champion and now part-time bouncer and bartender. Working his way back to a boxing career after suspension, his world is turned upside down when his estranged father is murdered, surprisingly bequeathing Hudson with his dad’s junkyard business. Begrudgingly, Hudson steps into his childhood town to take reins of the sinking business, teaming up with his father’s trusted employee and Vietnam vet, Charlie Shoaf. Soon after, a body is unearthed at the junkyard. Is it linked to the murder of Hudson’s father? To uncover a sinister conspiracy hiding in the shadows of a town with skeletons in every other closet, Hudson, Charlie, and a tenacious teenager named Lucy will search for answers, woefully unaware of the dangers that lay on that road.

Scott Blackburn’s straight-forward and constantly engaging writing style help keep a consistent reading pace as the suspense builds up smoothly without rushing any important character or plot developments. The essence of the story are the charming characters whom you can believe and root for when their actions turn a shade or two of despair in ugly situations. The Southern small-town vibe is captured vividly along with the modern landscape of ripped-from-news topics like police brutality and immigration.

If you’re looking for an old-school good vs evil tale of retribution in a crooked town from the lures of old westerns, It Dies with You is a highly enjoyable debut that marks Scott Blackburn in the list of brand-new authors to keep an eye out for.

Full review posted with blurb image on: https://www.bestthrillerbooks.com/kashif-hussain/it-dies-with-you-by-scott-blackburn. Will be promoted before release.

When I began this book, I thought it was going to be a depressing downer. Thankfully, I was very wrong! Excellent debut novel about a former boxer and part-time bouncer who finds out his father was shot dead in the small town he grew up in. He returns to find he was bequeathed a salvage yard, scene of the crime, and 3 rental houses. He stays there because he has nothing, and nothing to lose, and wants to solve the crime that the police and locals don’t seem Interested in.. This was a satisfying read, with clear, concise characters, and a plot that unwinds slowly, steadily, then builds up to a hair-raising ending I did not see coming. This author is a gifted writer, and I look forward to reading more of his books to came. Great mystery and 5 stars. Highly recommend!
Thank you to Netgalley, Blackburn, and Crooked Lane Books for an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

It Dies With You by Scott Blackburn
Rating:

Rating: Starred Review

Summary: Hudson Miller is a semi washed up boxer and lowly bouncer when he finds out his Dad in a near by town has been shot dead. Hudson inherits his fathers vast riches, a junk yard and some rental houses. He makes a go of the junk yard but is derailed when another body is discovered on the site. Miller is contacted by the victim’s sister and together they try and find answers seemingly the local cops refuse to answer.

Comments: A stunningly great debut, a rare accomplished novel. Much in the way Clifford and Joy stunned the crime writing debut world. Great follow ups I am sure are coming. Highly recommended.

It Dies With You
by: Scott Blackburn
Pub. date: June 7, 2022
Review date: September 29, 2021

Many thanks to Crooked Lane Books & to NetGalley for allowing me access to this arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

It Dies With You is one of those rare books that kept my undivided attention from the moment I began reading it until I reluctantly finished earlier today. It’s been a long time since I didn’t want a book to end. I loved the plot & absolutely Adored the characters. I’m giving It Dies With You a solid 5 stars and I hope you enjoy this book as much as I did.
#ItDiesWithYou #NetGalley #CrookedLaneBooks

Decent debut, showing some great potential.
I absolutely loved the premise, and it holds true to what it promised to deliver. With so many books coming out with amateur sleuths, the relationships in "It Dies with You" really stood out - 5/5 for that!
Some interactions and descriptions left me wanting more. they were all pretty cookie cutter, but that is not to say they didn't work. They did work - they weren't rounded enough to truly pop off the page.
Overall I can see Scott going far with his craft, and recommend that anyone looking for small town nonsense, will find it in "It Dies with You".

Crooked Lane Books I look very yall!
Thank you oh so much for this advanced ebook!

When i read the description It Dies with You I instantly needed this book!
And guys it did not disappoint!
Everything about this book rocked!
I can't believe this Scott Blackburn's debut novel. He hit everything just right.
The writing was great and I couldn't keep my eyes off my Kindle.
His characters are so well driven and amazing. I wanted more.
And honestly that's when you know you've found a five star read is when you don't want a book to end.
Because that's how I felt about this one!
I wanted it to go on for forever and sadly it didn't!
But this book sure kicked ass!
And I'm grateful for the opportunity to read this amazing story!