EXCERPT: Two months before 9/11

Death was in the air.

He smelled it as soon as he ducked under the crime scene tape and stepped onto the front lawn of the palatial estate. The Catskill mountains rose above the roofline as the early morning sun stretched shadows of the trees across the yard. The breeze rolled down from the foothills and carried the smell of decay, causing his upper lip to twitch when it reached his nostrils. The smell of death filled him with excitement. He hoped this was because this was his first case as a newly minted homicide detective, and not from some perverse fetish he had never known he possessed.

A uniformed police officer led him across the lawn and around to the back of the property. There he found the source of the foul odour. The victim was hanging naked from a second story balcony, his feet suspended at eye level, and the white rope around his neck angling his head like a broken-stemmed lollipop. The detective looked up to the terrace. The rope stretched over the railing, tight and challenged by the weight of the body. The twine disappeared through french doors that led, he presumed, into the bedroom.

The victim had likely twirled for most of the night, the detective imagined, and had now unfortunately come to rest facing the house. Unfortunate because, as the detective walked across the back lawn, the first thing he saw was the man's naked buttocks. When he reached the body he noticed welt marks covering the man's right burr cheek and upper thigh. The contusions flared a faint lilac against the liver mortis blue of the dead man's skin.

ABOUT 'TWENTY YEARS LATER': Avery Mason, host of American Events, knows the subjects that grab a TV audience's attention. Her latest story--a murder mystery laced with kinky sex, tragedy, and betrayal--is guaranteed to be ratings gold. New DNA technology has allowed the New York medical examiner's office to make its first successful identification of a 9/11 victim in years. The twist: the victim, Victoria Ford, had been accused of the gruesome murder of her married lover. In a chilling last phone call to her sister, Victoria begged her to prove her innocence.

Emma Ford has waited twenty years to put her sister to rest, but closure won't be complete until she can clear Victoria's name. Alone she's had no luck, but she's convinced that Avery's connections and fame will help. Avery, hoping to negotiate a more lucrative network contract, goes into investigative overdrive. Victoria had been having an affair with a successful novelist, found hanging from the balcony of his Catskills mansion. The rope, the bedroom, and the entire crime scene was covered in Victoria's DNA.

But the twisted puzzle of Victoria's private life belies a much darker mystery. And what Avery doesn't realize is that there are other players in the game who are interested in Avery's own secret past--one she has kept hidden from both the network executives and her television audience. A secret she thought was dead and buried . . .

MY THOUGHTS: I liked Twenty Years Later a lot, but I didn't love it. I failed to become totally immersed in the story and am not really sure if it was because the narrator didn't narrate with much emotion, or because the reader is being told much of the story rather than experiencing it.

There are several different storylines going on, narrated in the present and in flashbacks, primarily by Avery, secondly by Walt, and thirdly by various other minor characters. It was the murder that opens the book that I was mainly interested in, but that is very much a secondary thread though, to me, it was definitely the more interesting. I really had no interest in Avery's salary negotiations which went on, and on, and had no real relevance that I could fathom.

I found Avery's character difficult to relate to and I never really warmed to her, although I did admire her cleverness in resolving her family problem.

I really liked the way Donlea tied everything up at the end, even if it was a little tedious in parts getting there.

But the absolute ending, where the solution to the murder is revealed, that is absolutely delicious and made wading through all the other stuff worthwhile.

⭐⭐⭐.8

#TwentyYearsLater #NetGalley

I: @charliedonlea @recordedbooks

T: @CharlieDonlea @recordedbooks

#contemporaryfiction #crime #detectivefiction #familydrama #murdermystery

THE AUTHOR: Charlie Donlea resides in Chicago with his wife and two young children.

He spends a part of each year fishing with his father in the far reaches of Canada, where the roads end and lakes are accessible only by floatplane.

DISCLOSURE: Thanks to RB Media, Recorded Books, via Netgalley for providing an audio ARC of Twenty Years Later written by Charlie Donlea and narrated by Vivienne Leheney for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

For an explanation of my rating system please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the about page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

This review is also published on Twitter, Amazon, Instagram and my webpage

Format: audiobook
Author: Charlie Donlea ~ Title: Twenty Years Later ~ Narrator: Vivienne Leheny
Content: 4 stars ~ Narration: 5 stars

Twenty years later is a very good medium-paced psychological thriller.

TV host Avery Mason investigates a brutal twenty-year-old murder. At the beginning of the book, you could feel a bit lost. Each chapter deals with another person in a different timeline, and nothing seems to be connected. Here, it’s hard to follow and make connections. But it gets more clear after that. The plot consists of multiple stories that are interconnected.

There are events from 9/11 included in the story. This is an important part, but it will be challenging to read for some readers.

The narration was very good, and I enjoyed it.

Thanks to Recorded Books for the ALC! All opinions are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and Charlie Donlea for this Audio-ARC in exchange for my honest feedback and review.

Avery Mason is in the beginning stages of her career taking off. She is now the host of a hit news program and comes across a story she wants to chase. Forensic experts have begun identifying remains of those who perished in the 9-11 attack. They finally found a match and it's for Victoria Ford. A woman who is accused of murdering her lover. Avery also has a dark past that she has been hiding from the public. As Avery chases this lead her past is also chasing her.

I struggled with this review. As far as the story, the plot line, the ending I loved it all and was excited to give it 5 stars. I did not see that twist coming it did not even occur to me. However, I did struggle because this is a fictional story based in a real life tragedy that many are still dealing with. It made me think of all the books I have read that have involved real life tragedies and events. We have many fictional books set in these times. So while it may seem like it's too soon to have fiction based in 9-11 it's not and I decided I was not going to let that affect my rating. I'm giving this novel 4 stars because it kept me entertained, shocked me, and I really felt like I was connected to the main characters. It's not getting a five because there were so many different characters and story lines to keep up with it felt a little much.

Avery, the host of American events, stumbles on a story about remains of a 9/11 victim being identified 20 years after the twin towers get hit with a terrorist attack. She investigates how it is tied to a 20-year old cold case. Over the course of the story line, you think you know what’s is going to happen and then you are blindsided with a plot twist! It keeps you reading/listening till the end!

This is a good mystery that has ties to 9/11. It’s has multiple plot twists that all come together at the end. I listened to the audiobook and while the beginning was kind of slow, the narrator was great and helped to keep you interested. However, after the first few chapters it really captures your attention with the several layers of mystery and makes you keep listening.

If you enjoy mystery books, you are going to love Twenty Years Later by Charlie Donlea.

***** I received an advance copy of the audiobook from NetGalley, RB Media, Charlie Donlea, and Vivienne Leheny, in turn for my honest review.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CX84FperXh-/?utm_medium=copy_link

Thank you, NetGalley, for the advance audio book in exchange for an honest review.

I really liked this audio book. As the title implies, the story is about a murder 20 years ago, right before September 11, 2001. The remains of the alleged murderer have been identified from the rubble of the twin towers., but before she died, Victoria Ford left a voice mail for her sister insisting that she was innocent.

Avery Mason, an investigative reporter, stumbles on the story and digs into the details. Avery has her own demons and also had significant life experiences twenty years earlier. The timeline switches between the current day and twenty years ago, but mostly takes place in the present.

The plot was great and the suspense was real. Lots of unexpected twists and turns and multiple story lines kept things interesting. The narrator was great, giving each character personality and depth. I really enjoyed this book!

Wow. Did not see the actual ending coming, and loved it. The book is too long, and reads in places like blah, blah, blah. The writer was trying too hard, and over did and over stated things. Donlea had a good story plan. The ending left me shaking my head, asking myself what did she say, and then I roared with laughter.

The synopsis speaks for itself. I did not like the 911 travesty used in a fictional capacity, and the explanation and procedure for identifying a woman made me sick.

I really liked the narrator, and will remember her: Vivienne Leheny.

Thank you NetGalley, RB Media and Recorded Books for accepting my request to read and review Twenty Years Later.

#NetGalley
#RBMedia
#NarratorVivienneLeheny
#TwentyYearsLater
#CharlieDonlea
#RecordedBooks

This book was great and totally worth the listening. I will be look for more of Charlie’s books. Please take the time for this book.

I really enjoyed this book. It had a perfect mix of suspense and character building - it really sucked me in. Donlea did a great job weaving multiple seemingly unrelated storylines together and introducing unexpected twists and turns throughout the way. I highly recommend this book.

Special thanks to Netgalley for the ARC audiobook. The narrator was great!

This started off really slow but totally unstoppable as soon as you settled with the plot and the characters. I have been aware of the 9/11 tragedy and hearing about it kind of made me really sad and heartbroken. But, the narrator's voice was soothing and calming and I enjoyed listening to this audiobook before I doze off to sleep every night.

What I love about this book so much is the mystery. The constant nagging at the back of my mind whenever one character appeared suspicious, seriously! The suspense literally had me losing my patience! It was a guessing game and I loved it. Would've loved it more if it was a little bit more thrilling, like, I wanted more action and fast-paced sequence but overall, this is a remarkable read!

Cheers to Netgalley and RB Media for the audiobook copy. I have been trying to request the epub version for a long time now but I am glad I got the audiobook.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

🔊Song Pairing: Paper Girl - July Talk
(This was an incredibly difficult song pairing, so I thought the sexy lead singer’s voice felt right for this book)

💭What I thought would happen:

Twenty year cold case for sure. It was more then I was anticipating 😱

📖What actually happens:

20 years ago a murder mystery author dies via a murder staged as a suicide, a death via whips…chains…and most importantly rope. The accused, his wife’s best friend. Before the case goes to trial she dies in the 911 attack and everyone forgets about the murder.

20 years later, Avery a journalist specializing in cold cases has the s&m murder mystery thrown at her via DNA evidence of the murderer’s remains. New clues lead Avery to believe that the case was tampered with and it’s her job to uncover what really happened 2 decades ago.

🗯Thoughts:

This book was a minefield of twists, turns and surprises. If you want a mystery in a mystery in a mystery this book is for you. A 💯 binge-able thriller.

The ending felt like it was trying to cover up all the loose threads in a single breath. I felt like it did all come together but it was like being slapped in the face with explanations.

Overall, would highly recommend for a little erotic murder mystery. I listened to this beauty in a day. I had to run last minute Christmas errands and this book was my saving grace!

Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the ALC!

Riveting listen!

This story was truly a riveting listen!! There are several POVs, but I felt like they added more to the story.
It was a slow start, but I quickly found myself trying to listen at every opportunity that I had to see what Avery’s next step would be.
The plot twists were very clever and I absolutely loved it! If you enjoy a riveting murder mystery, look no further.
The narrator, Vivienne Leheny delivered a great performance. Her voice was smooth and easy to follow along.

I thought I would be able to read a book about 9/11 but I'm not ready and I found this book to be triggering so I felt it was best to stop listening to the audio book.

This was such an entertaining and captivating thriller! Full of incredibly clever plot twists, I loved how Donlea used short but concise chapters to continually drive the suspense and keep a fast pace flowing!

I also really enjoyed the alternating POVs and was fascinated by the use of a 9/11 murder mystery!

My favourite part of this book was just how multilayered it was with its sub mysteries and I really appreciated how it all came together!

This book has made me a fan and I’m excited to read more from Donlea!

I so wish I could say I loved this one. But truly all I can say is, it was… ok.💁🏻‍♀️

This story plays out in two timelines.

2001. In the midst of the 911 attack, with many references to the day in vivid detail. So for some this may certainly be a difficult read.

A famous author is killed, and the primary suspect Victoria just happens to be meeting with her lawyer at the time a plane hit the first tower.

2021 Avery, a TV investigative reporter travels to New York to investigate the death of this author, as well as the woman accused of his killing. But perhaps Avery has an alternative reason for being in New York.

The transition between timelines was smooth and was able to follow easily. But with a high number of characters and subplots along the way, you’ll definitely need to pay close attention.

For me, it’s been a bit of hit and miss with Charlie Donlea’s books. I’d say I was engaged throughout but not enthralled.

I toggled between the audio and digital copies. The narrator did an amazing job with the characters and helped to keep me from putting this one aside.

Hoping I will be loving his next release!🤞🤞

A buddy read with Susanne that left both of us a bit underwhelmed.

Posted to: https://books-are-a-girls-best-friend...

Thank you to NetGalley and RB Media and Kensington Books for both a digital and audio ARC

This is good. It’s one of those stories that keeps you trying to figure out what exactly happened to who and who the culprit really is.
Avery Mason is the host of American Events and she knows all about those subjects that grab the TV audience’s attention. She stumbles upon a pretty interesting case when she’s not exactly looking for it. This one has it all; a murder mystery, tragedy, kinky sex, and betrayal. She is absolutely sure this will guarantee ratings gold and also help her out in those contract negotiations.
With the new DNA technologies, the New York medical examiner’s office is able to make it’s first successful identification of a 9/11 victim in years. This victim, Victoria Ford, had been accused of the gruesome murder of her married lover. She begins to investigate and is given a recording from Victoria’s sister, on the last day of her life, that begs her sister to prove her innocence.
Thing is, Avery isn’t exactly who she made herself out to be and the walls are closing in on her so to speak. An ex-detective is paid to get the goods on her in order to find a long wanted fugitive. Things are about to get quite tricky as new details come to light in both cases and things begin to add up, or at least pile up, until the very end.
This is a pretty good story. I think the one thing that held me back a lot was that some things were just way too coincidental to work in my mind. When things start coming together and then right up to the end it just starts getting harder and harder to think that Avery would be the one person put in the one situation she’s in. I really can’t get into any particulars but you’ll see when you read it.
Now, I got the chance to listen to this with an early copy of the audiobook, thank you Netgalley/the publisher/etc., and I have to say it’s a fantastic way to absorb this story. The narrator is very good and gives a different voice and range to all the characters so you don’t get lost with who’s doing the talking or where you are in the story. It brings it to life in a brilliant way.
I’d recommend this book/audiobook to anyone interested in finding out just what happens in this story after reading the synopsis or this review. It goes by quickly because you can’t stop until you get to the end!

This book was an amazing listen. The narrator was great... And the story MIND BLOWING... I could predict so little, and some of the revelations were so not expected... Wow.

There's very little I can add to the blues without giving the plot away... So... Read.This.Book... ASAP!!!

This highly anticipated novel “thriller” was definitely strong but less thriller and more mystery. I really liked the deep dive into the twenty year old case and found the procedural work very interesting. Really, you get three different stories in one - at times though, I didn’t care enough about any of them so my focus drifted. On the other hand, I couldn’t stand how every character who greeted one of the main characters constantly said their first and last name - “Walt Jenkins!” or “Avvvvvery Mason?” I thought the plot of Avery fighting for a higher contract was unnecessary for the overall plot but girls gotta get paid for what she’s worth so I can appreciate it. Admittedly I’m not a huge audiobook person (have probably listened to <10) so maybe my view of this book is skewed a bit from that. Either way, it’s getting a 4/5 rating because it is an enjoyable, slow-building mystery with an ending that packs a punch!

Twenty Years Later features a star reporter Avery Davis who plans on doing an investigative piece on the story behind a victim of September 11th, named Victoria, who has recently been identified by a bone fragment found twenty years later through the 9/11 project. Little does she know that Victoria was also the primary suspect in a murder that happened a few months prior to the 9/11 attacks. The plot deepens when Victoria's sister asks Avery to clear Victoria's name. Avery teams up with the original detective on the case, Walt, now a former FBI agent, in order to clear the original murder case once and for all. Walt has an ulterior motive in partnering with Avery....he has been tasked with finding out where Claire Montgomery's ponzi schemed father has been hiding. Who is Claire you may ask? That is Avery's real name! Did Avery aide her father in hiding all this time? Will they figure out if Victoria was guilty after all?

There is a lot going on with this book and I was here for the complexity of it. Some parts were a bit repetitive and it took a while for it all to come together, but it does payoff in the end and I thought it all wove together well. I am giving this one four stars because it was a page-turner for me and I read through it quickly. This was the first book by Charlie Donlea that I have read, I enjoyed it and would check out more by this author. Thank you @netgalley and @recordedbooks for the Advance Listener's Copy.

Thank you so much to net galley and the publisher to sending me a copy of this book. I enjoyed it for the most part and it gave me some information about 9/11 that I didn’t previously know!

Avery Mason is the new hotshot anchor of a popular TV newsmagazine and has made a name for herself based on splashy segments and true crime stories. However, the name she has made is not her own. In the middle of contract negotiations, she returns to her hometown of Manhattan both to follow a lead on yet another sensational story and to take care of business from her own scandal ridden past.
The story Avery is chasing is of a recently identified victim if 9/11. What she first, mistakenly, thinks is a feel good story takes a sharp turn when she discovers the truth about why the victim had been at the World Trade Center that day.
Following the story she teams up with a retired FBI agent who had been a young detective involved in the case 20 years prior.
This novel is about a lot of things, how much of our pasts we owe to others, the price of loyalty, betrayal, and moving past betrayal and claiming your own story. Additionally, the novel examines the concept of freedom, who has it and the sacrifices it takes to truly attain.
This thriller built in suspense and pace as the story unfolded.
I found the characters likeable, especially Walt.
Finding Walt and Avery’s stories out piece by piece kept me interested throughout the novel.
I did not see the last 2 twists coming.
Overall, this was an entertaining suspenseful thriller that kept me guessing.
I listened to this as an audiobook and I enjoyed the narration by Vivienne Leheny.
I was provided an advanced reader copy of this audiobook from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.