This book puts Denise Mina's excellent writing on display. However, as some of the other reviewers mentioned, it was a little dryer with less adventure than the first in this series. I felt the flow was off and there was not much to propel me through the story. The beginning was slow and I could not get a hold on caring for the characters, or even understand what their roles were. I'm so sorry -- I know this book has a reader, but it wasn't me! I will STILL of course continue to look for, purchase, read, and promote Denise Mina's forthcoming books and her backlist. Thank you.

Denise Mina has shown in recent years that she's not only one of the world's best crime writers, but she's a bit of a crime writing Swiss Army knife, covering ground from historical crime tales reimagining real-life murders in 1560s and 1950s Scotland, to Euro-tripping modern thrillers full of zest and fun, to deep character studies delving into the unseen and overlooked of urban life. And that's just her standalones in the past few years, following on from three outstanding series to kickstart her career (Garnethill, Paddy Meehan, Alex Morrow).

In CONFIDENCE, Mina continues the (mis)adventures of podcasters Anna McDonald and Fin Cohen, a gang rape survivor and an anorexic former rock star whose spouses ran away together. First spied in Mina’s excellent 2019 novel CONVICTION, this time Anna and Fin are looking to escape a family holiday, so distract themselves with the story of Lisa Lee, a YouTuber who emailed them and has now vanished after broadcasting her ‘urban exploring’ of a creepy French chateau. Soon after, a priceless religious relic with a deadly history is up for auction: a silver casket reputedly tied to the crucifixion and Pontius Pilate. 50 million will start the bidding.

Anna and Fin’s search is gate-crashed by sketchy South African Bram van Wyk, who has his eyes on the silver casket for desperate reasons, and is dragging his 12-year-old son around on private planes. A pell-mell journey across Europe ensues, colliding with past secrets and present dangers. Along with billionaire art lovers, religious zealots, and other very dangerous people. There’s a lot to enjoy in CONFIDENCE, with Mina nicely balancing action, intrigue, and some laughs in a thriller that veers zany at times. Having set the bar so very, very high with her past novels, this latest tale may not represent the best of Mina, but it’s a good, fun read.

Anna and Finn are back in this page turning sequel to RBC pick Conviction. Still hosting their podcast in this installment, they're also traveling across Europe in search of a missing woman. Twisty, dark humor, witty and well written. This book was a solid read

I stumbled across Denise Mina when I read The Garnethill series and have read everything since then. I loved Conviction and read it in a day, so I was thrilled to see Confidence come out. Confidence takes up the tale of Anna and Fin. Anna and Fin started a true crime podcast with the book Conviction and are still at it with this book. The two of them try to solve the disappearance of a Youtube star. In the first book the chemistry between Anna and Fin was great. While being a suspenseful thriller it had some laugh out loud moments and you wanted their collaboration to continue. In Confidence I don’t feel that camaraderie but feel the two are at odds with each other and themselves. While still an exciting mystery it lacked the compassion you felt for the two.

In her follow-up to Conviction, Mina sends her intrepid podcasters on an ill-advised vacation, which they promptly flee in favor of conducting a new investigation into the disappearance of a YouTube star recently mixed up in some unusual (and very valuable) artifacts at a French chateau. It’s a dizzying swirl of activity, all relayed with Mina’s signature blend of dry humor, creeping darkness, and sharp character observation.

I was a huge fan of Denise Mina's Conviction, so much so that I went back and read several more of her titles. This follow up has many of the same edge-of-your-seat elements, but with slightly less of the same propulsive force. I get the sense that it's laying the groundwork for the next book, which I'll absolutely eat up.

REVIEW - 🌟🌟🌟🌟/5 🌟

Conviction was the first of Denise Mina’s books, and where I fell in love with the quirky characters of Anna and Fin. In that first book of the series, Anna and Fin, an unlikely pair - Anna, a sexual assault victim who had been living in hiding and Fin, an anorexic former star, team up for a cross European adventure. These unlikely companions solve a mystery, recording a podcast along the way. At the end, Anna tells us that the book we are reading is the book written as a result of their adventure. And this is where we begin in Confidence. Anna is writing another book, documenting the story of their latest cross European podcast gathering adventure.

The story details the robbery of a religious icon as uncovered by a now missing Lisa Lee, an Urbanex adventure seeker who stumbles upon the artifact and goes missing. Anna and Fin are searching for her and team up with an unscrupulous man and his son, who are searching for the icon. In Mina style, offbeat, quirky (if a little unbelievable) adventures ensue.

The only complaint I had was that I struggled to keep up with all of the characters and their roles in the story. That being said - I loved the ending of this one! I read the last few pages multiple times. Delicious!

This book is recommended for people who like dark humor and twisty turns. Think Andie and Ducky from Pretty in Pink dropped into The DiVinci Code! I loved the tension Mina creates within and among her characters. I want more - I hope the series will continue. I would love more info and storyline on Fin.

Thank you to NetGalley, Denise Mina and Mulholland Books/Little, Brown and Company for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

In this very readable follow up to Conviction, now successful podcasters Anna McDonald and Fin Condley set out to find a missing girl but get caught up in a sometimes hard to follow plot about religious antiquities and communist Hungary.

Urban explorer Lisa Lee made a video exploring a French chateau which looks like it was suddenly abandoned by its residents. In a secret room, she finds a silver Roman casket that will become the crux of this mystery. Months later, Lisa just disappears and the casket comes up in a very high profile auction. This piques the interest of Anna as she has a vague recollection of Lisa trying to get in touch with them and she wants to get out of a viciously awkward family situation. Fin, similarly entangled, goes with her.

I enjoyed spending more time with brusque narrator Anna and her eating disordered ex-pop star sidekick Fin, but I didn’t feel I got to know them any better than I did the first time round. Anna is still dealing with the repercussions of the aftermath of her teenage rape and Fin has a new girlfriend who is jealous of his relationship with Anna.

There is so much plot, much of it dumped into podcasts and interviews, that there’s not a great deal of room for the characters. By the end, I was still a little confused about Lisa’s involvement and what, if anything, would have been different if Anna and Fin hadn't got caught up. It feels like they are reporting/observing rather than catalyzing, which is presumably what the author intended.

As it is, they flit around continental Europe with nicely ambiguously motivated South African Bram van Wyck and his belligerent 12 year old son Marcos, while enjoying the lush perks of van Wyck’s expense account. Though the mysteries of Lisa Lee and the Voyniche Casket are resolved, both Anna and Fin have unresolved family issues to get back to, so I’m sure we’ll be seeing more of this duo which, on the whole, I’m pretty happy about.

Thanks to Mulholland Books and Netgalley for the digital review copy.

I was really into this book in the beginning, but it dropped off about halfway through. I did think the ending was predictable and was a little disappointed by it. But I still love Denise Mina and will read whatever she publishes!

3.5 stars
I was excited for another Anna and Fin adventure. The beginning really took off running and was captivating. However, as the book went on I found myself getting bored and distracted. Honestly, it felt overly wordy. For example, there were approximately 1.5 pages dedicated to the description of a baby who had nothing to do with the storyline or character development. Also, I believe even Anna mentions she’s rambling on while describing a room you visit for all of one scene but takes up 5 pages.
I found the overall plot refreshing and interesting. I was disappointed with the ending. I found it somewhat predictable which didn’t make the monotony worth it.

Thank you Mulholland Books via Netgalley for the opportunity to read an ARC of this book.

Edge of your seat thriller! I couldn't put it down

Thank you so much for allowing me to read and review your titles. I really not the opportunity!

I do appreciate it and continue to review books that I get the chance to read.
Thanks again!

This was a pretty average read for me. I liked it fine but it didn’t have the spark of the first one, the characters didn’t have the same spark as before. The mystery was interesting enough but it didn’t pull me in and by the time the book was over I felt just kind of meh. I like Denise Mina’s work and I’ll continue to read but this one just didn’t work for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Mulholland Books for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Fin and Anna host a podcast, and when a girl goes missing they begin research to find her. Lisa breaks into an abandoned chateau somewhere in France and finds a valuable artifact. Ana and Fin meet Bram Van Wyk who is in search of the artifact. Fin and Ana chase over Europe trying to find Lisa and the artifact. The book was entraining but confusing at times with all the characters. The ending was fine, many questions were left unanswered.

Denise Mina's sequel to Conviction, lived up to the challenge. Another unique set of characters and another mystery to solve. While the podcast is the backdrop for the first part of the book, we then follow the exploits of Anna and Finn. Sad ending but finally, a bit humorous!

The possession of religious relics have long been coveted by many people. In “Confidence” Mina explores how the history of a small box that is thought to hold relics from the first century A. D. becomes an object that seems to cause the death of those who retain it. She also adds in a painting that was part of the 1990 Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum heist in Boston. Mina brings back Anna and Fin, two very flawed characters, to search for the missing girl who is believed to have found the box. The search takes the pair across Europe during which time they encounter several unsavory characters also in search of the box.

The novel has a complex structure which requires careful reading in order to follow the plot, fully visualize the various locations, and understand the complex characters. This is an example of a superb literary crime novel.

Leave it to Anna and Fin to take us on yet, another, wild goose chase for the sake of their podcast.

You know those characters who can't seem to stay out of trouble, even though they should know better? These are those characters. Anna made the huge mistake of inviting her ex-husband and his new wife, her daughters, and Fin - and his new girlfriend on a family vacation. No one is getting along, the weather is horrible and Fin's girlfriend is an absolute nightmare, so obviously things are going swimmingly. But when Anna learns that an up-and-coming YouTuber known for her videos on Urban Exploring has gone missing - it seems like the perfect opportunity to bail on the fam and go investigate this mystery. Not wanting to be left behind, Fin also bails on the family bonding time by jumping into Anna's car as she tries to leave.

It doesn't take long for Fin and Anna to learn that the missing girl is only one part of a much larger scheme - one that has been going on for a much longer time than either of them could have imagined.

This one was so much fun! I was happy to be reunited with Anna and Fin and their nutty expoits. Witty, smart and a great mystery, Confidence kept me on my toes the whole time. A great follow up to the very popular, Conviction. Well done!

Confidence was an interesting read. I struggled to engage with the characters from the beginning. The story of a lost girl that draws in two podcasters on an adventure. All of the characters are broken in some way. I wanted to connect and the pace of the book did pick up about mid way but it just wasn’t my favorite story by Denise Mina.

I loved the start of this book: young woman missing, priceless artifact she discovered in an abandoned mansion mysteriously coming up for auction, main characters trapped with their exes in storm while staying in a lighthouse! It was all there and then it just went sideways for me.

I have read and loved some of Denise Mina’s other books so I think this one just missed the mark for me.

Special thanks to Netgally and Mullholland for the ARC.

Conviction holds a special place in my mind. We read it in our department book club at work. My coworker and I performed a fake podcast episode during a department meeting including a Hello Fresh ad and everything!

I was very excited to see the sequel and get the opportunity to read it thanks to NetGalley.

Anna and Fin are back on another “adventure” to discover the truth after discovering a video on YouTube. Lisa Lee is in the video and she has gone missing. Can you call it an adventure if no one really wants to be on it?

It had been a few years since I read the first book so it took a moment for me to remember everything that had happened. I enjoyed hearing how Fin and Anna were doing and their combined families.

Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read this book. I have written this review voluntarily.

This sequel to Conviction takes the two unlikely partners in true-crime podcasting on another strange caper, in this case what happened to a YouTuber who disappeared after she broke into a vacant chateau and saw a casket there that holds a mysterious power. When it is discovered and goes up for auction, it causes fundamentalist Christians who believe it has enormous significance to gather in Paris for a mass demonstration in support of an American billionaire who wants to acquire it for his collection of religious artifacts. Anna and Fin are only focused on the missing YouTuber, but they are caught up in the drama around a man who plans to bid on the casket and has been abruptly saddled with a son he had never met before.

Though I felt this book lacked the passionate anger that fueled Conviction, it has Mina's trademark wry humor and fondly realized characters, especially those who are terribly flawed human beings yet deeply sympathetic, along with a bizarre globe-trotting chase for information. I have yet to encounter a book by Denise Mina that wasn't inventive and wonderfully written.