This book is about a woman named Vandy Myrick. She has faced a personal tragedy and her whole world is falling apart. Her daughter has passed, her father is ill and she has returned to her hometown. She is working as a private investigator (after several years in law enforcement) and is hired by a client named Leo to follow his wife and find out if she is cheating on him. But soon after his wife ends up dead. Vandy is thrown into a high speed chase of who did it? Vandy is searching for the truth no matter how much dirt she kicks up.

I absolutely loved the character of Vandy. Her past and present experiences have shaped her life and you can tell. She is determined, has grit and is looking for truth no matter what. This book has your typical twists, lies and deceit but we are throwing in some small town dynamics, abuse of power and racial prejudice. The story is told in first person perspective.

This is my first book by this author and I enjoyed it. Can we also talk about the cover, I absolutely loved it, it is a classic NJ diner! I absolutely love being a rep for the Macmillan Audio Program and this was an excellent audio. The story just seemed to unfold naturally. The narrator did an excellent job at grabbing and holding my attention. Thank you to Mac NetGalley, Minotaur and the author for the opportunity to read this book. My opinions are honest and my own!

3.5 stars. This is 3/4 of a solid mystery novel. Deleting half a star because the end seems especially far fetched.

Special thanks to the author & @minotaurbooks for my advanced copy‼️

This was not a fav the pacing was entirely too slow for me. It was giving grandma 1940’s mystery like nothing about it was really exciting. The writing wasn’t completely bad but at the same time I could’ve DNF’d. Then Evander starting off the book saying she was horny was so stank cause ma’am why lol. Then she was working one case that somehow turned into three yet they were all somehow connected. 

This was just all over the place for me I think the best part of the book was the cover!!! Idk what I was expecting this to be but the author didn’t really deliver like I hoped. I even had the audio and it still didn’t hit maybe I should’ve read it without it. Overall, this was low-grade mid in my opinion but you might like it!!!

Vandy Myrick moved back home to Queenstown, NJ, hoping to heal after the death of a loved one. Encouraged by friends, she took her cop skills and became a private investigator. What started out as a ordinary adultery case, became much more when the subject of her investigation is murdered. The story cleverly moves from client to client while the focus is always the same. Vandy is smart, feisty and doggedly committed to finding the truth. As a black investigator we see her deal with racism and how it impacts power, justice and her own safety. It's an entertaining read that keeps you guessing and always rooting for Vandy's success.

loved this mystery and keeping secrets and the different point of views. Also loved trying to figure out who did it . I enjoyed the mystery behind it.

A fun PI mystery with plenty of atmosphere. Cop stories--even ex-cops--aren't my favorite, but this one was engaging and smart.

DNF at 25%. Unfortunately I couldn't get invested in this mystery novel. I don't mind slower paced mysteries, but this one felt like pulling teeth to continue reading for me.

Thank you to Netgalley and Minotaur for a copy in exchange for review consideration.

I finished Trouble in Queenstown by Delia Pitts and here are my musings.


Vandy Myrick gave up being a cop to take on the world as a PI. Now she's back in her hometown, as a black woman and a business owner, she knows she has an uphill battle.

That is until Leo Hanna, the nephew of the Mayor, requests her services to tail his wife. Should be pretty easy and routine but when his wife is murdered in their home and the murderer shot by Leo, something doesn’t make sense and Vandy can’t keep her nose out of it.

YAHOOO this book was phenomenal! I read and listened to the audio and the narrator was BRILLIANT! I loved the sass of Vandy and her no nonsense way of conducting herself. Please tell me this is going to be a series! I loved the characters. Except Leo… Slippery MF.

I thought the plot was clever and the pace worked really well. There were a couple of slower spots but I felt like it was a little rest for the reader before you got the full POW again! The twists were excellent and the dialogue was really intelligent and realistic.

There wasn’t really anything I didn’t like, it was a really entertaining book. I really think if you like thrillers with a bad @ss MC.. This has to be your next read!

4.5 stars!

Thank you to @minotaurbooks and @netgalley for my gifted ALC and ARC.

I really wanted to like this book, but I struggled to stay interested. I tried the audiobook too and I realized right away it is narrated by a voice actor who I am not fond of her voice. The voice always seems to make me dislike the book, which I feel terrible about, but it is an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book. I don’t read a ton of mysteries but the plot of this book sounded interesting so I decided to give it a try. For going in with no real expectations. I was pleasantly surprised. Trouble in Queenstown follows Evander “Vandy” Myrick, a former cop turned private investigator who has come back to her hometown to set up shop after a family tragedy.

This book was intriguing and fast paced and I was pulled in fairly quickly. I think it did a good job of commenting on the racial implications of a black female investigator in a small and conservative town. The last twist before the finale was maybe just a tad far fetched for me (specifically how she figured it out) but it was a very solid 3.5- 4 star read.

Thanks to #NetGalley and #StMartinsPress for the book #TroubleInQueenstown by #DeliaPitts. Vandy is a private investigator who has been hired to follow the mayors nephews wife. When things get tragically worse, Vandy is caught in the middle of a twisted web of secrets. Who is actually guilty and what is the truth. Can she handle the truth and buried secrets?

Vandy is a private detective who has returned to her hometown of Queenstown. She takes a case from the mayor's nephew but then his wife winds up dead. Vandy finds that there are people who do not appreciate her investigating and potentially uncovering secrets they would rather keep buried.

I had no idea what was going to happen as the story progressed. In addition to solving the muder of Ivy, Vandy also finds many long buried secrets from her small town. I loved following the trail of secrets and trying to piece them together myself, although found I had absolutely no idea where this would end up.

I think this would be a favorite for anyone who liked Long Bright River.

Meet Evander Myrick – better known as Vandy – once cop, now private eye associated with her friends law practice in Queenstown, New Jersey. Still dealing with the loss of her daughter, and the steady decline of her father’s memory.
A boring, run of the mill, assignment – husband suspects his wife of cheating, follow her for a week and see what turns up. When the time comes to give a report, she is asked to deliver it to the house, and then all comes to an interesting start …
Great first installment in a new series, looking forward to more of Vandy.

I love the mystery both in Vandy's life and the mystery the book is taking the reader along. I love a good book with a strong character and something to keep me turning the pages. This is one you'll want to read until the end.

*Trouble in Queenstown* by Delia Pitts is an engaging mystery that pulls you in from the first page. The atmospheric setting and well-developed protagonist create a gripping read. The plot is full of twists and turns, keeping you guessing until the end.

While there were a few slower moments, the overall pacing and tension were strong. The resolution was satisfying, and the story's depth made it a standout.

I’m giving it 4 stars and recommend it to anyone who enjoys a well-crafted mystery. 👍🏻😃

Delia Pitts has been writing mysteries for quite some time, but she is new to me. In Trouble in Queenstown, she introduces hardboiled sleuth Evander Myrick. Myrick’s friends call her Vandy, and that helps to distinguish her from her elderly father for whom she is named; he’s in a memory care unit.

My thanks go to NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, and St. Martin’s Press for the review copies. This book is for sale now.

At first glance, I thought that this detective fiction was set in New Zealand. Queenstown, right? But in this case, the locale is Queenstown, New Jersey. The story opens with Vandy cleaning up a mess in her office just as Leo Hannah storms in and wants to see Evander Myrick. He assumes Myrick will be a Caucasian male, and that Myrick herself is a member of the cleaning staff.

Oops.

Hannah comes to hire Vandy in the wake of his wife’s murder. He knows exactly who did it, he tells her, and he wants her to prove it, starting with some surveillance. Vandy isn’t sure she should take this job, but she has to pay top dollar to keep her daddy in the best facility, so she reluctantly signs on. As the story progresses, there are numerous twists and turns, and the violence escalates. By the story’s end, three different people have tried to hire her for exactly the same case!

The thing I appreciate here is the way Pitts addresses cop racism. So many detective novels require the reader to suspend belief, to assume that every cop is fearlessly dedicated to finding out the unvarnished truth and arresting the perpetrator of the crime, regardless of race, ethnicity, or sexual orientation. But as Vandy conducts her investigation, Pitts keeps it real. At one point the detective speaks with a salon stylist that worked on Ivy’s hair, and he tells her that Ivy was afraid of someone at home. Vandy asks if he contacted the police.

“’The police?’ He jerked his neck, pursing his lips as if I’d farted. ‘Girl, you think the cops came here?’ He sniffed. ‘You don’t look like a fool. Maybe I read you wrong.’”

Sadly, the second half of the book doesn’t impress me as much as the first half does. I have a short list of tropes that I never want to see again in a mystery novel, and she trips a few, including my most hated one. I won’t go into details because it’s too far into the story, and I don’t want to spoil anything, but when it appears, I sit back, disengage from the text, and roll my eyes. Ohhh buh-ruther. As I continue reading, I can see who the murderer is well in advance, and the climax itself is a bit over the top, though without the tropes, I mightn’t have noticed this last issue.

In addition to the digital review copy, I have the audio. The reader does a fine job.

The more mysteries a person reads, the staler tropes become. I am perhaps more sensitive than most readers, having logged over a thousand novels in this genre. Readers that have not read many mysteries are less likely to be aware of, and therefore bothered by overused elements, and so this book may please you much more than it did me. But for hardened, crochety old readers such as myself, I recommend getting this book free or cheap, if you choose to read it. Newer readers may enjoy it enough to justify the sticker price.

Evander (Vandy) Myrick is the main character in Trouble in Queenstown. Her life imploded with the death of her college aged daughter. She moved back to her home town (Queenstown) and opened a private eye practice. Leo Hannah hires Vandy to follow his wife who was allegedly being stalked. Leo calls Vandy to his house to deliver her report. When she gets there, Leo’s wife and her alleged stalker are both dead. Because Leo’s aunt is the mayor, the investigation is fast tracked and marked solved. But Vandy decides to do some more investigating and uncovers political corruption and family unrest that involves her own family. Delia Pitts is a gifted writer that has a way with words. The descriptions made me feel like I was in Queenstown with Vandy. Grab a copy now.

I can't wait to read more books featuring detective Vandy Myrick. She's a kickass, take-no-prisoners, complex main character who you can't help but root for. Delia Pitts writing is evocative and sophisticated. She brings the fictional Queenstown to life, both the sordid and heroic characters leaping off the page. Highly recommend.

I tried so hard to like this one. It just didn't keep my attention the way I wanted. I read about 40% then I put it down. The characters and the writing was ok. I just think the plot wasn't as interesting and it seemed to drag. Maybe I'll pick it back up one day.

I was a little taken aback by the opening pages that felt almost like too much right off (similar to my reaction to Christa Faust’s Money Shot), but once we got to the case I was hooked and couldn’t put it down. I like how Pitts divides book into cases based on whose perspective Vandy is looking into, even though it’s an investigation of the same crime throughout. Vandy’s ability to connect with the people she meets on the job, without a king down or losing face, is as engaging as the twists each piece of evidence brings to the plot. The wrap-up felt a little too tidy, but that comes with the genre.

Vandy herself is a tough, lovable wreck coping with loss of her mother and daughter, as well as the ongoing loss of her dementia-patient father, the great police detective Evander Myrick. Add to that a great cast of secondary characters, plus a lived-in feel to the city of Queenstown, and I’m counting the days ‘til we get another book. This has the potential to be a really great detective series.