"Westport" by James Comey brings a fresh twist to the legal thriller genre, merging the world of finance with the tension of a murder investigation. After relocating to Connecticut as lead counsel at Saugatuck Associates, Nora Carleton’s life is upended when her friend and colleague, Helen, is found murdered, leaving Nora as the prime suspect. The mystery only deepens when Nora realizes Helen’s death may be linked to an insider trading scheme they were investigating together.

I really enjoyed this novel as it was both intriguing and tense. I have spent some time visiting the locations described so it was great to be able to picture the locations. The book’s characters are intriguing and the suspects are very unlikeable, with a feel of "Succession" to them!!

With its taut pacing, authentic legal insights, and relatable protagonist, "Westport" captivates both as a mystery and a character-driven thriller. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

She's the lawyer, but now she's on trial.

A red canoe is found abandoned on Seymour Rock, where the Saugatuck River meets Long Island Sound. Inside lies the elegantly dressed corpse of a woman.

Nora Carleton left New York to become the lead counsel at Saugatuck Associates, the world's largest hedge fund. Her life there was slower and more predictable until her colleague and friend, Helen, was brutally murdered, making Nora the prime suspect.

In the months before Helen's death, she and Nora were investigating insider trading within the company. Nora believes this investigation is connected to Helen's murder and is determined to uncover the truth.

With the help of old colleagues, Mafia investigator Benny Dugan and attorney Carmen Garcia, Nora must find evidence to prove her innocence and avoid imprisonment.

Thank you so much to the author - James Comey as well as Andrew and the team at Head of Zeus for posting the proof copy!

"Westport" tell us the story of Nora Carleton, that leads a counsel at Saugatuck Associates, the world’s largest hedge fund. When her colleague and friend, Helen, is brutally murdered, Nora becomes the prime suspect. Helen and Nora were investigating someone within the company who was using insider information to undercut Saugatuck’s investments. Nora must find evidence to prove her innocence…


James Comey's writing is undeniably compelling, rich in detail, and deeply atmospheric. His experience in law enforcement shines through, providing an authentic backdrop to the unfolding drama. However, "Westport" didn't quite meet my expectations as a thriller. The pacing felt somewhat uneven, and the build-up to key suspenseful moments didn't evoke the edge-of-your-seat intensity that I had anticipated…

Westport is the second book by James Comey featuring Nora Carleton. In his first book, Central Park West, Nora was working in the US Attorney’s office; in this book she has moved to Connecticut to join a hedge fund as lead counsel When her boss, Helen, the COO who brought Nora into the firm, is found dead, it soon becomes clear that someone is trying to frame Nora for the murder. Enlisting the help of friend and investigator Benny, Nora soon finds out that for an organisation supposedly built on honesty, there are some pretty murky secrets at the firm as well as some questionable professional practices - and it becomes a search for the truth to prove Nora’s innocence.

Comey obviously knows his onions when it comes to the legal system and it is his experience in both the public and the private sector that lends an authenticity to the story. Add to that some strong character development - Nora is a fascinating and likeable character and with two other standouts in Benny and Nora’s mother Teresa as well as a strong supporting cast - and a storyline that is well paced and intriguing and it all makes for a page turner of a book. With plenty of red herrings to keep the reader guessing - and questioning whether the suspicions they have are the right ones - the story builds as it all skilfully comes together at the end.

For me this was even better than Comey’s first book - you don’t need to have read the first one to read this, but if you like crime thrillers with a bit of courtroom action, then these are both books I would recommend - and look forward to hearing more from Nora.

I thoroughly enjoyed James Comey’s debut, Central Park West, when I read it at the beginning of the year (you can read my review here) so I was delighted to be offered an ARC of the sequel, Westport, which follows the protagonist of the previous book, Nora Carleton, as she moves out of New York and in to a new challenge.

The author really seems to have hit his stride with this second book. This is a much stronger thriller than book one with the antagonist and the reasons behind the crime much more subtley hinted at than in the last book where it was made much more obvious. The crime was clever and I really loved the concept of Nora herself being the prime suspect, it gave a sense of urgency and greater peril to the story.

All of my favourite characters were back, which I was glad about as I’d wondered if the author was going to be able to bring them in, given the change in location from New York to Connecticut and the swapping of FBI Mob prosecutions to the world of private investment in a preppy, New England setting. The setting itself really added to the book for me as well, as I am a sucker for any book set in New England, one of my favourite corners of the US, so I hoovered this one up.

The characters are really the strength of these novels, though, and the relationships between them. I absolutely love Nora as the protagonist, especially the fact that she is a single mother trying to hold down a job in law whilst bringing up her daughter and maintain a good relationship with her ex – I can relate! My favourite character, though, is Benny and I am happy to think he will be a feature in Nora’s life for the foreseeable, given what happens in this book (no spoilers!)

This is a solid entry in the canon of legal thrillers and I am really glad to see that this book is even better than the first one. I am already looking forward to the next instalment and can highly recommend this book to fans of John Grisham and Michael Connelly.

Mr Comey follows up his brilliant debut, Central Park West, with Westport which is another cracking thriller.

With his experience as head of the FBI, and his previous role working in finance, Comey has created another believable story and some fantastic characters which jump off the page. Some of the characters reappear from Central Park West, but Westport can easily be read as a stand alone. I loved tough guy ‘Mr Rough’ Benny, legendary Mafia investigator and who worked with Nora in her previous role at the US Attorney’s office. He drops everything to come to help his friend prove her innocence, despite glaringly obvious clues pointing to Nora as a murderer. He believes her claim that she is being set up. What an asset to have in your corner!

I also really liked Nora as a character. Caught up in a murder investigation and trying to juggle her home life with work and now being the prime suspect. She keeps a level head throughout.

The story is fast paced and gripping, with plenty of threads to keep the reader intrigued. As well as a murder, there is a ‘front runner’ dealing in shares just before the finance company Nora and Helen work for places their share deals, and therefore making a lot of money. There are a handful of shady suspects who may have wanted to harm Helen, as she knew about the skeletons in their closets. But which one hated her enough to murder her? And who is the front runner?

Loved the tongue in cheek reference to Ironside, which Nora calls her close friend and wheelchair bound co-worker Rob, and which I totally understood as I used to watch the show!

James Comey was already on my auto read author list after his debut, and I look forward to his next novel which is book three in this trilogy. The quality and authenticity of his writing shines through the pages.

Really great thriller, back with Nora which is great - its a bit of a mystery and a financial thriller -
you can tell the author is authentically writing about matters he knows about which
takes the story to another level. gripping read, looking forward to the next one!

Another top read from James Comey. I had the pleasure of reading book one where readers were introduced to Nora Carleton, she was then working in the US Attorneys office in NYC. This time she is lead council in Saugatuck Associates in Westport, Connecticut, the worlds largest hedge fund. She has been recruited by Helen Carmichael who is Chief Operating Officer for the company. Nora was hired as Helen believed someone was using insider knowledge to do some front running, to make money on the side. Nora has been there for 2 years and it seems they are no closer to finding the culprit.

But when Helen is found murdered and circumstantial evidence points to Nora. She knows she has to prove she is innocent. But who would frame her? And why?

I thoroughly enjoyed this i read it in one sitting, the chapters are short and sharp. With some well written characters both the likeable and unlikeable. There are a few parts where it made me laugh with conversations with Nora and her mum Theresa.

This can easily be read as a stand alone novel, some good legal matters are dealt with which are interesting but as the author knows about these things you know it's real. I really hope that Benny Dugan appears in more books as i really liked his character, Great plot, with a twist at the end that i had a hunch about but didn't know how it was going to go. I look forward to see what Nora does in the next book.

Thank you to #netgalley and @HoZ_Books for an eARC of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own and have not been influenced in any way.

4.5 stars
Westport is another brilliant thrill ride from James Comey. Fast paced and packed full of action, this new story for Nora and Benny is great.
I loved how we were reunited with Nora and Benny this time and love their Ms Smooth and Mr Rough routine.
The mystery is this one is many layered and as we get deeper into the crime it only shows up more secrets and possibilities. Benny takes more of a central role as Nora is obviously constrained by the accusations- and I loved his approach to the case and his attitude and unwavering support for Nora. With Benny in her corner what can go wrong??

I was really impressed with Central Park West when I read it last year so I was very excited to get my mitts on this, the second outing for Nora Carleton.
She has moved on in the time between books, left her position with the US Attorney's Office and is now lead counsel at the world's largest hedge fund company - Saugatuck Associates. Along with a relocation out of the City, to Westport. Well... that is on the face of things, she actually has a secret agenda within the company that only a few other employees know about. Surreptitiously investigating fraud, probably stemming from within the company, involving employees.
When Helen, her friend, and one of the few people who know her real purpose is brutally murdered, Nora feels responsible as she thinks it might be something to do with what she is investigating. When she becomes the main suspect, the stakes get a bit higher, so she calls on her old colleagues, Benny Dugan and Carmen Garcia, to help both clear her name and bring the real murderer to justice...
Well... I raced through this book - rapt by each and every word. I think it would help if you have read Central Park West first as it explains more of Nora's background and her connections with Benny and Carmen. And it's a cracking book too!
So, we have two main themes herein, possibly connected; the fraud within the hedge fund company and the murder of an employee. We also have a side thread of Nora being framed, quite badly but the evidence can't be ignored. These weave in and out and meander around each other until, on the way to the rather explosive finish, it all starts to pull together nicely, leaving me with an ending that wholly satisfied.
It's so very well and tightly plotted, played out by the best characters, old and new, and with no waffle or padding, it really gets on with itself very well indeed. In fact. the only bad thing about it was getting to the end and having to say goodbye once again to the characters. Hopefully the next in series won't be too long coming. My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

Nora Carleton has left New York and the US Attorneys Office for the affluent suburbs of Westport, Connecticut. She is now lead legal counsel for a billion dollar hedge fund. Nora’s life is pretty great until her colleague and close friend is found dead with her throat slit. With the evidence pointing squarely at her as the prime suspect, can she work out who did it before she’s arrested or worse.

I haven’t read the first book so I was coming in blind but was at no disadvantage when picking this up. The only downside to not having read the first one is reading more about Nora. She’s a wonderful, witty and sharp protagonist and provides a nice contrast to the expect douchey finance bros and snakey management at the hedge fund. The scenes with her family and work family are a delight and are written really well.

The authors writing is engaging and insightful - clearly helped massively by his previous career is Director of the FBI. Whatever your opinion of the author and his politics, it’s clear that he has a talent for legal thrilling. The book hooks me in a way that few authors in the genre can, like John Grisham, and I couldn’t wait to finish it for all the best reasons.

I look forward to finding out what Nora will be investigating next and more about the characters especially the newfound relationship between Benny and her mother Teresa.

Thanks to James and Netgalley for allowing me to read Westport prior to the publication date. Although this is the second book in the series, the first has been on my TBR list for a while, but will now jump up the priority list.
With the right actors, it would make a good tv drama, full of intrigue.

It is set within Saugatuck Associates, an organisation which promotes its core values as Truth and Transparency.
In return for high salaries and free food and drink, the staff are willing to accept this, whilst sacrificing their own privacy, their every conversation being recorded within the offices.

James has created a raft of colourful characters, introducing a smidgen of humour in some of the character’s names.
The Deputy General Counsel, Louis Lambert, immediately conjured up images of Louis Litt in the Suits series.
The interaction between Nora and Benny Dugan is superb.
Although a work of fiction, the amount of information about DNA, police procedures and the various legislation which applies in different US states was interesting and pertinent to the book.

A big company is like a village, it’s board room is like the Manor. If someone is murdered in the ‘Manor’, the police will suspect a ‘family’ member, as will the reader. Saugatuck Associates is a massive Hedge Fund based in Westport, Connecticut, so when it’s COO, Helen Carmichael, is murdered, attention naturally swings towards the other members of the Board. Focusing this way is ‘assisted’ by the fact that she was found with her throat cut in the canoe belonging to Nora Carleton, the company’s General Counsel (head of the legal section), and some of Helen’s blood was found on her car. The local police chief think’s it’s a slam-dunk, but Demi Kofatos, the Detective in charge of the investigation is more cautious. For a start, all of the people involved, including the victim, are rich and influential and the top people are billionaires, but more obviously because no one as smart as Nora would leave blatant clues to their guilt. Also there is no obvious motive. Nevertheless, Nora is in a tight situation. Fortunately, she has useful contacts from her previous job, in the form of Benny Dugan (Special Agent) in the US Justice Department) and Carmen Garcia (top lawyer in the Manhattan US Attorney’s office). Benny takes leave and becomes Nora’s investigator while Carmen is retained as her lawyer. It soon becomes clear that every one of the senior management has a motive for killing Helen. But which one and why become the focus of the investigation.
This is the second book featuring Nora Carleton, former assistant US Attorney in NY, now head hunted to Saugatuck (by Helen) with the aim of discovering who is behind a clever fraud. It is perfectly readable as a standalone. As I pointed out at the beginning, the story is a variant of the murder-mystery trope where a group of suspects is in an enclosed environment, and it follows that format fairly tightly. It is well written and coherent, with a reasonable cast of characters who are well constructed, but mostly not very memorable. There is good background on the various forensic and technological aspects, not to mention the ins and outs of the US legal and judicial systems. It is, however, not very tense even when people are clearly in jeopardy, which should be a major factor in this genre. It is too easy to work out who the murderer is and their motive, but there is enough interest in the mechanics to keep reading. Overall, I think 3.5 stars is appropriate, which rounds to 4.
I would like to thank NetGalley, the publishers and the author for providing me with a draft proof copy for the purpose of this review.

4.5 stars. Thoroughly enjoyed James’ second novel. A great mix of legal thriller, psychological thriller and police procedural. Some likeable characters but equally some that you dislike due to their past discretions and current actions. Highly recommend!

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the chance to ARC this book.

This is the follow up to Central Park West , by former FBI director James Comey, which once again utilises his professional expertise as he immerses the reader in the world of high finance and corporate espionage at Saugatuck Associates, a hugely profitable hedge fund. In this tense thriller, Nora Carleton has relocated to Westport, recruited by CFO Helen Carmichael, as their legal counsel, and to use her investigative skills, below the radar, to look into suspicions of 'front running', with someone making a fortune from insider dealing. Nora is now extremely well rewarded, allowing the purchase of a big home, a great school for her 8 year old daughter, Sophie, and is supported by her mother, Teresa.

Her workplace, run by the eccentric David Jepson, is certainly different with its culture of truth telling and is anti gossip, but everything is turned upside down when a murdered Helen is discovered in a canoe owned by Nora, and there is blood on her car. Someone is trying to frame Nora for murder, and instinctively she calls former colleagues, mafia investigator, Benny Dugan, and Carmen Garcia, who do not hesitate to help. Benny joins with Security Director, Laslo Reiner, to look into potential suspects, as Nora finds herself suspended, with local detective, Demi Kofatos, not quite buying into her guilt, although her boss, Tom Dunham, is desperate to have Nora charged. The victim Helen turns out to have secret files, she had external PIs dig into the dirt and secrets of members of an MC that fails to live up to their culture and instead resembles a snake pit.

This is a fast paced, well plotted, and intriguing mystery thriller, packed with suspense and tension, that had me rapidly turning the pages right up to the tense conclusion with the revelation of a surprising killer. We are left with developments in which once again Nora is moving home for her new position, I look forward with great anticipation to the next in this exciting series by an author who has made himself entirely comfortable in the crime and mystery genre. Many thanks to the publisher for an ARC.

Westport” by James Comey is a good mystery novel that keeps readers engaged from start to finish. The story unfolds in a quirky investment business based in a quaint New England town, setting the stage for a classic closed-room murder mystery with a modern twist.

Comey crafts a diverse cast of personalities, each with their own quirks and complexities. As the story progresses, these characters grow on you, making it easy to become invested in their fates and motivations.

With its clever twists and turns, Comey keeps readers guessing until the very end. The closed-room setting adds an extra layer of tension, as suspicion mounts and secrets are revealed. Comey delivers a neat solution that ties up loose ends while still leaving room for surprises.

Westport is James Comey’s second crime thriller.

The précis of the book is good however I felt it just didn’t quite deliver on its promise with the “investigation” being slightly padded with the book losing some of its pace at times. I also managed to work out “whodunnit” quite early on.

Overall it was a decent and enjoyable read.

A brilliant character driven story that left me wanting to know more about each person and to experience more of their interactions which were endlessly entertaining. Don’t get me wrong, the storyline was excellent too and it took me til close to the end to figure it all out but in this book it’s the relationships that win the day. Thank you to Netgalley for the advance reader copy.

This book took me a few chapters to get into, but once in I was addicted. the body of a woman found in a canoe and all the evidence points to the perpetrator as being Nora Carleton. She didn't do it, others around her don't think she did but the police are looking at her as being the number one suspect.

Nora lives with her daughter and mother, she has joined a hedge fund company called Saugatuck Associates. She was friends with the victim, Helen, and Nora was aware that there was an investigation being run by Helen. Nora found Helen a nice woman, got on well and were friends.

Nora has friends in the best places, and she calls on them to help her. Benny works for the US attorney's office and Carmen is an attorney. The three of them start to dig and delve into Saugatuck and the hierarchy that runs the show.

Saugatuck is an interesting company that the author has created and it adds an interesting twist. Truth and transparency are something the company preaches and expects its employees to do the same. Some do, some think they do and some don't. Working out which falls into which category makes for some interesting reading. As they look into Helen they discover she was running a personal investigation and she has discovered many secrets.

It took me a while to get to grips initially, I think that was because I wasn't sure where the story was going, to be honest though, if I had read the synopsis it would have helped! Also, I couldn't quite get a feel for the story or the characters, however, after a few chapters things started to happen and my interest was definitely piqued. I should also mention this is a follow-on from a previous book!

This is a murder mystery and one the author has added twists and red herrings to many times. It keeps you on your toes. There are also some light-hearted moments and this helps to alleviate some of the tension for Nora. There are several characters for the author and reader to deal with, but actually, these are used really well. Brought up when needed for questioning or being referred to, this means these additional characters are always in context rather than popping up randomly.

The main characters are memorable and some have some unique traits, these worked well in the storyline and also gave some of that light-heartedness I mentioned.

This is a complex book as I sit now and write my review, but at the time it had a wonderful flow and I didn't feel out of my depth. One for those who like crime, murder and mystery stories and one I would happily recommend.

I thoroughly enjoyed this thriller, a mix of whodunit and financial thriller. Even if the background is complex the author did a good job in keeping everything simple and delivering a gripping plot
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine