Member Reviews

Book 20 and still one of the best crime series out there! Strong female lead, complex and addictive plot, plenty of red herrings, and a team you feel you know. Keep them coming!

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An intricate and intriguing thriller,part of a series featuring Detective Josie Quinn and her team. Lots of twists and turns.

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Another very twisty mystery from Lisa Regan in this excellent crime series!

Detective Josie Quinn was supposed to be having a day off getting her house ready for a visit from the adoption agency case manager to assess her and Noah for their suitability to adopt a child. However, when their newest team member Kyle Turner, who everyone thinks is lazy and arrogant, called to say he had his hands full with a bank robbery so could she attend a traffic accident she reluctantly agrees. When she arrives at the scene of the accident, she instead finds that a pre-deceased body was found in the car with the injured driver, who says she doesn’t know who the woman is. Josie now has her hands full of a very difficult and demanding case.

Although Josie and Noah fairly quickly identify who might have stabbed the women, the person she is looking for likes to live outdoors, doesn’t have any way of contacting him and doesn’t trust anyone, let alone the police. They are also worried that the dead woman was holding a drawing by a child and are worried that there is a child involved somewhere.

This is a tough case to crack, but Josie as always follows her intuition to gradually unravel a complex web of secrets and lies and one very messed up family. Most of this is revealed towards the end of the book when Josie puts everything together and I did feel it was a lot to reveal all at once after keeping us in suspense for so long.

Along the way Josie’s and Gretchen’s thoughts about the obnoxious, work-shy Turner and why the Chief could ever have selected him out of all the excellent applicants they had, provide some humorous moments, as does Josie’s inept attempts at cooking. She knows she’s going to have to up her game if she and Noah are successful at adopting a child. It looks like Lisa Regan is going to make us wait for book 21 to find out what the story is with Turner and whether Josie and Noah will finally become parents.

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I loved this book! This is my first Josie Quinn book but will not be the last! The plot was engaging and fast paced. It was a unique situation. I'm going to buy all the others now!!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this arc in exchange for an honest review!

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To say I am a fan of this series would be a serious understatement, I literally count down the days to each new book and I have that fizz of excitement each and every time I am lucky enough to recieve an ARC. I'm that much of a fan, not only do I outwardly squeal and jump around every time but I also then purchase the second it's available just so I can have the hardcopy to lend out to anyone who will tolerate me going on about this series... yet again!

Book #20, yes you heard that right, starts with a more personal insight. The amazing, independent and strong willed woman Detective Josie Quinn nd her husband and team member Noah Fraley getting ready for an adoption assessment. After a year of trying with no luck they have decided to go down the adoption route which starts with a home visit. Whilst cleaning the house from top to bottom, on her day off, Josie recieves a call out to attend an RTA, it proves to be anything but a routine traffic accident.

The driver has defensive wounds but is alive and the passenger has passed away from multiple stab wounds with the weapon still impaled in her abdomen. On setting eyes on the deceased, Josie and her partner Gretchen can both see the woman had obviously been kept somewhere and starved and tortured but in her clenched hand is a child's drawing with the word 'Help' but no child was in the car.

With the driver not giving any details and no witnesses... where do they go from there? What happened, is there a child involved and if so where are they?

I absolutely love revisiting this series time and time again. The constant growth and build up of of the characters is just sublime to read. The way each characters development over the past 19 books has evolved has been an absolute joy to read and I can picture them so clearly it's like I'm riding alongside them with each installment. I love the way that Josie is portrayed as this fiercely independent, complex, strong capable woman but has pure vulnerability around Noah. She's not only likeable but completely relatable.

No#20 was a completely different read to the past couple, this was alot more case focused than personal. We don't really see or hear anything from Josie's family or Cindy this time around, which personally makes getting excited for the next book even more thrilling as each book changes slightly. You'll read a couple of books that are more personal and then an installment pops in that's alot more case focused and you realise you miss the other characters and want to know 2hats happening with them!

I have enjoyed every single chapter from every single book in this series and am now waiting (impatiently) in anticipation for book#21.

Massive thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for the ARC.

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Normally I get bored with a series that has 20 books in it but Lisa Regan knows how to change things up.
Each book is a murder mystery but Lisa makes sure to change up the story line so it’s not the same just with different characters.

This series is fantastic and I can’t wait to read the next book. Definitely one of my favorite authors for sure.

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Lisa Regan’s latest Josie Quinn book, Her Dying Secret, was a great book. This was not my favorite book of JQ as I feel something has been off with her since watching one of her partners pass away. I love JQ but I think seeing her out of her element like in the last book entertained me more. I feel JQ’s family has not been a strong presence in the last couple of books and that makes Josie not as strong. I feel JQ has lost a little mojo and doubts herself. I think also putting up with a new and annoying co-worker is getting to her. If you are a fan of these books, you will also enjoy this one. Her Dying Secret will be published May 14, 2024. Thank you Netgalley and Book on Tours for this advanced copy to read. Instagram: anovoselac

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👧What a tangled web: tense hunt for a little girl taken😧

I just couldn't put this one down! The police search kept turning up more and more wrinkles as they process a horrific car wreck and suspect that a child is still in danger from a man with violent delusions. It's a great, unpredictable plot and principal Denton police officers Josie and her husband Noah have to deal with a lot of frustration, missed opportunities and injury on the trail of a killer.

This story kept me guessing and that's the biggest positive for me in a murder mystery. I liked the added conflict brought in with Turner, a fairly new member of the police team who irritates all of his colleagues. Plus, Josie's concern for the missing child dovetails into a brief glimpse or two into Jose's home life.

Although there are some brief references to previous books in the series, this is a true standalone.

Thanks to Bookouture and NetGalley for sharing a complimentary advance copy of the book; this is my voluntary and honest opinion.

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Detective Josie Quinn is called out to the scene of a traffic accident because one of the victims was found to have been killed before the accident. How do they know? The weapon was still stuck in her abdomen, with her hand wrapped around it. Not only that, but she was malnourished to the point of being skeletal. The worst part is the child’s drawing clutched in her hand. Did they leave the child behind at the crime scene? Were they on the way to save the child? The only one who can tell them is the driver of the vehicle, a woman named Mira, but she claims amnesia when questioned at the hospital about the accident. Josie is determined not to give up on this line of inquiry and continues to have Mira questioned whenever possible for new information.

While looking into Mira’s life, they discover her connection to a horse farm close to the accident location. There’s literally nowhere else on that stretch of highway that the women could have been. The owners are grudgingly helpful, and Josie soon suspects a family member is somehow involved. But there’s no sign that any crime took place on their property. What could possibly have happened to these women and where is the child who made the drawing?

There’s an emotional personal connection for Josie throughout the case due to her and Noah’s current family situation. It’s a good example of what makes the characters in this series so relatable. I do hope that the Chief’s hiring of Turner is explained soon – he’s such a terrible detective yet there seems to be no hurry to get rid of him. He hinders every case more than he assists and where does he keep disappearing to? He’s like that one co-worker we all have! I guess we’ll just have to keep putting up with him in this series just like in life!

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Book Title: Her Dying Secret
Author: Lisa Regan
Series: Detective Josie Quinn Book #20
Publisher: Bookouture
Genre: Mystery Thriller
Pub Date: May 14, 2024
My Rating: 4 Stars
Pages: 255


As you know this is Book #20 so if you are new to Josie Quinn you will miss a lot of back information but I believe you will still enjoy it. Author, Lisa Regan does try to review Josie’s childhood so that hew readers are not completely lost.
When Josie was three weeks old she was kidnapped by the Lila Jensen the woman who cleaned her parents’ home. She set the house
on fire; which had the authorities believe Josie died in the fire. Lila took Josie to Eli Matson in Denton and told him he was the father. He
believe her and ending up raising Josie until he died when she was six. She was then raised and loved by Lisette Matson the woman she
thought was her real grandmother.

Now Jose is a Police Detective and her husband Noah a Lieutenant; they are members of a four-person investigative team which includes Gretchen Palmer the location is the small town of Denton, Pennsylvania.
Story starts when Josie and Noah have started the adoption process and the case worker is scheduled for the next day. Josie who is not known for her culinary skills just had pasta sauce explode leaving sauce all over the kitchen; she fears the case worker is going to hold this against them. (Now positive Turners role but he sure is annoying.)
The scene is actually humorous but nothing seems to bother Noah when it comes to his love for Josie. As they are cleaning up the sauce which is everywhere including the ceiling, Josie received a call asking if she would investigate a car accident. She, of course, does leaving Noah on a ladder cleaning the ceiling she finds that the accident involved two women, one died and the other injured. It appears that the woman driving was murdered before the car accident.

Now Josie and the investigation team need to find the child involved as their life is surely is in danger.

As always Lisa Regan doesn’t disappoint.

We follow Josie and Noah’s journey on their way of becoming parents.

Hoping that happens in Book #21!!!!

I boarded the Lisa Regan/Josie Quinn train late with book - and I call myself a big fan of both Lisa Regan and Josie!

Want to thank NetGalley and Bookouture for this early eGalley.
Publishing Release Date scheduled for May 14, 2024.

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Detective Josie Quinn and her husband, Lt. Noah Fraley, are busy preparing for a home visit as part of the adoption process. Josie is called out for a traffic accident in rural Denton - and it's got a homicide. One woman is barely conscious and a second woman is dead... in terrible physical condition. And clutched in the dead woman's hand in a drawing made by a young child with a desperate plea on it. With one of the best supporting casts, Josie is solely focused on finding the young child, and figure out why the woman who survived the accident has disappeared. Lisa Regan has created such a strong, loyal character in Josie Quinn - and if you're not hooked on this series, you need to be. I don't know how Ms. Regan does it but each book just keeps getting better and better. I look so forward to each and every one. Her Dying Secret is absolutely outstanding! Thank you to Bookouture for an advanced reader of this book. The opinions expressed about this incredible book are my own.

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I loved reuniting with the crew! The last book was a departure from the authors previous books in the series, and more focused on Josie than the cast of characters. I was thrilled to be reunited with the other characters in this book! The case in this installment was twisty and dark. I loved it and can’t wait for the next in the series!

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Book 20 delivers!!

The opening scene leaves you instantly intrigued, who is this man? What has he done? And who is the little girl with him, who is she to him?

A fatal road accident, that is not all that it initially seems, brings the whole team together to hunt for a killer and a child they hope is still alive. While the team have a suspect in their sights, on their search for him and the connection between the women in the car accident, you won’t be prepared for the various revelations, twists and turns in this story.

As for the other reason I’m a fan of this series, the characters and along with the case they are working, is the continued story of the team. Josie and Noah, serving up many moments filled with love and humor to put a smile on your face. We also get to know the newbie on the team, Turner. If you had an impression of him from the brief snippet from book 19, wait for the full impact of this guy, the detective you will love to hate.

Lisa does an amazing job of weaving a great mystery and continued character development together to keep you hooked, not only to know what the next crime they will tackle, but what will happen in each of the teams' lives.

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Wow! This book will keep you turning the pages! My attention was caught at the very beginning when Josie and her team were brought in to investigate a car accident. The suspense did not let up chapter after chapter! Great book Lisa Regan!

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Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my copy of this book.

When a passenger is found stabbed to death and the driver stabbed too, detective Jodie Quinn is called in to investigate. Who are these women and how are they related, and what is the strange drawing found in the dead woman’s hand.

This is one hell of a series! So good.

This book had me guessing from start to finish. So many characters who could have been guilty and so little evidence for the team to wade through.

Josie is such a likeable character. She’s shown more and more of her vulnerable side, since her grandmother died and in this book she really showed that she’s not the strong and unfeeling person she had seemed.

I enjoyed the humour that came from their frustrations with the new team member Turner.

This is one I highly recommend and look forward to the next!

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This book was an intricate police procedural with so series action and a tightly woven mystery. The characters are the heart of the mystery are not as they appear in the beginning. You come across an accident with 2 victims who seemingly don’t know each other, and one is deceased and the other knows nothing. In your mind you start to build a narrative and then you scrap the entire narrative because the author is full of surprises which she unleashes in this book.
I thought the juxtaposition between Josie’s journey and the story only heightened the drama. We have Josie, our heroine detective working hard to find a child in her professional live while in her personal life she is working hard to bring a child into her life through adoption. The delicate balancing act is only made possible by Noah who is a super supportive partner. Josie reminded me a little of Kenzie from NCIS as she faced similar obstacles with the same guts, determination, and supportive partner.
We follow Josie and often Gretchen as we uncover the clues to let the rule mystery fall into place. As you read and the narrative you built unravels a new stronger one takes it place. I enjoyed reading about most of the characters except the lazy detective. We all work with that slacker character in our regular lives at some point, but the stakes are much higher in this case.
I will admit that I read this series completely out of order and while that may make the chronology confusing, the story is good enough the read stand alone. I have more books from this series that are unread on my kindle and that is something I plan to quickly rectify because this series in enjoyable.
Thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to read this ARC.

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I always think the most recent Josie Quinn book is the best and here I am again, at Book 20, feeling like this is the best one yet! I loved how the story unfolded by knowing so much and still knowing there was going to be a major twist … which was absolutely unexpected and jaw-dropping! I loved getting to know Turner more in this book. Lisa has a way of perfectly describing characters and scenes so that I feel like I’m watching the events unfold with them! This book was a true masterpiece of storytelling and entertainment. 10/10 recommend!!

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Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with this book for free in exchange for my review! All opinions are my own.

This book was a good one. I haven't read any other books in this series, so at times I was confused, but I still enjoyed the story. I especially love neighborhood centered thrillers.

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Josie Quinn and her team have another strange case involving a murder and abduction. There are lots of clues, but it's hard to fit them together, especially as they adjust to including Turner, a new team member. He's replacing Mettner who was killed in the line of duty. Of course they figure it out, but it was tough putting all the pieces together. As proficient as she is in putting the clues together, her lack of cooking skills when she goes home keeps it light and humorous. Another unputdownable book!

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It was supposed to be a routine road accident recovery, but the moment Detective Josie Quinn sees the passenger—pale and painfully thin, a sharp tool lodged in her stomach—it’s clear she was the victim of something far more sinister, and likely dead before the crash. Watching the driver taken away in an ambulance, questions spin through Josie’s mind. Where were these two women going? Was the driver trying to save a life, or hide a body?

Lisa Regan at her very best. I have read all of the Josie Quinn books in the series so far and Regan has never failed to produce a thrilling read. The pace is fast and the cast of characters are believable and well described. We also see developments in the relationships between Josie and Noah, as well as with the newest character, Turner. Didn't seem to be as many 'red herrings' in this one as in previous books but don't let that put you off. It is a real page turner and has a satisfying conclusion. I think this one would also be a good stand alone read as it does not rely heavily on previous knowledge of the characters. With many thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the ARC.

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