A World of Hurt by Mindy Mejia and narrated by Justis Bolding & Brian Hutchison is a belter of a thriller but I need to put it on hold and catch up. Not saying that it doesn't quite gel as a standalone, more like I want to understand the background story. I will likely edit this when I have completed both

Stunning writing, beautifully read

Thank you to NetGalley, RBmedia | Recorded Books ,Mindy Meija and the narrators for this ALC. My review is left voluntarily and all opinions are my own

I want to be clear that I did not read the first book in this series, and I wasn't aware that this was a continuation until I was about halfway through. Despite this, I found that I could understand the story and follow along without feeling lost. There was ample backstory and explanations of previous events. However, if I had read the first book, I might have found it frustrating to see the plot rehashed in this one. Nevertheless, not reading the first book worked out fine for me. While I would have benefited from it to better understand some character interactions and backstories, it wasn't a major issue.

The story was pretty fast-paced with Kara's POV being told in a lot of flashbacks. How she got to where she is today and her love story with the ill-fated girlfriend. We see a lot of COVID. A LOT of COVID. This does happen amid the breaking in of the pandemic with tensions on the rise due to everyone being at home. There is a lot of commentary in there, that seemed to not try to be or to try to have both sides. Every other page was someone yelling at someone else to "mask up". Working in Healthcare during all that, I am ok leaving that trauma behind me. There were plenty of twists and turns and the story was enjoyable as we go on a hunt for drugs/money.

This was a great follow up to the first book! It answered all of the questions that I had. The premise was so interesting, I was fully invested from book one. The fast paced, tension filled, suspenseful writing kept me engaged and frantically turning pages. I alternated between kindly and audio on this one and both were fantastic!

A former drug dealer and cop team up to solve a murder. The writing is fast-paced and intense, typical of Mejia. Lots of twists and red herrings make this both suspenseful and entertaining. Multiple narrators do an excellent job on this audiobook version.

This is book two in the series and while some series can be read as stand-alone novels, I really feel like I would have benefited from reading book one first, but I didn’t know it existed! I found myself really wanting for more of the backstories of the characters and felt a little cheated without that, until I realized I would have gotten all that in the first book.

This one dives right into the life of Kara, former drug trafficker and heartbroken forlorn lover, who now is set to team up with the DEA, in an attempt to take down the kingpin of the very drug underworld she used to be a part of.

Max is the DEA agent assigned to work with Kara. Max is coming off of having been badly hurt twice in a row and Kara could not be any more of his polar opposite. Kara has a condition in which she cannot feel pain. This makes her quite the badass, and made her story all that more interesting to read. Max’s backstory made him a little more dull of a character. The two have some distrust in each other to start, but they settle into a pretty heartwarming relationship by the end of their journey.

I thought the heavy Covid-19 references were an interesting choice. Many references to masks, distancing, dangers etc. Didn’t have too much bearing on the story overall and I feel this subplot may prematurely date the book in an odd way.

Despite this, it was a pretty fast moving, cool suspenseful novel with points that certainly had me guessing. If you enjoy police procedural type stories, you may like this one! But read book one first 😜

Kara is trying to bring to light her girlfriend’s death and bring down her former drug lord boss. But DEA Max is realizing that Kara is keeping something from him. It’s her condition. She feels no pain. Max feels like he is just the babysitter of Kara while she is supplying him with intel to bring the operation down.

In the end Max takes her under his thing and they work together to bing the operation down and get Justin’s for her girlfriend that was killed because she took the fall for Kara.

This is a sequel and I do not feel that it works very well as a standalone.

I did get a copy from the library of book one and that helped make the story more enjoyable but it really needed to be sold as a continuation.

I loved the characters and the plot though!

3.5 stars

A drug trafficker joins a DEA task force under the promise that her girlfriend's death will be brought to light and vindicated and that she won't have to go to prison. She works together with an Iowa City police officer on the task force to help expose a drug kingpin, but he's much closer to them than they think.

Set during the COVID pandemic for an added air of tension and fear, this crime thriller is full of twists and turns that kept me listening intently until the end. The dual perspectives of Kara and Max gave this story the dimension that it needed. Great narration.

Another great effort by Mindy Mejia! I still need to go back and check out the first book in this series. This one works fine as a standalone, however.

I received an early edition of this book in exchange for my review. I listened to the audio version and the narration did a great job and is easy to listen to. This was my first experience with this author and this series, but I was able to still follow the storyline and understand the characters. I enjoyed have a story unfolded. It covers difficult topics fit in a way that wasn’t too graphic or too exhaustive. The development of the main character was strong and you found yourself rooting for her despite her flaws. I am looking forward to reading more in this series.

Kara Johnson works for a drug kingpin, and has the rather unusual condition of being unable to feel pain - a useful quality in her line of work. But all that changes when her boss Sam has her girlfriend Selina killed, because he (wrongly) suspects her of being the mole in his organisation.

Kara is devastated. Not least by the part she has unknowingly played in Selina's death. And it changes everything for her...

Mindy Mejia has written a complex story involving distinctive characters with mixed motives. I liked both Max and Jonah, as well as Gillian the vet who has more than her fair share of unusual patients!

I think the story could have been shorter, and Kara's internal monologues about Selina at times felt repetitive, but overall, this was an interesting story. Mateo the cockatoo was a nice touch.

Max's marriage and his friendship with Jonah were both interesting and brought something unexpected to the book. The pandemic is almost an additional character in the story. The book will appeal to those who are interested in organised crime stories and DEA- type protagonists, as Max is here.

This is the second book in the Iowa Mysteries series. This book can be read as a standalone, but there are references to storylines and appearances of characters from book 1. I switched back and forth between the audiobook and the ebook. The audio was narrated by Justis Bolding and Brian Hutchison. I thought they did a great job portraying these characters, the story and the suspenseful scenes.

The story follows Detective Max Summerlin and former drug runner Kara Johnson. The head of the DEA task force targeting the drug traffickers from book 1 hunts down Kara where she’s been hiding in Canada since the events of To Catch a Storm. Then he assigns Max, local law enforcement that’s been assigned to liaise with the task force, to be Kara’s handler during the operation. He hopes that Kara will be able to lead them back to the person behind the drug ring, but especially to the hidden cache. Kara is all for revenge and Max, well, is just Max, I guess. The storyline for the mystery was good but not edge of my seat for me.

Max and Kara clash from the start. Kara makes assumptions about Max and vice versa. I found it all a bit annoying. Honestly, Max annoyed me in this book as much as he annoyed me in the first. I missed Jonah and his psychic abilities to temper Max’s holier than thou attitude. He thinks all sorts of enlightened thoughts but then he stays silent and observes instead of participating in life or speaking up against bullies or for what’s right. He does everything in his power to avoid conflict whether it’s with his wife, his fellow officers and in the case of Kara, he makes assumptions without asking questions. I did enjoy learning about Kara’s CIP Disorder.

Limited recommendations to those who enjoyed To Catch a Storm and/or enjoy DEA type thrillers.

Thank you to Netgalley, Grove Atlantic, and Recorded Books for a copy provided for an honest review.

I didn’t realize that this was a sequel when I requested it and I felt like I was missing a bit of context. I would definitely read To Catch a Storm first! I didn’t think the book was bad, but I do think I may have enjoyed it more if I read the books in the correct order. Reader error!

I loved this book! Although I didn’t read the book before this one, A World of Hurt works great as a standalone novel. (I’ll be sure to go back & read the first one, since this one was so enjoyable.) This page turner is a very fast paced, action-packed mystery/psychological thriller. It took me a second to really get into it, but once I did, I couldn’t put it down. The characters are likable and enough background is given to be able to completely immerse yourself in the story. Highly recommend for those who like a somewhat different twist on investigative techniques. Great narration provided by Justis Bolding & Brian Hutchinson.

This was a very interesting and unexpected book.

It did make me think about life in a completely different context.

When I requested this book, I did not know it was the 2nd in the series, but it did not affect the flow of the book or how I connected with the characters. I am sure if I had the context of the first book I would have enjoyed it that much more.

I am not sure if I could or would call this a typical thriller, for me it was more of an action/adventure kind of book with police and drug procedural pieces along the way. So, if you are looking for a more domestic thriller, or murder mystery, this is not the book for you. If you are looking for a Covid-19, who's going to get one over on who, action/police type book, this is the one for you.

I am not sure if I would get this again, but I am also not disappointed in the listen either.

This book was just alright. Not a huge fan of MC Kara, nor Max. The story itself seemed pretty outlandish, and wrapped up with a neat little bow at the end.
I read and listened to this alternatively, and I must say that I did enjoy the narration on this one.

Many thanks to NetGalley and RB Media for the free audiobook in exchange for my honest review. Justis Bolding and Brian Hutchison narrate this story and do a fabulous job! I highly recommend the audiobook if that is of interest!

So I am now a huge fan of Mindy Mejia! Since this is book 2 in the series, I took the advice of other reviewers and listened to book one, To Catch a Storm. I do recommend that you do the same prior to reading/listening to this book as you will get more out of it. You can read Book 2 as a stand-alone but you may be a bit frustrated. The author does not waste words on a lengthy catchup. I loved book one so I knew I would love book two!

This is the continuation of the Iowa City drug dealing ring and the detectives / PIs trying to shut it down. While book one focused on Eve, a professor of physics, who is looking for her missing husband and Jonah, the psychic detective looking for his niece, Book 2 focuses on Iowa City police officer and a DEA informant who must work together to hunt down the remains of a hidden drug empire.

There is plenty of action, suspense and police procedure in this series! I loved that the author worked in the COVID-19 pandemic and police brutality that accompanied it into the story. The characters are richly developed, believable, and help propel the fast paced story.

Its interesting that Max and Cara are paired together as they are polar opposites. Max is a cop who is excited to work on a DEA task force and has considerable pain from recent gun shots. Cara is a former drug dealer trying to change her stripes and do better for her girlfriend, Selena, and has a disorder that prevents her from feeling any pain.

This is really well written, suspenseful read! Highly recommend!!!

A carefully constructed and well written thriller that had me from the very beginning with a deceptively scary story line which opened new parameters of chilling fear. The main characters are the opposite of heroes but face their individual challenges together albeit on the opposite sides of the law.

I didn't realize this was a follow-up book, however, it read perfectly as a standalone. This was an action-packed thriller that kept me guessing who was involved & who could be trusted. Overall, I found the plot & most characters to be interesting & likable. Kara was everything I love in a character - relatable, flawed, refreshing, believable, and strong. I was rooting for her the whole time, regardless of the criminal she was. This could've easily been a 4-star rating for me, had it not been for a couple of negatives.

One being the amount of COVID/pandemic descriptions. The story is set during the end of the lockdown period of the pandemic, which, of course, we can all relate, but it felt like A LOT. I didn't think so much description of social distancing, masks, political issues, etc. was needed in this book. I'm sure the intention was to set the scene, but, in my opinion, it was overdone & annoying. Hearing people constantly argue about masks vs no masks (you know, all the pandemic-related arguments) always made me want to stab my own eardrums out. I could do without ever having to hear or read about it ever again.

The second negative was that I didn't care for Max near as much as I liked Kara. He was the other main character, so it's important that he's a good one, especially when half of the POVs are his. I didn't dislike him necessarily, but he didn't seem as developed as Kara. I found him to be stale & boring. His POVs were a lot less attention-holding. Even some of the side characters (Jonah and Phyllis) were better than Max. All that said, this was still a pretty good read!

Thanks to NetGalley & RBmedia for the ARC!

Wow! This story grabbed me and didn't let go. I had no idea this was audio book 2 in a series. This works fine as a standalone, and the voice actors are top-notch.

I'm so sorry but I just can't seem to like this one. The narrator's are doing great but I can't get into the story. I'm so lost and that may be because it's part of a series.

Thank you #NetGalley, #RBmedia for this arc.

3/5 stars