A fun mystery, and I really found myself a new fan of author PJ Tracy.

This is the fourth book in the Detective Margaret Nolan series, and although it’s got plenty of mystery, I loved the humor!

I listened to the audio format and enjoyed the narration performance by Abby Craden.

*many thanks to Netgalley and Dreamscape for the gifted copy for review

A good storyline but I think for character development it would have been better to read/listen to the first 3 in the series first. Enjoyed the police procedural elements.

I gather this book is part of a series. I have not read the earlier books and they may be part of the problem. I had a very hard time keeping up with what was going on, the narrated voices were very strange at times. I wanted to like someone, the detective?, or at least have some feelings about a character and I never did.

Audio book review - sadly what could have been a good listen was disturbed by the narrators whose tone did not fit the action pack thriller.

City of Secrets was my first Tracy book and while I lied it, I probably should've read the earlier books first and would recommend my patrons to do so as I was particularly confused in the beginning. I enjoyed Maggie and the mystery itself. I also liked the narrator for Maggie's sections, but the erratic use of the New Orleans accent for her partner did throw me off at times. Thank you to Dreamscape Media, Minotaur, and NetGalley for the early listen in exchange for my honest opinion. 3.5 stars

Had prettying good twists of who and why people were involved, but I just couldn't get into the book. I listened to the audiobook and maybe that's the reason why I couldn't into the storyline - multiple POVs with audiobook can get confusing.
Overall I wasn't a fan - a lot of twists, but I just want a fan - I was bored and just didn't care of this book

NetGalley Review

Oh my goodness! This was a mystery wrapped up in so much more. What starts off as a murder and then a kidnapping and they do not seem related but they have to be. So many twists and turns and red herrings that kept me guessing. I loved it! How did I miss the beginning of this series and jump in at #4. No fear, my library has the first on audio and already on my phone ready for me to listen to.

Keeping people safe looks different to different people. It is dependent on their lived experiences. Finding a killer can be hard but deciding whether to expose that killer is for the best can be harder. Good story and narration. I had not read the previous books in this series.

thank you to netgalley and the publisher for gifting this alc in exchange for my review. unfortunately i could not get into this book. I am not quite sure why. It just did not hold my attention. I may try this audiobook again later on at some point. Thank you again to netgalley and the publisher for the arc.

Narrator Abby Craden did a really great job with City of Secrets by P.J. Tracy. There were a lot of voices to master and I felt that each character was distinct from another. The overall story was interesting and I appreciated the layers of plot so nothing was as straight forward as it seemed. Loved it!

Thank you Dreamscape Media for the gifted ALC.

This book is billed as a standalone, but is 4th in a series. In my opinion, books 1-3 should be read in order to gain character development and other history in order to allow this book be more enjoyable and easier to read. Having said that, I didn’t really enjoy it, but probably because key pieces of the story/characters were missing for me. In light of the above, I think a hard copy instead of an audiobook would’ve made a better format for me as well.

Gripping fourth installment in the Detective Margaret Nolan series with a head-scratching mystery that just keeps the bodies piling up. I loved the great pacing, the intricate plot, and the satisfying character arc. Awesome series for lovers of crime drama!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my copy. These opinions are my own.

Thanks to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the advanced audiobook.

The elements of this book felt like it was right up my alley, but it didn't come together in a compelling listen. Maybe it's because I haven't read any of the previous books in the series, but I was mostly uninterested in all the characters, including Margaret Nolan.

I enjoyed this book. Have normally read the books by this author so I was excited to listen to this one. I did not care for the narrator but the story kept me engaged and wanting to listen to more.

City of secrets is the latest mystery/thriller that I’ve read. This book was a good read that kept me interested the whole way through!

Maggie Nolan is a smart and dedicated LAPD detective, and this series is one of my new favorites! Nolan and her partner are called out to the scene of a murder that seems mundane: in a bad part of town a man is robbed and killed, perhaps connected to a late night booty call. However, the murder is puzzling for a few reason, and as crimes pile up, the case becomes more complicated and dangerous. This audiobook was thoroughly enjoyable, and I loved this smart and complex case that reminds the reader that crimes are often not what they seem on the surface. Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to review the latest installment in this series.

While I hadn’t listened or read the previous installments, I felt pulled right into this audiobook. The narrarator did a wonderful job with all the different POV, and I found she really enhanced the story. I really enjoyed seeing how all the pieces came together and that you have hints and clues, and can start to fit things together yourself to solve the mystery. I also found Nolan to be very likable, and though. I didn’t have their backstory, I found myself rooting for her throughout, personally and professionally. I listened as often as I could, and I really enjoyed it! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to provide my honest review.

This review was originally posted on Books of My Heart


Review copy was received from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

The series has settled into being the Detective Margaret Nolan series written by the daughter from the mother-daughter writing team. Detective Nolan, along with her partner, is sort of a main character, with supporting characters in her friends, family and love interests. But Sam Easton has a strong role, along with the people in his life.

The homicide case in City of Secrets is the owner of a pet food company. It's a twisty road to determine how he died. Then his ex-partner and wife are abducted. The ex-partner, a veterinarian is close to Sam's family. So the investigation here is suspenseful, especially as more bodies pile up.

On the personal side, Maggie is getting closer to Remi. They can't both work in homicide though. Sam is also progressing in his therapy, his relationship and now looking at a new job. These personal developments help to build the characters and make them more realistic.

There were a lot of additional characters in these cases which felt like a lot at times. The investigation was divided between two teams with one for the homicide and one for the kidnapping and that's what really spread the focus. The pacing was strong, though. Overall, I was happy to continues with the series and the main characters.

Narration:
Abby Craden has been narrating this series. Her voice is deep for a female which makes the character voices a bit unusual. I am totally settled into these voices now with distinct ones for the main characters. I listened comfortably at my usual 1.5x speed.

*received for free from netgalley for honest review* overall good read! found out halfway through i have read from this series a few years ago so no wonder the people sounded familiar at first lol would read more of this series

This is the fourth book in the Detective Margaret Nolan series. If you haven’t read the first three in the series, you’ll still be able to jump in with this one. This book follows Detective Nolan and her fellow detectives as they investigate the death of the owner of a pet food company and the kidnapping of a former co-owner’s estranged wife. It’s an enjoyable story with a likable cast of characters. It’s not as mild as a cozy mystery, yet not as descriptively violent as some detective series can get. The narrators are enjoyable, as well.