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*** Summary ***
A woman who almost had it all . . .
On the surface, Celine Gonzalez had everything a twenty-eight-year-old woman could want: a one-bedroom apartment on Manhattan’s Lower East Side, a job that (mostly) paid the bills, and an acceptance letter to the prestigious Hollingsworth Institute of Art, where she would finally live out her dream of becoming an antiques appraiser for a major auction house. All she had worked so hard to achieve was finally within her reach. So why would she kill herself?
A man who was supposed to be her salvation . . .
Maggie Sparkes arrives in New York City to pack up what’s left of her best friend’s belongings after a suicide that has left everyone stunned. The police have deemed the evidence conclusive: Celine got into bed, downed a lethal cocktail of pills and vodka, and never woke up. But when Maggie discovers a scandalous photograph in a lock box hidden in Celine’s apartment, she begins asking questions. Questions about the man Celine fell in love with. The man she never told anyone about, not even Maggie. The man Celine believed would change her life.
Until he became her ruin.
On the hunt for evidence that will force the police to reopen the case, Maggie uncovers more than she bargained for about Celine’s private life—and inadvertently puts herself on the radar of a killer. A killer who will stop at nothing to keep his crimes undiscovered.
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My Rating:
MY REVIEW
Money, sex, and murder in New York City. – if I had to make a tagline for this book, I’d use that.
He Will Be My Ruin is my first book by K.A. Tucker (I DNFed Ten Tiny Breaths), however it sure won’t be my last. Tucker has plenty of books under her belt and it shows, her writing is phenomenal, I really can’t a find a fault with it.
Moreover, if I’m not mistaken, Tucker is a NA writer, however this book is pure adult mystery and a very good one, in my humble opinion.
The story follows Maggie Sparkes, heiress to Sparkes Energy empire, however she refuses to follow that career path and instead she does humanitarian work in Africa, having created her own nonprofit organization Villages United. I personally loved Maggie as a protagonist, she’s strong, independent, relentless, yet also vulnerable and a complete failure at espionage. She comes to NYC and starts investigating her friend Celine’s suicide/murder, and she hires a PI – Doug, who quickly became one of my favorite characters. Soon, however, she discovers that Celine had an entirely different, hidden life and she begins to question everything and everyone!
The story is told through Maggie’s POV but there are some chapters told in Celine’s POV (as well as her diary entries) that lead us back to the past and illuminate certain events. I liked the pacing, there were also many twists and turns to the story – the story starts moving in one direction, then something happens and you no longer suspect that person, your attention is diverted elsewhere, but then all of a sudden you don’t know whom to trust anymore.
There are actually only two suspects (at least only I suspected two persons), but still Tucker manages to keep you in suspense and in the dark. When I found out who the killer is, I literally had chills!
Therefore, I don’t want to keep this review longer than it already is. With mystery books, I feel it best not to discuss anything too much. The novel was well-structured, the story and the characters felt real to me, it managed to surprise me and I’m looking forward to more from KA Tucker!
PS: sorry for all Jessica Jones gifs.
xoxo,
Beatrix
