Where the Bones Lie by Nick Kolakowski is a fun mystery featuring a former Hollywood PR fixer (4.25/5 stars)

Where the Bones Lie by Nick Kolakowski is a fun mystery featuring a former Hollywood PR fixer.

This was such a fun read! It took me a little bit to get into it, but then I was absolutely strapped in and enjoying the ride. There were a few twists I definitely called, but it zigged and zagged and exceeded my expectations. I especially loved the final ~25% of the book; I was at the edge of my seat and felt propelled to keep reading.

I really loved Madeline and her teammate rapport with Dash. It’s always great to see mutual respect between (non-romantic) partners in mysteries. There’s some good neurodivergent representation in Dash, he suffers from anxiety and panic attacks.

Sometimes the clues and answers felt a little on the convenient side, but I still had fun reading. I’ll list it in the CWs, but I do want to specify it here too, especially after the last few months: a wildfire is a plot point in this book. Obviously this book was written long before the actual events, but it’s worth giving folks a big head’s up.

I’m truly hopeful that based on the ending, this is the start of a series! I’d love to continue to follow Dash on other adventures. I think this would make an amazing tv series as well; I’d absolutely watch it.

If you’re a fan of dark comedy, detective/sleuth mysteries, or books set around Hollywood, you absolutely need to pick this one up.

CW: California wildfires

I received a complimentary review copy from Datura and NetGalley. All opinions contained herein are my own.

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