Dead Man’s List By Karen Rose

This is my first Karen Rose book, but won’t be my last. 

Favourite Quote:

She did look away then, taking in the desert around them. It really was beautiful. “I don’t think so. I wanted to come here. With you. Wanted you to show me the desert and why you love it. But it’s been more than six weeks since I asked you on this date. Enough time to second-guess myself. And maybe to second-guess you. You could have anyone. Everyone tells me so I still don’t know why you seem to want to be with me.”

Book Synopsis:

Homicide Detective Kit McKittrick’s latest case exposes San Diego’s seedy underbelly in this nerve-shattering tale of romantic suspense from New York Times bestselling author Karen Rose.

On a long-anticipated second date with police psychologist Dr. Sam Reeves—right as things are getting steamy—Kit stumbles across the mutilated body of a local San Diego politician. The politician is loved by many of his constituents but is hated and reviled by many more. That the suspect list is long is no surprise to anyone, but exactly who ends up on it stuns Kit and her team.

As the SDPD reveal the victim’s sinister dealings, Kit and Sam are forced to navigate the lawless world of the city’s most rich and powerful citizens to find answers. But time is rapidly running out, with their sources of information dropping like flies as the killer methodically eliminates loose ends—and anyone else who stands in the way.

Review:

Dead Man’s List is an action-packed romp through city hall bureaucracy, blackmail, and a murder victim whom no one is mourning. I dove straight into this book and was immediately sucked in. Kit McKittrick is a stoic, loyal and traumatized detective who cares about her victims. 

Her newest case is a politician that no one is sad to see dead, especially his wife. Kit finds herself in Agatha Christie territory – is this a massive murder operation where a group of people helped to kill this man? As Kit digs into the case, she discovers that he has an actual list of people who have reason to be happy to see him dead. Now she just needs to find the list to find the murderer. 

Throughout the story we learn about Kit, her complicated relationship with sexy police psychologist Sam, and her traumatic upbringing which led her to her foster family as a preteen; the same family who is still protecting young women from monsters. 

I was new to this series, and to Karen Rose as an author, but felt that I could understand and enjoy the book without reading the other two in the series. Much like Kathy Reichs and J.D. Robb, Karen explained a lot of backstory and character history through the book so I wasn’t confused.

Kit is a fabulous main character. She’s feisty and strong but also loyal and deeply focused on what is right. She has some trouble trusting people due to her upbringing, and part of her arc in this story is watching her struggle to give into her urges to build a relationship with Sam, and to offer love and empathy when her family needs it. She feels it all deeply, but struggles with showing it. Kit’s family and colleagues are delightful counterparts to her. They see her for who she is and support her instead of fighting to change her. Her relationship with Sam is slow moving, and it will be enjoyable to watch it unfold over further cases. There are some moments of levity between murders. There’s also a great secondary plot with one of Kit’s younger foster sisters, who’s also dealing with some serious trauma. I’m looking forward to watching the family relationships continue in other books.

 This is a strong police procedural. I will be going back to read the prior Kit stories for sure. Nothing is better than finding a new series you like and realizing there is a back list!

If you’re looking for a new detective to hang out with in between Eve Dallas And Temperance Brennan books, then you need to pick up Dead Man’s List.

Thank you to Berkley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.