Bloodline

By Jess Lourey

ISBN# 9781542016315

Author’s Website:  http://jessicalourey.com/

Brought to you by OBS reviewer Heidi

After pregnant Joan Harken was mugged on her way home one night, she and her boyfriend, Deck Schmidt, decide to leave the city.  Deck convinces her to move to his hometown of Lilydale, Minnesota.  Things like muggings don’t happen in Lilydale, she’ll be safe there.

On the surface, Lilydale looks like a perfect quaint little town.  However, Joan quickly starts to feel uneasy and like she’s being watched at all times.  The families on Mill Street continue to tell her how happy they are for the baby Joan carries, almost as if the baby is theirs.  And, then there is the missing child, Paulie Aandeg, who went missing decades ago.  Shortly after Joan and Deck come to town, Paulie miraculously returns, giving the journalist in Joan something to sink her teeth into.  This could be the story of her career, but is the man claiming to be Paulie really him?

There is something off in the village of Lilydale, but can Joan get to the bottom of it before it’s too late?

I thought the synopsis of this book sounded intriguing and I haven’t read a good mystery in some time, so I decided to give it a go.  Unfortunately, I still haven’t read a good mystery in a long time.

The book had a decent enough start.  And, as the couple move to Lilydale we start to see the clique within the town emerge, one that Deck’s family appears to be in the center of.  Then, we see things happen that makes Joan question everything, even her own safety.  Was everything including her mugging orchestrated to get her to Lilydale or is Joan going crazy and paranoid?

I think the author had an interesting concept, but ended up taking it too far.  It became outlandishly unbelievable.  Although I will say it had a big twist in this book that I never saw coming.

This novel was definitely not to my tastes, but if you’re looking for something a little different, with an ending you can’t predict.  It may be worth a try.