It All Falls Down by Sheena Kamal

In the fictional world of private eyes; sassy and quirkiness often go hand in hand. Add a serious touch of prickliness tinged with a no-nonsense attitude, and you have PI-in-training and research assistant Nora Watts; the unlikely heroine in this the second book in Sheena Kamal’s detective series.

In the first book, Eyes Like Mine, Nora is looking for a missing teenager that she has a personal connection with. Continuing on from that story her quest sees her heading for Detroit to find information about her deceased father, spurred on by a chance encounter with a veteran who served with her father. As Nora starts unravelling the mystery behind her father’s suicide she unexpectedly uncovers details on her mother, the woman who abandoned Nora and her sister when they were very young. And then, as is the norm with Nora, trouble follows her. Trouble that is trying to kill her.

Back in her home town of Vancouver, former police officer turned private investigator and Nora’s old AA sponsor Jon Brazuca is doing some investigating of his own. Hired to investigate the drug overdose of a billionaire’s pregnant mistress, his mission takes on an ominous twist that leads Brazuca to believe Nora is in danger.

The two narratives of Nora and Brazuca run alongside each other and although the reader knows they must link up it takes some clever plotting to bring them together with a satisfying conclusion. However like all good crime series there are some incomplete story lines that the author addresses with a final chapter titled Letter to the Reader.

For me one of the stars of the series is Nora’s dog Whisper. With one look Whisper can convey extremely complex messages to any humans he comes into contact with. This stray turned loyal companion deserves his own series and delivers some of the few lighter moments in this otherwise psychologically suspenseful story.

If you like strong flawed female heroines that despite their faults grow on you; then start first with Eyes Like Mine, you won’t be disappointed.


Reviewed by Miss Moneypenny

Cataolgue link:  It All Falls Down