GRAVE WORDS (Deadly Deadlines Mystery #2) by Gerri Lewis will be released on June 10, 2025, by Crooked Lane Books.
Obituary writer Winter Snow is struggling with her latest assignment. A local homeless man known only as Chester is found dead in a burning building. When Winter delves into Chester’s past, she hits a brick wall. She can’t find out his last name, where he came from, or his next of kin. The detective in charge of the case—who also happens to be Winter’s boyfriend—warns her that there is a lot more to Chester’s death than she knows and that she needs to stay out of it. But with one of her best friends accused of setting the fire that ultimately killed Chester, Winter must do something to figure out who Chester really was, find his killer, and clear her friend’s name.
I really struggled to get into GRAVE WORDS. There was a lot going on throughout the novel, and it was hard to stay focused when the plot kept jumping around. There was a lot of unnecessary description about some points that had no bearing on the plot, and an almost total lack of description when it came to certain crucial points.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.