Twenty-Five Years Ago Today

By: Stacy Juba. Format: eBook. Read: September 2013.

Kris Langley’s cousin Nicole was murdered when they were twelve, by a creepy man in their neighborhood. Kris knows a secret that no one else knows, and it has caused her extreme guilt and insomnia over the past several years. She has tried everything, but tell the truth to her tight-lipped family. Finally, she gets a beginner’s job at the local newspaper company, writing small filler pieces and working nights allows her body to get just a bit more rest. While researching events that occurred twenty-five years ago, Kris stumbles upon the unsolved murder of a young woman, Diana Ferguson. Kris identifies with Diana’s family and decides to research further to help close this case. Maybe by closing this case, she will be able to put her past behind her. Then again, she may meet her own horrific end as she comes face-to-face with Diana’s killer?

Stacy Juba has written an excellent and shocking cozy mystery. The plot is a winding maze with not one but filled with wrong turns and deceptive clues meant to trick the reader until the very end. Not only will readers be kept on their toes, they will emotional drawn into not one but two separate families caught in the never-ending cycle of grief, depression and survivor’s guilt. Both families demonstrate the polar opposites of grief, one refusing to breathe a word about their loss and the other discussing all the details and what-ifs. An emotional, fast-paced and intriguing storyline, with wonderful writing makes this book a must-read for mystery readers.

I have loved mysteries since I was a little girl. Anything Nancy Drew or Clue related and I loved it. I pride myself in guessing the intricacies of a plot before they are revealed. However, I enjoy a book even more, when I can’t guess the ending. This ending had my head spinning and I still can’t keep reliving it, picking up on subtle clues that I missed before. This author is definitely on my must-read list from now on and she should be on yours too, if you enjoy a surprising mystery.

Enjoy!
~Ariesgrl

Notes:
The author provided a copy of this book for me to review. To learn more about this author and her work, please visit her website.