Ratings16
Average rating3.4
A fun, fresh, and twisty debut whodunnit about a grandmother-mother-daughter trio who come together as amateur sleuths to solve a murder in their coastal California town. "A lively and tender story of family that Simon deftly transforms into an edge-of-your-seat murder mystery... One part The Maid and one part family drama à la The Nest, Mother-Daughter Murder Night is a resounding and impressive triumph."--Katy Hays, New York Times bestselling author of The Cloisters Nothing brings a family together like a murder next door. High-powered businesswoman Lana Rubicon has a lot to be proud of: her keen intelligence, impeccable taste, and the L.A. real estate empire she's built. But when she finds herself trapped 300 miles north of the city, convalescing in a sleepy coastal town with her adult daughter Beth and teenage granddaughter Jack, Lana is stuck counting otters instead of square footage--and hoping that boredom won't kill her before the cancer does. Then Jack--tiny in stature but fiercely independent--happens upon a dead body while kayaking near their bungalow. Jack quickly becomes a suspect in the homicide investigation, and the Rubicon women are thrown into chaos. Beth thinks Lana should focus on recovery, but Lana has a better idea. She'll pull on her wig, find the true murderer, protect her family, and prove she still has power. With Jack and Beth's help, Lana uncovers a web of lies, family vendettas, and land disputes lurking beneath the surface of a community populated by folksy conservationists and wealthy ranchers. But as their amateur snooping advances into ever-more dangerous territory, the headstrong Rubicon women must learn to do the one thing they've always resisted: depend on each other.
Reviews with the most likes.
This book is a delight. Three generations of women brought together first by disease, then by murder, chaos and secrets. The grandmother in this story- Lana- is a gem, a real Type A ass kicker, but classy! So when cancer knocks her down not only does she lose her mojo, but she has to rebuild her relationship with her family. This is one where I actually LIKED THEM ALL- all three of the women. That hasn't happened in a while. Too long really.
I was rooting for Lana and I loved her amateur detective moves. This story is not scary, not dangerous, not sexy. It is the story of a complex crime, buried in a small town that this trio of women have gotten embroiled in. Great debut novel, perfect palate cleanser after several of my dark Halloween reads. People die- but it somehow manages to have a feel-good comedy vibe. Ok, maybe a dark comedy vibe.
I've always had great luck with Reece's Recommendations but I've run out of Luck!
Constant auguring between Grandmother and her daughter! Very hard to figure out what the plot was.
Too many times Grandmother was so sure of the killer but later had to change her mind.
Author had bad habit of using a person's 1st name only in one part of the book and then would use the person's last name only in other parts of the book. Should have been more consistent!
Characters were just average with no stand outs!
Book won many awards in 2024 and was the main reason I wanted to read it but so far this is July and this has been the worse book Ive read this year!
I started this book back in October last year but I stopped due to one of the character getting cancer which is a little triggering for me and then a moronic asshole cop trying to pin a murder on a kid because? Anyways, kept popping up as recommendations so I gave it another try. I did enjoy this book as I care about the characters, Jack and Lana more than Beth. This 3 is stronger than meh which is usually how I feel about books that I give a 3 to but it’s missing in the mystery and suspense area. Sure they are sleuthing but there’s nothing at stake, there could have been more done.