What Happened on Beale Street by Mary Ellis

What Happened on Beale Street by Mary Ellis ISBN-13: 9780736961714 Paperback: 352 pages Publisher: Harvest House Publishers Released: April 1, 2016

Source: ebook review copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
A cryptic plea for help from a childhood friend sends cousins Nate and Nicki Price from New Orleans to Memphis, the home of scrumptious barbecue and soulful blues music. When they arrive at Danny Andre's last known address, they discover signs of a struggle and a lifestyle not in keeping with the former choirboy they fondly remember.

Danny's sister, Isabelle, asks for Nicki's help. She reluctantly accepts Nate's help due to a complicated past with men, including a one-time date who has started stalking her. Nate has to rein in his favorite cousin's overzealousness as a new PI. Confronted with a possible murder, the stalker, and some missing jewels from decades ago, Nate must rely on his faith and investigative experience to keep one or more of them from getting killed.


My Review:
What Happened on Beale Street is a romantic suspense novel and the second book in a series. I'd recommend reading the books in order since this novel spoils the whodunit and some events of the previous one.

The characters acted like realistic people and were varied in their personalities and backgrounds. The mysteries were solved by the PIs steadily following up clues until they found the answers. The suspense came mainly from Isabelle's creepy stalker, but Nate also entered some dangerous areas during his investigation. Nate was skilled as an investigator but didn't have much romantic experience, which made dating jumpy Isabelle a bit challenging.

Nicki was great at research, but she pushed everyone too hard when asking questions in the murder investigation and otherwise irritated people. Because she alienated potential information sources, she ended up mostly doing research for Nate's cases. She entertained herself by researching some jewels hidden at the hotel but never found. She kept it exciting by being somewhat sneaky about trying to find them rather than simply asking permission from the hotel's owner.

The Christian element was mainly shown in how the main characters treated other people. There was no sex or bad language. Overall, I'd recommend this novel.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


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