Finlay Donovan is Killing it by Elle Cosimano

 

Reviewed by Jeanne

It’s not bad enough that her two year old is covered syrup and his slightly older sister has decided to cut her hair just before pre-school.  It’s not bad enough that the baby-sitter hasn’t turned up when Finlay is scheduled to meet with her agent about the book she’s supposed to be writing but – spoiler alert!—hasn’t.  It’s not bad enough that all the bills are due, her ex-husband’s fiancée got half of Finlay’s book advance just because Finlay stuck a little playdoh in her car’s tail-pipe, and Finlay is actually banned from the place she’s supposed to meet her agent so she’s going to have to wear a disguise.  No, it’s bad because the woman at the next table overhears the conversation between Finlay and her agent about the book and thinks Finlay is a hit woman for hire. The next thing Finlay knows, she has an offer to kill a guy for $50,000.

Not that she’d ever do it, of course, and she wouldn’t know how to go about it even if she wanted to, but she should at least go take a look at the guy, right?  Just get an idea of how awful he is.

She soon discovers the answer is really, really awful. REALLY.  She isn’t going to kill him, but she IS going to make it harder for him to do what he’s planning. And, well, things just get out of control.

I had heard how funny this book was and it is that.  Finlay is a delightful creation, a loving mom determined to keep her children even as the electricity goes off because she didn’t pay the bill. She’s an author with a cheating ex who is trying to make everything her fault and who belittles her career. She just wants to get her life back on track—is that so wrong? I could certainly empathize with her.  There’s a wonderful cast of supporting characters, from Vero the nanny studying to be an accountant who can size up a situation and take action before most people could even realize what was happening to four year old Delia who likes to proclaim that “Daddy could fix it” to the handsome police detective who is investigating some suspicious activity.  I found myself rooting for most of the characters (but certainly not the rotten ex, Steven) and hoping all would turn out well in the end.

This book is quite the ride and I laughed a lot. Even better, there are two sequels.  I can hardly wait to see who Finlay is going to try to not kill next.

The books in order are:

Finlay Donovan Is Killing It

Finlay Donovan Knocks 'Em Dead

Finlay Donovan Jumps the Gun