ARC Review: Dream Town by Lee Goldberg

Dream Town
Author: Lee Goldberg
Series: Eve Ronin (Book 5)
Publication: Thomas & Mercer (January 16, 2024)

Description: A gated dream town for the megarich becomes a murderous nightmare in a riveting Eve Ronin thriller by #1 bestselling author Lee Goldberg.

Hidden Hills is a private celebrity enclave of white picket fences and horse trails that seems to exist in a dreamworld. But when reality superstar Kitty Winslow is killed within their gates and corpses are found in the vast state park outside them, LASD detective Eve Ronin realizes there is a deadly, razor-thin line between what’s real and what’s imagined.

Eve discovers that Kitty’s surreal on- and off-camera life, a blur of fact and fantasy, shockingly mirrors her own as she struggles to investigate the killings, wade into a music industry war, and battle a vicious Chilean gang―all while her life is being turned into a fictional cop show directed by her estranged father.

Eve’s grip on reality and the case is strained to the breaking point as the slayings continue, the media frenzy reaches a fever pitch, and the only inescapable truth she can see is death…and it’s coming for her.

My Thoughts: Eve Ronin is the youngest homicide detective in the history of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. Social media exposure and a kind of blackmail got her the job, but with the help of her partner veteran Duncan Pavane, she has grown into her role. 

In her fifth adventure, she is investigating the death of a reality TV star apparently murdered in a home invasion for her jewelry, including her new engagement ring, by Chilean crime tourists. The deaths occurred in an exclusive and wealthy enclave named Hidden Hills where everyone has a horse, and no one locks their doors. 

While Eve and Duncan are investigating the murder, the first episodes of the television program based on Eve's life and career are being shot. Her deadbeat dad is directing and her mother who has hung around the edges of television as an extra has a small speaking part. Eve finally caved into allowing the show when she needed money which has allowed her to purchase her own home in an exclusive enclave. She got a really good deal because the home was once a crime scene for another murder Eve and Duncan solved. 

Eve and Duncan spend a lot of time in Hidden Hills looking into things and Eve runs afoul of the Sherrif's deputy assigned to the enclave who runs it like an Old West town. Meanwhile her boyfriend who is a forensic anthropologist is called in to examine some bones just outside the enclave. He discovers that the first group of bones were those of young South American men, but the second set was something else. 

Throw in a famous rapper named LilGlok9 who was once a member of the Cryps, is a neighbor, and has a reason to hate the victim and the victim's fiancé who is a former child star hoping to make the transition to adult roles and you have a mystery that combines Hollywood fantasy with the gritty reality of Southern California.

I have been enjoying this series. Eve is a complicate character who is self-assured and determined. Duncan is a great sidekick too. Fans of strong female characters and the glitz and glamor of Hollywood will enjoy this one. 

Favorite Quote:

"So I have to prove myself here now, too."

"No, you don't," Eve said. "You have the job, so do it and don't look back. Do it the way you believe it should be done. Don't let anybody or anything stop you. That way, if you succeed or fail, you'll know it was because of choices you made, not somebody else."

"Does that attitude work?"

"It does for me," Eve said. "And if you want to be true to my character, you'll have to adopt it, too, at least whenever you're wearing that badge."

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.