ARC Review: Quarter to Midnight by Karen Rose

Quarter to Midnight
Author: Karen Rose
Series: A New Orleans Novel
Publication: Berkley (August 2, 2022)

Description:  Discover New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Karen Rose’s brand-new series set in the sultry city of New Orleans and featuring a tough team of high-end private investigators who are after justice—no matter what they have to do to get it.

Good cops. Bad cops. Only one will win.

After completing her tours with the Marines in Iraq, Molly Sutton knew she could take down any bad guy she met. But when a family tragedy exposes the dark side of her local police, she joined up with her former CO Burke Broussard, who left New Orleans PD to set up a private investigative service for people who couldn’t find justice elsewhere.

Gabe Hebert saw the toll that working for the NOPD took on his dad and decided instead to make a name for himself as one of the best young chefs in the French Quarter. But when his father’s death is ruled a suicide after a deliberately botched investigation by his former captain, Gabe knows his dad stumbled onto a truth that someone wants silenced.

Gabe goes to his father’s best friend, Burke, for help. Burke assigns the toughest member of his team, Molly, to the case. Molly can’t believe she’s being asked to work with the smoking hot chef whose chocolate cake is not the only thing that makes her mouth water. Sparks fly as they follow the leads Gabe’s dad left them, unraveling a web of crimes, corruption, and murder that runs all the way to the top.

My Thoughts: When Celebrity Chef Gabe Hebert needs someone to investigate the suspicious death of his retired police officer father, he turns to his father's friend Burke Broussard who is a private investigator. Burke assigns one of his best agents, Molly Sutton, who is a former Marine. 

Molly knows Gabe. She's dined in his restaurant on many special occasions and been attracted to him. The case gets complicated fast. First, they have to find a young man for whom Gabe's father Rocky has set up a trust fund. Gabe fears that his father had been unfaithful to his mother who died of cancer, but soon learns that the young man was someone his father rescued as a five-year-old from a rooftop during Hurricane Kristina. Xavier had seen a murder, but when Rocky is able to go back and check it out the body is gone. 

Rocky has investigated the case often over the years despite being discouraged by his superiors. Now that he is dying of cancer, he is making one last push to solve the long-ago crime. Then he dies of a supposed suicide, but Gabe commissions his own autopsy when the department wants to accept the verdict as suicide. Rocky wasn't a suicide! 

But someone named Lamont wants to finally clean up all the loose ends remaining from his murder of his mistress during Kristina and Xavier and Gabriel on high on his list of loose ends. As the deaths pile up, at one they count fifteen victims, Gabe and Molly and the rest of Broussard's team have to quickly track down witnesses who can help solve the crime. They are in a race with Lamont and his confederates who are killing them before Gabe and Molly can find them.

This was an entertaining, but very long, romantic suspense title. I enjoyed the romance between Gabe and Molly. I also enjoyed trying to figure out who Lamont was as the heroes try to figure out who the villains are. 

Fans of intricate romantic suspense titles will enjoy this story.

Favorite Quote:

Molly shrugged. "Antoine can do a lot of things. Most of the time I can't understand even when he tries to explain. I just accept it. Like..I don't know. Like the miracle that is bacon."

Gabe shook his head. "Bacon is not a miracle. It comes from pigs."

"Hush. I don't want to know that."

"You grew up on a farm!"

She looked guilty. "It was hard. Pigs are cute. But bacon is delicious. It's a real moral dilemma."

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