ARC Review: Not by Blood by Chris Narozny

Not by Blood
Author: Chris Narozny
Publication: Crooked Lane Books (July 18, 2023)

Description: In the tradition of Harlan Coben and Karin Slaughter comes Chris Narozny’s Not by Blood, a tense and twisty debut thriller about the extraordinary measures one woman will take to save her family.

When Tina Evans gets a call from her brother in the middle of the night, she doesn’t think much of it; she’s been fielding distress calls from Bill for the last twenty years, ever since the day their father killed their mother.

At first, this call seems just like all the others: Bill’s holed up in a Brooklyn drug den and needs her to come rescue him. But when Tina gets there, her brother’s nowhere to be found. Instead, she discovers the body of a private detective hidden in the junk heap out back. He’s been shot to death, and his gun is missing from its holster.

Tina’s about to dial 911 when she receives a three-letter text message from a number she doesn’t recognize: “Shh...”

Tina doesn’t believe in coincidence—the death of this detective and her brother’s disappearance must be related. But how? Could it be her father pulling the strings from his prison cell? And is she willing to risk her own freedom—and her life—to uncover the truth?

My Thoughts: NOT BY BLOOD was a twisty thriller told in the first person by Tina Evans. The story starts with a phone call from her drug addict brother asking for her help. By the time she gets to his flop, Bill is missing but the body of a private detective is there for her to find. Calling 911 isn't an option until she finds out where her brother is and what his role was in the scene she walks in on. 

Before she can decide what to do, she gets a text that just says Shhhh... Next there is a phone call telling her that her philanthropist husband has been hit by a car and is in surgery. She goes home, drops her six-year-old with her foster brother, and heads off to the hospital where she is confronted by a police detective who wants to know where she was and what she knows about her husband's accident. 

She lies and then begins a marathon search for her brother which involves contacting her father who has been in prison for the past twenty years convicted of murdering his wife over a dime bag of drugs. 

This twisty tale is full of all sorts of secrets from one her husband has never told her to what really happened when her mother died. Tina keeps discovering that those she thought she knew the best were still managing to hide major things from her. 

Tina was an interesting character. She was an EMT, her brother's would-be savior, the wife of a millionaire, and so many more things. She was also locked into her past traumas even though she thought she had moved on. 

Fans of twisty psychological suspense will enjoy this story. 

Favorite Quote:

How many times can you rescue a man who just keeps hurling himself back in the water?

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