The Murder List

By: Hank Phillippi Ryan

Narrated by: Angela Dawe

Length: 11 hrs and 13 mins

Publisher's summary

Now a Mary Higgins Clark Award Nominee!

Anthony Awards - Winner, 2020

The Murder List is a new standalone suspense novel in the tradition of Lisa Scottoline and B. A. Paris from award-winning author and reporter Hank Phillippi Ryan.

"An exhilarating thrill ride that keeps you turning pages...Ryan deftly delivers a denouement as shocking as it is satisfying." (Liv Constantine, best-selling author of The Last Mrs. Parrish and The Last Time I Saw You)

Law student Rachel North will tell you, without hesitation, what she knows to be true. She's smart, she’s a hard worker, she does the right thing, she’s successfully married to a faithful and devoted husband, a lion of Boston's defense bar, and her internship with the Boston DA's office is her ticket to a successful future.

Problem is she’s wrong. And in this cat-and-mouse game - the battle for justice becomes a battle for survival.

©2019 Hank Phillippi Ryan (P)2019 Macmillan Audio

Whaaaat?

What a surprise! I loved the ending. Very different. I can normally guess twists and turns. Not this time.

Exercise in manipulation

The main characters in this story are constantly pulling the reader in opposing directions. They guide you and confuse you. It’s a rollercoaster who’s end comes slamming you out of your seat. Enjoy the ride!

Excellent Plot If You Stick With It

The plot and ending are fabulous! You can see why the mystery coming together as it does has resulted in Ryan's multiple award nominations. And Ryan always writes about Boston elegantly. The narrator did a good job, especially as harsh and ambitious DA Martha Gardener. I could not give this 5 stars though, because I walked away from this in the middle for a month. I read another book before retuning. I almost missed the stellar second half, because the characters felt a little generic. I don't mind an unlikable character, but I felt like I couldn't feel the core of any of them. I can now see the challengers the plot created for characterization, and damn do you know them in the end. So stick with it.

Ryan's best book yet

Wowie wow wow! This was a GREAT thriller. So many triangles. So many twists and turns. Nearly every chapter ended with a new shocker. I couldn't put it down.
My only question about the feasibility of this novel's premise is: Would a public prosecutor turn private detective on the cases she works on? Would she show up at the crime scene with the police or before the police? Would she write her own search warrants and interview subjects on her own in their homes? I wouldn't have thought so, but this one definitely does.
Best of all, Ryan keeps it all clean. No sex. No bad language. Lots of excitement!
Angela Dawe did a great job with all of the characters, and although the timeline flips around a bit, her narration kept me sharp to the time.

Strange law interpretation.

Too unreal to be believed but not a bad storyline. Narrator was good. Would recommend.

Very good

Well written. A Senator assistance her aid was murdered while she is at jury duty. she meets the man of her dreams who is a lawyer.

Definitely was intrigued!

There was a couple of murders going on past and present with all the same players. Characters were so perfectly developed and conveyed more of their truths and lies as the story unfolds. It’s a really captivating story! Narration was excellent and portrayed the various characters so well!

Good storyline

Never guessed the ending until miway through part4. Wondered early on why she wasn't focused on as a suspect. Reasonable to do so early on.

Why the low ratings?

As of this writing there are three ratings. One person rated this five stars and two people have rated it one star. I’m not sure why but I’m happy to say I am giving this book a five star review.
The book begins slowly as the characters are developed. Once established the story picks up momentum about the half way point. It vacillates between past and present until the two collide. The publisher’s summary gives enough information that I don’t want to elaborate on the characters. The plot though is very interesting. This is a legal thriller not a court room drama. You’re really not sure who the murderer is until the end and then it’s a bit of a shock. The epilogue is rather weird but fitting.
Angela Dawe does a great job narrating.
I really enjoyed this book and HIGHLY RECOMMEND it.
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Never saw it coming.

I like murder mysteries, but I'm rarely fooled. This one, though, had me sure I had the right murderer... until I didn't! ilIf you like to be surprised you will like this one. Even so, looking back, I could have figured it out. The clues were all there.