Takes One to Know One
Books | Fiction / Mystery & Detective / Women Sleuths
3.6
Susan Isaacs
An ex-FBI agent in suburbia feels driven to investigate her neighbor in the “delicious” new novel from the New York Times–bestselling author (Newsday). Just a few years ago, Corie Geller was busting terrorists as an agent for the FBI. But at thirty-five, she traded in her badge and married the brilliant and remarkably handsome Judge Josh Geller, becoming adoptive mother of his lovely teenage daughter. Between cooking meals and playing chauffeur, Corie scouts Arabic fiction for a few literary agencies and, on Wednesdays, has lunch with her fellow Shorehaven freelancers at a so-so French restaurant. Life is, as they say, fine. But at her weekly lunches, Corie senses that something's off. Pete Delaney, a milquetoast package designer, always shows up early, sits in the same spot (often with a different phone in hand), and keeps one eye on the Jeep he parks in the lot across the street. Corie intuitively feels that Pete is hiding something—and as someone accustomed to keeping her FBI past from her new neighbors, she should know. But does Pete really have a shady alternate life, or is Corie just imagining things, desperate to add some spark to her humdrum suburban existence? The only way to find out is to dust off her FBI toolkit and take a deep dive into Pete Delaney’s affairs . . . “[Isaacs] has us chasing Corie all over the map, charmed by this motormouth sleuth’s snappy wit and awed by her courage.” —The New York Times Book Review “Corie’s combat skills and investigative prowess are still up to snuff, but her snarky commentary and hilarious interactions with her father are the real page-turners here.” —Booklist
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More Details:
Author
Susan Isaacs
Pages
399
Publisher
Atlantic Monthly Press
Published Date
2019-10-01
ISBN
0802147569 9780802147561
Community ReviewsSee all
"I will start out this review by saying I loved the first chapters when I initially picked this up, and I was very excited to read the book. It seemed snarky and fun, and a good portrayal of a (sometimes tedious) life in the suburbs. Corie Geller is a retired FBI agent, and while usually that phrase conjures up old white men in suits, Corie is an exception. Since marrying a judge and becoming a stepmom, she decided that the best move would be to leave the bureau and become a freelancer. Her new day job consists of finding new Arabic fiction that will translate well to English readers. <br/><br/>Of course, for someone who used to work much more exciting cases, this new life can seem a bit, well, boring. So when she starts noticing something off about one of her weekly freelance group members, she decides to brush up on her skills and check it out. What follows is her unofficial "investigation," with varying degrees of successfulness.<br/><br/>Again, this is such a fun premise! And the author did have several passages in the book that made me laugh out loud. But the problem with aiming for a snarky voice is that sometimes that can veer into making a character unlikeable. I liked Corie from the get go, but I sometimes found her attitude toward her new life grating. And the problem with having a book based off of a bored late 30-something looking for adventure is that it can be, by default, a little boring. <br/><br/>I would hesitate to call this a mystery or a thriller, since it seems to be missing crucial elements of both (a main "mystery" to solve and the suspense factor) but it was still an interesting story. I probably won't be recommending this to my mystery book club though, since I feel like it does lack a juicy story to dissect. <br/>"
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Allie Peduto