BOOK REVIEW- THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGONFLY TATTOO

Could you forgive the father who abandoned you to an indifferent mother when you were only two? When thirty-nine year old Octavia Bishop hears from an Austin lawyer that she needs to come to Texas to bury Edwin Bishop, the father she can barely remember, she finds herself in emotional turmoil. It's especially confusing to discover he had a secret life and a different name. After learning his death is being looked into as a homicide, Octavia has little hope of finding answers until she meets two important people: Shell Hodge, the person who heard her father's last words, and Gus Kerr, her father's closest friend--a man who is too attractive, and possibly too dangerous, to ignore. This is Book 4 of The Michelle Hodge Series, but it is perfectly readable as a standalone.  AMAZON 3 STARS

This is kind of a hard one for me to rate. I did like the main characters and this was my first introduction to Shell Hodge.   I did like her too, she was an honest, loyal friend.   I didn't really get all that drawn into her romance with her boyfriend/fiancee Dean.  Maybe it would have helped if I had read the other books that they were in together (if they were).  I just wasn't feeling the sparks, the worry and concern yes, sparks not so much.  On the plus side was the fact was that although it's Book 4 in the Series, it really did stand all on its own and was easy to follow.  Gus and Octavia (Tavy) were cautiously becoming friends, with an attraction that they were fighting.   No Insta-Love here.  Just a steady learning to know each other and at times taking verbal pot shots at each other. Tavy hardly knew him and he knew so much about her father, it lead to a lot of misunderstandings.  Especially since the minute she arrived in town, things began to snowball against her.  Gus had a teenage daughter, who added some drama as well.  Madison, was well written with all the teenage angst you would expect.  You could also see the goodness in her as well.  She was doing pretty good considering how tough it was being shuttled back and forth with her mom and dad. 
This also a clean story with no sexual scenes.  
All the questions get answered in the end, all the mysteries solved and some HEA in the works for Gus & Tavy AND Dean & Shell.  
What was hard for me in this story?  The length of the book.  I think that is mainly because of how slowly it all seemed to move.  

By the way, I really did like the cover picture on this book.  Very attractive, creative and in keeping with much of the story.    


I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.