Finlay Donovan Digs Her Own Grave by Elle Cosimano
Publication Date: March 4, 2025
Summary from NetGalley:
Finlay Donovan may have skeletons in her closet . . . but at least there’s not a body in her backyard.
Finlay Donovan and her nanny/partner-in-crime, Vero, have not always gotten along with Finlay’s elderly neighbor, Mrs. Haggerty, the community busybody and president of the neighborhood watch. But when a dead body is discovered in her backyard, Mrs. Haggerty needs their help. At first a suspect, Mrs. Haggerty is cleared by the police, but her house remains an active crime scene. She has nowhere to go . . . except Finlay’s house, right across the street.
Finlay and Vero have no interest in getting involved in another murder case—or sacrificing either of their bedrooms. After all, they’ve dealt with enough murders over the last four months to last a lifetime and they both would much rather share their beds with someone else.
When the focus of the investigation widens to include Finlay’s ex-husband, Steven, though, Finlay and Vero are left with little choice but to get closer to Mrs. Haggerty and uncover her secrets . . . before the police start digging up theirs. But who will solve the mystery first?
ARC provided by St Martin’s Press via NetGalley for an honest review.
Confession:
My favorite part of every year, since I read the first book in 2022, is getting to read a new Finlay Donovan book. I enjoy these books so much and they always make me smile and even laugh out loud at times. This book was just as good as the first and in some ways even better.
Finlay is still a bit of a hot mess, but she shows some growth in this book. She is still struggling as a single mom, but she is slowly getting her act together. I love her relationship with her kids and I love seeing the two of them growing up in these books. Finlay still gets herself involved in things she shouldn’t and she gets into those crazy situations that make me laugh, but she is making better choices and is not as impulsive as she use to be.
Vero is also making progress, both in her life and her love life. She is so loyal to Finlay and the two of them have been through a lot together. But they still have each others back, and although she might believe that Steven is capable of murder she is willing to help Finlay prove his innocence. Vero is the best friend that everyone needs. I hope she and Javi finally get their happy ending soon.
I loved getting to know Mrs Haggerty better. In the previous books she is just the elderly nosy neighbor who has seen way too much from Finlay’s perspective. But she is a lovely lady who even though is difficult at times, seems to have her act together. I loved her role in this mystery and was happy that things worked out for her in the end. I also loved her budding friendship with Cam, a teenage hacker that has helped Finlay out and who she keeps a mothering eye on. I hope we continue to see Cam in future books.
And let’s not forget everyone’s favorite hot detective, Nick. Finlay and his relationship continues to grow, although they have their strained moments in this one. But by the end they learn to trust each other, which is especially good for Finlay considering all she went through with her ex husband. Some very nice romantic scenes, and some hot steamy kisses, but nothing explicit which works well in this book.
I was a little bit worried that this book wouldn’t be as exciting now that the Russian mob has been dealt with, but I needn’t have. This book was just as exciting as the previous ones and I raced through those pages. There was a much lower body count in this one, and miraculously Finlay had nothing to do with any of them, but that was ok. This story is about female friendship and empowerment and trust. I had figured out pretty early on what was really going on with the body in the backyard, but I was still happy to go on the journey with Finlay and friends watching them figure it out as well.
Another great installment in one of my favorite series. This one could be read without having read the other books in the series, but I wouldn’t recommend it. To truly love and appreciate the characters you need to start at the beginning with Finlay Donovan is Killing it.
Confessions of a Serial Reader 
I’ve just added this series to my tbr after seeing so much love for these books. I can’t wait to read them.
Great review. Thank you!
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I hope you enjoy them!
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