The Serenity Murder

This is the first of the Luca mysteries I have read. It can be read as a stand alone but I would like to have the background on Detective Luca I would gain from reading books 1 and 2. Wealthy philanthropist Marilyn Boggs wants to divorce her husband but the way her father wrote his will she loses 25% if she divorces. Her husband wants rid of her but he wants to keep their private island off the coast of Naples, FL. He begins to research ways to kill her and get by with it. Then Marilyn is found dead in their mansion on the island. Did he do more than just research it? Detective Luca thinks he did but then more suspects surface. Trust Detective Luca to get his man. I listened to the Audible version of this book given to me by StoryOrigin. I enjoyed it but I want to read the first 2 books to understand more of what is going on with Luca. The audio was well done and the narrator did a good job.

So this is book 3 of the series and I haven't read any of the first 2 books.<br /><br />The author did a good job on the character developments. The story is told in a first person point of view and from the point of several characters. The switching of characters was through their own chapters, which is named after them so you don't get too confused when reading/listening.<br /><br />It starts off quite slow, but when the mystery is revealed then it is very interesting to read/listen to. <br /><br />The Narrator did a good job reading, but the issue was, there was no difference between characters, so it can break the illusion of hearing the story and trying to remember that it is a different character and not one of the other multiple ones that are talked about.<br /><br />I received a free review copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving am honest review

When a wealthy lady is killed, Luca and his partner are summoned to try and figure out who’s responsible. There are three prominent suspects, and to figure out the truth of the crime, the partners will have to dive deep into their web of secrets and lies.<br /><br />The mystery and suspense were very well done in this story. It kept me guessing right up until the end, and I was proud that I couldn’t guess who the killer was. Finding out the truth at last left me feeling very accomplished. Luca was a very interesting character, and I found his parts to be the most engaging part of the book.<br /><br />Narration was easy to listen to.<br /><br />This book was given to me for free at my request and I provided this voluntary review.<br />

<strong>Hard To Put Down Crime Thriller</strong><br /><br />The Serenity Murder by Dan Petrosini is a murder mystery surrounding the stabbing death of a very rich women. Who killed her? Her husband? Her lover? The pool boy? This crime thriller was really hard to put down and kept me guessing until the end. Excellent plot, great characters, beautiful locale. I highly recommend.

<strong>Who would(could) do this?</strong><br /><br />This was an interesting mystery that kept dragging you back and forth between three suspects. If you like mystery’s, I recommend you pull this one off the shelf.

In a direct style, this novel is an example of a thriller. The style was straight and easy to read, but very predictable, I might say.

Audible. (Book is available via KU &amp; whispersync enabled) This is my first experience with both the author &amp; the narrator. <br /><br />Book is slightly hobbled by the narrator. Peter Lerman has a nice voice to listen to ~ but he's possibly more appropriate as a non-fiction "reader" than a true narrator. Despite chapters that alternate POV's and a variety of characters ~ almost everyone sounds the same. Until we get to Raul's chapter where he speaks in a heavy Cuban (or Puerto Rican?) accent, no matter who is talking. Even Marilyn now sounds like her gardener. Lerman doesn't do a consistent job of emoting ~ and the listener is sometimes left determining through context whether characters are angry, frustrated, sad, etc. Once we get to Det. Luca's chapters ~ things flow better and it was much easier for me to get into the story. I'd still give him 3 stars and I can't say my reservations would necessarily keep me from listening to him again. <br /><br />Despite entering at book 3 of a series, I didn't have any trouble enjoying the story or feeling like there were a lot of unexplained references. Whoever described these stories as being like Law &amp; Order was spot on. As a fan of the show, this really worked for me. We spend a little time learning all the players, including the victim, and then she's murdered. The rest is spent on investigation and police procedures. There's not a huge pool of suspects, and while I happened to guess the "whodunnit" correctly before the end, there were several times I found myself wondering whether I was right. A solid 4 star story and I'll definitely be checking out the rest of the series. <br /><br />I received a free review copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.

<strong>Good read</strong><br /><br />Interesting characters, plot that keeps you involved. Author did a good job of switching between POV of the different characters.

This is the first book by this author that I have listened to and I quite enjoyed it. It took me a while to work out each chapter starts with the name of who's perspective each chapter is about, as there was a number of suspects who wanted to kill Marilyn and you got a few of those reasons before she died. But as all three suspects could have done it the book kept you guessing until the end.<br />Luca and his partner are called to a private island to investigate the murder of a very wealthy lady. Being on an island limits who could have done it but with three very plausible suspects on hand things aren't that simple as the two partners try to find a way to cut the suspect list down to reveal the murder.<br />The narrator was easy to listen to.

The Serenity Murder (A Luca Mystery #3), my fourth read from author Dan Petrosini. Seriously well-developed, it takes some getting used to as the author writes in both the first person and also the third. I was given an Audible copy of this book &amp; am voluntarily reading &amp; reviewing it. Peter Lerman’s talented narration adds to the book's enjoyment, reminiscent of narrator Bill Nevitt in tone &amp; voice, his narration was nothing less than excellent. Owning both the Kindle &amp; Audible editions I was able to follow along while being read to. I look forward to reading more from this author and in this series. "I received a free review copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review." (RIP Marley January 20, 2014 - July 24, 2018).