Murder Notes (Lilah Love) Paperback – March 27, 2018

Murder Notes is a captivating and consuming murder mystery that will keep you on your toes and keep your mind spiraling.

Lilah love left behind her home and her past lover over two years ago and is now a FBI agent. When a series of murders in LA lead her back to her hometown, Lilah is forced not only to face her past but to face the possibility that her life could be in danger.

I kept my recap pretty basic for the simple fact that I want readers to go into this without much expectation. From the blurb, you know that there are a series of murders and that somehow Lilah is connected to them. What we get from all of this is a history that is do deep rooted in the Hamptons that it's easy to question every single person in Lilah's  life. No one is off limits and the entire time I felt like every one was a suspect.

I like the way Jones wrote the store to keep you captivated and to keep you guessing. Just when you think you have everyone figured out, something changes that and you are back to square one again.

Without giving anything away, I'm just going to say that it's been a while since I've been so intrigued by someone as mysterious as Kane Mendez. I didn't get enough of him in this book and I'm dying to get my hands on the next one. Not only to find out answers but to just get more of him.

"I could say no. I should say no. But he is the answer to the storm inside me that hasn't been answered in far too long. And he owes that to me."

If you are looking for a romantic suspense that gives you a feisty FBI agent with a dirty mouth of a sailor who has a lot of men from her past and present that give her a run for her money and quite frankly test her nerves every single second, then Murder Notes is the book for you!

Murder Notes is book 1 in the Lilah Love series. Lilah is a woman with a dark past. She works for the FBI as a criminal profiler. She's good at what she does. She's bad at the all the people stuff in her life. People in her life call her "murder girl". At the beginning of the story she gets called to the scene of a crime and finds herself investigating an assassination style killing that forces her to head home and face the demons of her past.

Lilah's boss, Director Murphy, sends her to the New York to investigate a case that might be related to the case she's working in California. Unfortunately for Lilah, another body shows up in the Hamptons around the same time.. Lilah swore to never return to the Hamptons after she left but now she has no choice. She has to confront her family, friends, enemies and her past in order to solve the crime.

The cast of characters isn't huge but it appears that they are all important to the story. Lilah is dating Rich. He wants a relationship with things like public dates and moving in together. His character doesn't get a lot of development in the story. Kane Mendez is the ex-boyfriend. He's a man with ties to the mob and with a set of questionable morals. He still wants Lilah. Eddie Rivera is a police sergeant in the Hamptons who doesn't like Lilah and doesn't want her investigating the case. Lilah's brother, Andrew, is the chief of police. Her friend, Beth, is the medical examiner. And Samantha Young dated Lilah's ex-boyfriend, Kane, before Lilah. There are others but the bottom line is that Lilah thinks it's possible they are all involved in some way with the murders but she just can't figure out how.

Lilah believes that the murders are all related and that they are all assassinations. That is not a spoiler! In the end, Lilah doesn't know who she can trust, who is leaving her threatening notes or who is involved in the murder. It's a sticky situation because her family is clearly tied up in the mess somehow!

The timeline bothered me a bit. Based on the intro, I thought Lilah was in her 30's but she's in her late 20's. While it shouldn't make a difference, I can't understand how she worked for the NYPD and got FBI training and has the reputation she has in such a short time frame. I also struggled with some of the intuitive leaps that LIlah made. I felt like Lilah needed a partner to bounce her ideas off so that the conclusions she was drawing were not quite so out of the blue.

We are left with lots of questions at the end of the story. I think the second book should be an action packed story!

I recommend this story to anyone who likes contemporary mystery stories. There is a "romance" subplot but nothing romantic happens in this story. If you don't like cliffhangers, wait to read this story until the next book comes out.

Quotes:
I don't argue. I step around him and dart for the living room, pausing in the doorway long enough to say, "Lock up when you leave. Sick ***** love me." I take off for the front door.
"What the **** does that make me, Lilah?"
"The exception,".... loc 204

And I don't show emotions because I don't feel them anymore. loc 987

I read an ARC copy of this book

I started reading Lisa Renee Jones with her Dirty Money series. That series made me a fan, and I haven't looked back since. I think Murder Notes might be one of my favorite books to date. It's a definite departure from her usual genre, but the book still retains LRJ's signature style.
Lilah Love is my new favorite heroine. Shes's crass, damaged and just generally gives no f*cks. She feels real and raw in a way that isn't common in a world of cookie cutter characters.

I LOVE Kane. Like love him, love him. Characters like him are the reason I read romance and I wish we saw more of him. He's dark, dangerous, and powerful. I know this isn't a romance, but the chemistry is real, so I'm hoping we see them get together more before the end of the series.

Then there is that cliffhanger alert.

I expect cliffhangers with LRJ. It's part of her style and I accept them happily. That being said, this is the first book of hers that I would like to recommend to my mother... who does not read cliffhangers. I will be giving her a copy of the series... once it's complete.

I received an advance reader copy of this book that I have chosen to review.

I received an arc for an honest review.

This is the first book in a new series and maybe this authors best book. It is the story of an FBI Profiler named Lilah Love. She comes from a long line of cops. Her father was the former chief of police and now her brother Andrew is chief of police.

She has several murders to investigate. Everyone wants to call them a serial killer but Lilah doesn’t believe that is correct. Then another murder is found to have happened in New York City and she is sent back to the Hamptons to consult and see if it is related to the cases in LA. Just as she arrives home another murder happens in the Hamptons. Coincidence?

When she gets home she encounters her ex Kane Mendez who also happens to be rumored to be the head of the Mendez Cartel. But claims to only be head of Mendez Enterprise.

Lilah & Kane have a secret from when they were still together. Someone starts visiting Lilah and leaving notes telling her they know what she did.

Will we find out their secret? Does Lilah & Kane still have chemistry? Will they act upon it?