A Beautiful Corpse by Christi Daugherty (thoughts)

Summary from Goodreads:

"For a woman, being killed by someone who claims to love her is the most ordinary murder of all.

With its antebellum houses and ancient oak trees draped in a veil of Spanish moss, Savannah’s graceful downtown is famous around the world. When a woman is killed in the heart of that affluent district, the shock is felt throughout the city. But for crime reporter Harper McClain, this story is personal. The corpse has a familiar face.

Only twenty-four years old, Naomi Scott was just getting started. A law student, tending bar to make ends meet, she wanted to change the world. Instead, her life ended in the dead of night at the hands of an unseen gunman. There are no witnesses to the crime. The police have three suspects: Scott’s boyfriend, who has a criminal past he claims he’s put behind him, her boss, who stalked another young bartender two years ago, and the district attorney’s son, who Naomi dated until their relationship ended in acrimony. All three men claim to love her. Could one of them be her killer?

With the whole city demanding answers, Harper unravels a tangled story of obsession and jealousy. But the pressures on her go beyond the murder. The newspaper is facing more layoffs. Her boss fears both their jobs are on the line. And Harper begins to realize that someone is watching her every move. Someone familiar and very dangerous.

Someone who told her to run before it’s too late…"

My Thoughts:

Let me start off by saying that I truly think you should read the first book in this series (An Echo Killing) first to get the full reading experience.  And secondly, let me just tell you how much I loved this book!  Wow!  I thought that the first book was a really solid beginning to this mystery series, and actually it came pretty darn close to hitting my top reads list for last year.  I've been waiting to get my hands on this second book every since and it was completely worth the wait!  This book is even better than that first book which should tell you exactly how much I enjoyed it.  I'm going to be careful to try and not share any spoilers from that first book.  This book picks up not too far long after the first book and there is a lot of stuff that carries over.  Things I can't share without spoiling but one of those things is a pretty big storyline itself (and just to be clear the first book doesn't end abruptly or anything like that and has a solid ending).  But these are the exact reasons why I think a reader would want to read that book first just to get a full understanding of everything that has gone on and could be now.  Anyways, the suspense and mystery pick up right from the beginning with this one.  It has this creepy stalker vibe going for it that really amped up the tension for me as the reader.  I was constantly trying to figure out what was going on and who was behind it all.  There is all of these other things in play as well because there are possible layoffs going on in the newspaper which has Harper worried about her job while she is trying to also investigate Naomi Scott's recent murder.  Everything just added altogether beautifully and in a way where I couldn't put this book down.  I hit a point with this book where I just knew that I had to finish it no matter how late it meant I was staying up - I needed to see how everything was going to end!  And let me vaguely tell you about that ending...wow!  I'm seriously, seriously pining now for the third book.  I have no idea what is going to happen next for Harper but I will be there as soon as that book releases to see for myself!  This is seriously one of the best new mystery series that I have found and I am so excited about it!

Overall, I've gushed this entire review so I'm guessing that you can tell I loved this book!  It was everything that I look for in a mystery series without me even knowing it.  I am so glad that I didn't wait to read this one.  Sometimes when I really like a first book in a series, I'm hesitant to pick up the second one in case it doesn't live up to the first.  This book was even better then that first book so I needn't have worried.  What else is there really to say at this point?  I highly, highly recommend both of these books!  I'm happy to have found another favorite author to follow at this point!

Bottom Line:  This series is fast becoming a favorite of mine after two really great reads!

Disclosure:  I received a copy of this book thanks to the publisher, thoughts are my own.