kalventure's Review of Trailer Trash (Neely Kate Mystery, #1)

by Denise Grover Swank

Neely Kate Mystery series is a companion series to the New York Times bestselling Rose Gardner Investigation series.

Neely Kate Colson’s life is a carefully built house of cards—and now her newly discovered half-sister is threatening to collapse it. While everyone thinks Kate Simmons was neutralized when she was incarcerated in a psych ward, Neely Kate knows better. Her sister has been sending her letters threatening to expose her past, only Neely Kate has stuffed so many secrets into every available crack and cranny, she has no idea which ones could be dragged into the light.

Growing up with an abusive, drug addicted mother taught Neely Kate to play the game—to be whoever she needs to be in whatever situation she finds herself in. But thanks to her best friend, Rose, she’s discovered she mostly prefers being herself. For the first time in her life, she has a lot to lose—a job, a plan for the future, and an adoring half-brother who happens to be the Chief Deputy Sheriff of Fenton County. But topple one card down, and all of them will fall. Everything she’s built could be lost in an instant.

Neely Kate knows she needs help, but when she reluctantly turns to Rose’s bodyguard, Jed Carlisle, she faces a far more dangerous threat—only this time her heart is on the line.

Series Reading Order, per author:
1. Family Jewels, ★★★★☆
2. Trailer Trash, ★★★★☆

Those that know me know that I love strong women, and I have to say that Neely Kate is a badass. Trailer Trash was the companion story and perspective that I didn't know I needed until I picked it up, and I devoured its words in less than 24 hours... and 16 of those hours were spent sleeping and working.

Kate Simmons has been taunting Neely Kate via letters about her past, and the latest one sent chills down Neely Kate's spine. Just how much about her closely guarded past does Kate know? Worrying that her friends in Henryetta would never look at her the same if they discovered the truth, she decides to confront her past . . . only Jed (the right-hand man of the county's criminal underworld) tags along with her to offer support.

Both Jed and Neely Kate are haunted by what they have done in the past, often time out of necessity, and this book more than any others in the Rose Gardner universe delves into the morally grey. I really appreciated the inside look into these complex characters that I have come to love, and enjoy the budding friendship between the two.

While this book is technically #2 in the reading order, you do not need to read [b:Family Jewels|30654807|Family Jewels (Rose Gardner Investigations, #1)|Denise Grover Swank|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1477099399s/30654807.jpg|51199839] prior to this one. As always, Swank does a good job of recapping the important aspects of the previous books so this can stand on its own. I did find some of Neely Kate's self depreciating inner monologues a bit repetitious and a bit annoying, but I feel that it was important to the overall story being told.

Blog | Twitter | Bloglovin'

Trailer Trash (Neely Kate Mystery, #1)

by Denise Grover Swank

Reviewed by kalventure on Apr 24, 2018

Reading updates