The Business of Blood (The Business of Blood, #1) (A Fiona Mahoney Mystery, #1)

by Kerrigan Byrne

[stacey_is_sassy]

IT'S ALIVE!!

Just a wee bit of blood...

I have never reviewed anything but romance up until now and to be honest, I never expected to review anything but romance. Then, Kerrigan Byrne comes along and she tells us she wrote something that is not romance. Well, not romantic to the extent we've come to expect from her. The SHOCK!! The HORROR!! But, it’s KERRIGAN BYRNE!! So, of course, I had to give it a go.

Knowing that I was going to be exposed to a wee bit of blood…and other things, I was hesitant to start. It was loaded up and the cover (which I LOVE) was there… looking at me… but I couldn’t turn the page. This could be because I was about to go to bed, and I was worried that it might play on my mind a wee bit. Blood and guts, Jack the Ripper, murder and mayhem are not exactly going to soothe me to sleep. So, I chickened out, turned off my Kindle and had an early night. Which lead me to start at 4:45 am on a Monday… what a start to the working week.

To be honest, The Business of Blood took me longer to read than I thought it would. I loved the words and how Kerrigan Byrne weaved her tale. BUT IT’S INTENSE!! My mind had to stay alert, my heart was pumping waiting for the next gruesome discovery.

I’m not used to ending a story feeling emotionally scarred, physically drained and completely disgusted with the evilness of humans. I guess I'm accustomed to reading stories that leave me with a sense of hope, contentment and joy.

This was a great mystery. The twists and turns were exciting, I was surprised at the *whodunit*, and found the intricate details of a murder investigation riveting. I really can’t fault the timeline, characterisation or settings. Getting to know more about Jack the Ripper was thrilling while also a wee bit horrifying. What murder investigators, coroners/post-mortem examiners, and the clean-up crews (after the body has been removed) face are also fascinating and horrific. I now know that I’m NOT the person for any of those jobs. The Business of Blood is a thought-provoking story that deals with lots of different issues concerning judgement based on class, race, sex and religious beliefs.

If I was to find any fault with The Business of Blood, it was that I was distracted enough to keep looking for the romantic element. I’m not sure if this is because it is ingrained in me or because there were hints of possibilities with certain characters we meet. There is a kiss in one scene, but it was not the type of kiss to give me heart flutters AT ALL. The person kissing and their reaction straight after was less than appealing.

If you are a fan of mysteries, don’t mind a wee bit of blood and gore, and love Kerrigan Byrne’s words, you will not be disappointed reading The Business of Blood. I thoroughly enjoyed this step out of my comfort zone…into sleuthing out a serial killer.

Stacey is Sassy, received an advanced copy of this story. The copy provided is not the final copy and may be subject to edits and changes.