Almost True Confessions: Closet Sleuth Spills All by Jane O'Connor

Good morning, everyone! Today I'm a stop on the TLC blog tour for Jane O'Connor's Almost True Confessions: Closet Sleuth Spills All.

Rannie Bookman needs work. A freelancer who recently thwarted death, her 15 minutes of fame isn't paying the bills. But when she gets a call about a hush-hush new project - the latest bio tell-all from the notorious Ret Sullivan - it looks like things are turning around. Unfortunately, when Rannie arrives to pick up the manuscript she finds poor Ret strangled to death in her bed. The author had her fair share of enemies, not the least of which is an Oscar winning actor she outed as a pedophile. He's been serving a 15 year stint behind bars ever since he attacked Ret and threw lye in her face. That aside, even Rannie can't imagine who would actually kill the author. Could the answer be hidden inside the pages of Ret's latest book?

I have a confession of my own, Almost True Confessions is a sequel to Dangerous Admissions and I've not read it. I was all set for this to be a potential issue but thankfully it wasn't. I know I've missed out on some character development and the story behind Rannie's last incident, which is referred to quite often, but otherwise I was able to jump right into Almost without issue.

As someone who works in publishing, there was a definite appeal right off the bat with this book. O'Connor herself is a veteran of the industry and though I've had somewhat bad luck with other publishing themed mysteries in the past, it didn't deter me from adding Almost to my wish list. So the opportunity to take part in the tour was one I jumped for.

Almost True Confessions kind of exceeded my expectations as a result. First off, it was a bit darker than the bubbly mystery I expected. Second, the various publishing "insider" quips and the notes on upper crust New York City society made the book a bit of a stand out in my opinion. And finally, Rannie herself is an incredibly appealing lead character. She's got depth to be sure - a divorcee and single parent with a college age daughter and a son whose about to be off to college herself, Rannie has all the normal parenting woes to deal with on top of job worries, boyfriend issues, and getting wrapped up in another murder. All in all, a highly enjoyable read!

Rating: 4/5

To see more stops on the tour, check out the official TLC tour page here.