Book Review: Thirty-Six & a Half Motives

Thirty-Six and a Half Motives (Rose Gardner Mystery #9) by Denise Grover Swank

Book Nine in the New York Times best selling Rose Gardner Mystery series by Denise Grover Swank.

Rose Gardner should be celebrating the arrest of her fiercest enemy, J.R. Simmons. But problems are like weeds—pluck one and five more spring up. Rose’s boyfriend is on the verge of leaving her for good, her best friend, Neely Kate, is grappling with marriage problems, and her sister has a devastating secret. To make matters worse, she discovers J.R. Simmons has not been neutralized. His network of allies and henchman extends further than she suspected, and J.R.’s so intent on revenge, his lackeys might just destroy Fenton County to get it for him.

But the girl who once spent her days alone and afraid is now a strong, independent woman with a network of her own, including Neely Kate, Skeeter Malcolm—the reigning king of the Fenton County underworld—and other loyal friends on both sides of the law. Racing against time, they must dig up J.R.'s empire by the roots, unmasking his allies and unearthing his secrets, both the behind-the-scenes manipulation he’s been orchestrating in Fenton County for decades and the dark stains of his personal life.

If Rose succeeds, she tells herself the quiet and peaceful life she once dreamed of will be at the end of the tunnel. But her quest to destroy J.R. will require her to explore the person she has become. 

Kindle Edition, 403 pages
Published May 17th 2016 by DGS

MEOW . . . MEOW . . . MEOW

MY GOD!!! This book is insane!!! Like have everyone lost their marbles????

My heart breaks for Mason and Rose, they are in such a tough spot right now with their relationship and I truly truly hope that they will work things out. But not until Rose is able to cut off all ties with the criminal world and hangs up her role as Lady in Black . . . For good.

Digging into the past of the Simmons household proves to be a tough one, but there's a reason for everything but when J.R. Simmons is involved, nothing ever has a reason and his power in Fenton County puts everyone on high alert.

For Neely Kate, all the hardship she's gone through I can't say I blame her for her decisions, sometimes you have to let go of all the negative things in order to have an positive outlook. I think she gain back pieces of herself as well discover new things about herself as well embrace all that she knows.

Hilary and Kate are two people, you don't want to mess around with. While we knew a lot about Hilary, we almost know nothing about Kate. Kate has her own secret past, one that only her father had made interference in and honestly I didn't think J.R. had really cared about his daughter because he spent so much time trying to keep Joe in order.

Okay I know I haven't been a huge Joe fan lately, but what happens in this book really starts to change my opinion on Joe. WHILE I am not suggesting for a Joe and Rose reunion, I think Joe will need to relies on who he call friends. Trust me he's going to need it.

Skeeter Malcolm; I thought he would stay zipped-tight on what he knows about the Simmons household, but because of Rose's influence on him that he realizes that it's better to have allies you call friends rather that have enemies and be alone. He finds the strength to fight, to go up against the biggest power of all because in the end he has more to lose than JR Simmons does. Even if JR Simmons EGO is the size of a bear.

Also have you or are you a skillet fan? Listen to Skillet new song Invincible because it reminds me so much of Skeeter Malcolm.

There were so many twists and turns in Thirty-Six, more than any other books in the Rose Gardner series. I wish I could say all that I want to say but they all contains spoilers . . .

While the ending kills me for many characters, I can only hope that Family Jewels the first book in the Rose Gardner Investigation will bring some light to the darkness.

This is an PUURRRFECT book; let's just say that you gotta read it.