Lori C. (dollycas) reviewed on 7/14/2024 + 707 more book reviews

Dollycas's Thoughts

Liv Spyer is an eager young photographer ready to find her place among New York's vast event and portrait picture-taking world. She has a small studio/apartment below her grandparents' West Village brownstone where they live and run their key shop. She hopes portraits for the upcoming holiday season will keep her studio afloat. Then she meets Regina Montague, the well-known events photographer. Regina offers her a job on the spot which she quickly accepts. She will be capturing moments at the exclusive New York City Holiday Debutante Ball.

Liv knows this event could change her life so she tries to get all the shots she can and be in the right places at the right times. Then she finds herself in the entirely wrong place at the entirely wrong time. She finds her new boss Regina Montague standing over the very dead body of billionaire Charlie Archibald. With Regina prominent in the lens of Detective Thorne, Liv decides to sharpen her focus on the photos she took at the ball. Can she find clues within the pictures? Will she be able to reveal the real killer? Or will she be overexposed and find that the killer has zoomed in on her as their next victim?

I enjoyed meeting Liv Spyer, her parents, and her grandparents. They are genuine people with good hearts watching out for each other every day. She also has a 4-year-old baby sister who will steal the hearts of everyone she meets. Liv is sharp and has a keen eye for detail which makes her a great photographer and a capable amateur sleuth.  We meet several interesting characters throughout the story, like Harry who appeared to be a random man on the train and stuck around to play a key part in the story. We also meet his aunt with an interesting background and successful commercial photographer Regina Montague and her assistant Manjeet. All the characters evolved over the course of the story and gained a great amount of depth for the first book in a series.

I love that this series is set in New York City and not the usual cozy mystery small town. It was fun to travel up and down the streets, on the trains, and to many other big city hot spots. The photography theme is unique and entertaining too. It is clear it is Liv's passion.

The mystery was more complicated than I originally thought it was. It had different elements to concentrate on in addition to the several suspects. I enjoyed the way Liv approached her investigation. She closely examined the photos she had taken and didn't shy away from asking questions in an effort to follow each clue no matter how small. After several twists and turns, her focus became clearer leading up to a compelling reveal that had me giggling just a bit.

Photo Finished is an excellent start for this series. The mystery was very well-plotted and the entire story was very well-written. It is filled with engaging characters, a fair amount of humor, and just a bit of romance. A big city cozy mystery that captured my interest in a New York minute. I am excited to see where Liv Spyers' cameras take her next.

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. Thank you to Kensington Cozies, and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC.

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