The Stories You Tell: A Mystery (Roxane Weary) (edició 2019)

This is the second book by this author that I have read. Mysteries are my favorite genre, but I couldn't relate to the main character or get involved in the storyline. ( )

Like most mysteries these day, way more complicated than is in any way reasonable, but unlike most revolves around social media. Reasonably absorbing read with some interesting characters. 🌈 ( )

Roxane Weary gets a three a.m. phone call from her brother, Andrew. A woman, a DJ who had briefly dated him before getting him fired from a hotel job some time ago, had turned up unexpectedly at his apartment in the middle of the night, terrified of something, asking to use his phone before disappearing into the night. He's worried about her, and the only person he can think of to ask for help is Roxane, a private investigator. She soon discovers there is reason to worry. Something funny is going on at the nightclub where the missing woman worked, a local crime boss is unusually interested in what Roxane finds out, and the off-duty cop who left his card at the woman's apartment turns up dead. When the woman's wealthy father begins to throw his weight around, Andrew becomes the prime suspect, and since he supplements his bartender income by selling weed, he's arrested for possession as the police build a case against him.

That gives Roxane even more reason to find the missing woman. When she's not busy investigating the source of a shipment of counterfeit luxury leggings for a client, Roxane fills in the blanks, supplementing a shoe leather investigation by tracking down connections through a local dating app. It's a deceptive hall of mirrors, where people curate their appearance to create a fantasy self and may not even be who they say they are.

Roxane is a hard-drinking, principled professional whose personal life is complicated. Her long-term relationship, never smooth sailing, is on the rocks and the second anniversary of the death of her father, a police officer killed in the line of duty, is looming over her family just as he had dominated them in life. In this third entry in the series, the trail she follows is tangled and complex, a frustrating collection of seemingly unrelated and unresolvable mysteries, punctuated by small discoveries that don't seem to connect – until they do, and the action takes off. In the end, there's a connecting thread through all of it, including the investigation she's conducting for the owner of a trendy leggings company: In a society obsessed with appearances, the stories we tell are mostly lies.

Reposted from Reviewing the Evidence

Roxane Weary is back again. Her brother, Andrew, calls her late at night after Addison, a former fling, leaves his apartment, scared as can be. Andrew wants Roxane to find her and make sure she's OK, but Addison seems to have disappeared off the face of the earth. Her best friends haven't heard from her in a while.

Meanwhile a disgraced cop has been contacting her. He winds up dead. What's the story?

An interesting, but not compelling read. ( )

The Stories You Tell is part of the Roxane Weary series and is my first read by the author. I wasn't familiar with the character of Roxane, but I quickly got a feel for who she is. Roxane is not perfect, and the story only benefits from her imperfections. She drinks, is too nosy for her own good and struggles with relationships; however, she has good qualities as well. Roxane is a natural at detective work with great instincts. She loves her family and wants to protect them. She is not afraid of confrontation or its consequences. I felt both respect and sympathy for Roxane and found her relatable in many ways. Because I didn't read the series in order, I was confused about Roxane's relationship with Tom and about Tom's involvement with her father, especially her father's death. A satisfactory explanation is given but not until near the end of the story. Tom is an interesting character. He's obviously carrying a good amount of grief and guilt, but he's hard to read otherwise. Honestly, the entire dynamic between Roxane and Tom is difficult to pin down because it's just not clear how they really feel about each other. My biggest complaint about the story, though, is Roxane and Catherine. They are romantically involved, but it's an odd pairing. They are nothing alike, and by the end of the story, it's crystal clear that Catherine is nothing but a narcissistic b***h. Now, as for the actual story, it's a convoluted look into the lives of seemingly normal people, and I felt disgusted about the things people will do. There are plenty of lies, evil doings, dead ends and betrayal here. This story is also an excellent example of the unstoppable all encompassing power of social media. Roxane wonders at one point if any of this would have happened without social media. I think definitely not. The anonymity of it is too alluring. You can be anybody and do things you would never really do as yourself. The mystery here centers around an app called BusPass, like Tinder, and a missing girl. Roxane digs deep into this digital world, and the results are shocking. Is anyone who they appear to be? The Stories You Tell is a psychological thriller with an unforgettable heroine. I was on the edge of my seat until the end, and I highly recommend, especially if you like a strong female lead. It's a must read for your tbr!! ( )