Book Review: “Scenes of the Crime” by Jilly Gagnon

Full disclosure – I was provided a copy of this book by the author; however, I have voluntarily chosen to write a review. All opinions are my own.

Scenes of the Crime is scheduled for a September 5, 2023 release

Where’s Vanessa?

Five Friends take a trip to a remote winery in Oregon. It should have been the perfect chance to relax and wind down after a long semester of studies and exams. But when Vanessa Morales vanishes without a trace the remaining girls’ lives are turned upside down. Now, fifteen years later Paige Fischer is a writer in a long running sitcom. Tired of penning the same old formulaic, clichéd content she feels that if she can only complete that breakthrough script that she can finally break out of obscurity and into success. When she spies a dead ringer for her missing friend Vanessa, her writer’s brain kicks in. What exactly happened to Vanessa? She was the last person to possibly have seen her alive, but only a few cryptic text messages left behind. Could she tell Vanessa’s story (albeit with a little literary license) and bring closure to herself and her friends? With the once close-knit group of friends not even speaking after the events of that day would it even be possible to bring the group together to share their experiences? After pulling some strings with Vanessa’s cousin Brittany, the remaining women agree to meet for a weekend at the winery; if for no other reason than to reminisce and obtain closure. However, as the weekend wears on and increasingly more strange events occur it does not appear that closure is anywhere in sight. Everyone in the group has a different story of that night and everyone has their secrets. When the truth is revealed, it will affect all parties involved irrevocably.

Scenes Of The Crime is the upcoming novel by author Jilly Gagnon. Taking the premise of “escape room” to a new level Gagnon has crafted a tale that will keep the reader guessing. As the surviving friends return to the winery the atmosphere is tense but seems to loosen up once the wine begins to flow. As each person reveals their secrets about Vanessa it becomes clear that if foul play was involved, each of the friends had a reason to want her out of the picture if not dead. With the bulk of the story taking place over a weekend, the action was fairly fast paced and mostly centered around the winery. Gagnon’s description of remote cliff top locale with all it’s secret passages and prohibition era caves was very east to imagine. This was a story that sucked me in and had me binging into the wee hours, and while the was my first time reading this author it will not be my last.

If you like mysteries with grandiose setting and characters that are relatable in their unlikableness, Scenes of The Crime will be the perfect binge read for you.