In the Event of My Death by Carlene Thompson (1999)

Laura’s Rating: 3/5 Stars

I found this book at a library sale in Fort Myers Beach last year and was intrigued enough to purchase it. This book was pretty quick and easy to read, especially when you get past the first few chapters of setup.

The Analysis:

The story is set in Wheeling, West Viriginia, but starts with the brutal murder of a New York actress. Flower shop owner Laurel gets a call from one of her old high school friends, Angie, who believes that the murder has to do with a dark event from their past. The murdered woman, Laurel, and Angie had been part of the “Six of Hearts”, a secret club with three other girls where they partied, pulled pranks, and got into other mischief. One night, their innocent games went too far and turned deadly. Now it seems like someone knows what happened and is seeking revenge after over a decade.

This book’s premise sounded exciting and I really enjoyed the setup. Details about the past are slowly revealed to paint a picture of what happened years ago and how that tragedy created the ripple effects seen in the present. As the plot progressed, it seems like almost anyone might know the secret of what happened with the Six of Hearts back in high school. This makes it hard to narrow down who could be the killer hunting the women. I did like that the author kept me guessing and believably created a slew of suspects. Despite a lot of interconnected characters, it was still possible to keep them straight, which is sometimes hard in a book like this.

Overall, this book was average. My main issue with this book is that while I enjoyed the story, it wasn’t exceptionally well written. It felt like an amateur writer, with clunky dialogue and unsophisticated descriptions. Luckily, this didn’t take away from the actual plot too much, but it was distracting in certain spots. The ending was also a bit abrupt and far fetched. The book doesn’t stand up super well against tough analysis, but if you aren’t looking for anything too intense, In the Event of My Death is a good book to read curled up by a fire or over a long weekend.