Mike Finn > Recent Status Updates

A tightly written police procedural mystery. Perfectly controlled pace. Nice balance of uncovering the mystery and getting to know Casey Wray, the lead detective. No melodrama. No voyeuritic violence. Just a good plot, well-drawn characters and an engaging lead detective.

Here are the 12 books I'm waiting for as the nights darken. New releases in September, October and November

https://mikefinnsfiction.com/2025/08/...

I'm about to meet the much-foreshadowed Greta. I'm already imagining her as a female Iago. I'm sure she won't let herself be marginalised by the callow, relexively mendacious Mr Rogers. There will be fireworks.

This is remarkably cinematic. It's like watching the most recent film versions of 'The Talented Mr Ripley' or 'My Cousin Rachel'.

This is very fresh. It has that 1960s feel to it - a little reckless, a little bizarre, a grab for optimism in the shadow of a doom. In a blind test, I'd never have guessed this was Christie.

I like that Mrs Plansky isn't a doddering but charming charactature grandmother figure. She's smart. She's independent. She has a lifetime of experience behind her and a web of family surrounding her. Her life has context. Oh and she has a sense of humour that is neither brittle nor cruel but is often hard to supress.

CARGO by E. Michael Lewis ★★★★
What gives this horror story an extra shiver factor is how firmly grounded it is in reality. Almost everthinng in the could be explained by the impact of the horrific events in Jonestown. The almost is important. It's the dark crevice where doubt and fear lurk. The gap between what we tell ourselve is possible and what the hairs on the back of our neck believe might be happening.

I'm hooked now. As soon as Jet woke up, everything got better. I'm inside her (broken) head now. The story is deeply emotional. If I let myself think about it, if Jet lets herself think about it, it becomes almost unbearably sad. Jet holds it a bay with humour (thinking of herself wryly as being classed by others as 'pre-dead' ) and by focusing on solving her own murder. The storytelling is intimate and propulsive.