This is a fast read, and you will enjoy it, but it may not knock your socks off. While the writing is good, I struggled with so many first-person storytellers.

There is Louisa, the awful mother (trust me, she is a villain you will love to hate), her children, simpy [fun word of the day *'simp' is slang for a person (typically a man) who is desperate for the attention and affection of someone else (typically a woman)*] Charlie who reads like a wet noddle, his wife Marcella who controls Charlie and has a side-squeeze whom she is also controlling, Winnie, Louisa's daughter who is a raging alcoholic, Nathan, Louisa's nephew whom she loves and cares for like a son, Ashley, some random wannabe actress who lives down the road from Louisa, and Ashley's roommate, Jordan, with whom Ashley has a pact to marry if they are both single when she turns 30, which happens to be just a few weeks away. [sucking in a deep breath after that long-winded sentence.] Whew, that's a lot of first-person prose to keep up with.

When Louisa turns up dead, to the astonishment of all involved, her fortune falls into play. But when the will is read with a stranger in the midst, Louisa's children take matters into their own hands.

The twists and turns are plentiful. The last few pages were surprising and felt a little forced to me, which distracted from the punch. But, it all ended well, and Susan Walter did a good job reaching the finish line.



( )

Childish....got about 30% and still waiting for a story!!! ( )

Ashley is a wanna be star! She has only had a few bit parts since moving to Hollywood. She is struggling with where her life is going. When her dog runs away from her one evening and ends up at a creepy house, Ashley’s life takes a big turn. The question is…is it for the better?!?!

Louisa Lake George is a retired talent agent and her chance meeting with Ashley sparks a unique idea. She is going to help Ashley find the right job for her. But, Louisa passes away and leaves her large estate to Ashley. WHAT?!? Ashley is a sweet, young lady. So, when she finds out she inherited a large amount of money from someone she just met, she knows something is just not right.

Enter the family…yep…you guessed it. No one is happy! But, the more the family starts to question, the more things are not adding up! And you will have to read this to find out!

Wow! And I thought my family was nuts! This one takes the cake! It’s been quite a while since I have had a good family production! I loved this one!

Need a quick family drama…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today!

I received this novel from the author for a honest opinion. ( )

YES, very, very readable and the story moved right along....but....I just did NOT like the ending....at all!!! I'm not sure I should have been so surprised that too many characters were...just not all that wonderful as human beings (yes, is anyone, really and truly??...with all of our respective faults?). ( )

Contest of Wills
Review of the Amazon First Reads Kindle eBook (Oct. 1, 2022) released in advance of the official Lake Union paperback/Kindle/audiobook (Nov. 1, 2022)

I choose Over Her Dead Body along with Alice Hoffman's The Bookstore Sisters for my Amazon First Reads picks for October 2022. The former was promoted as the 'suspense' selection for the month, but i found that elements of the structure caused it to constantly lose momentum. It didn't help matters that almost all of the characters are either unsympathetic from the get-go or are gradually revealed to be so by the ending.

The plot is easy enough to summarize. Through a chance encounter, a struggling actress Ashley Brooks makes the acquaintance of a retired film casting director Louisa Lake George, who was big in her day but is now living a bitter isolated life in a rambling mansion while estranged from her children. Louisa uses Ashley in a scheme to manipulate her family. Ashley thinks she is auditioning for a possible break in her career but it all comes undone. Various characters attempt or take steps for revenge or to fulfill their greed.

The loss of momentum is caused by having chapters that simply repeat the events of previous chapters but from a different character's point of view. While this adds some brief insight into the opposing forces, it hardly moves the plot forward and I've always found it to be a method of padding the material. I'm not opposed to unlikeable characters and protagonists, as long as they can be entertaining and clever in their schemes. This one was a downer though. I seem to be in the minority, based on the other advance reviews, so call this an Unpopular Opinion Alert.

Trivia and Links
Amazon Prime First Reads are available to Amazon Prime subscribers. Commonly they offer advance reads of books in Kindle eBook format one month before the date of official release. The current month's selection is available here (Link goes to Amazon US, adjust for your own country or region). ( )