Somewhere in the Dark

By: R.J. Jacobs

Narrated by: Eileen Frances Stevens

After a childhood marred by neglect, Jessie Duval's finally got it together. With an apartment in Nashville and a job with a catering company, she's thriving.

But all that changes when she works an event where celebrities will be in attendance, including the one person from her past she must avoid at all costs: singer Shelly James. Jessie doesn't hate Shelly - quite the opposite. One summer, she followed Shelly's tour everywhere. But Shelly wasn't flattered; she was terrified by Jessie's devotion - especially after Jessie was arrested. But after a year of therapy, Jessie understands what happened. She's not the same person anymore.

Jessie keeps her head down, but when Shelly is found dead, Jessie's troubled past comes tumbling out, and she quickly becomes a suspect in the high-profile murder. As the police close in on her, ignoring other credible leads, Jessie realizes Shelly's murder will be pinned on her - the perfect scapegoat - unless she finds the real killer. No one knows Shelly's life and inner circle better than Jessie does, but she will have to go deeper into the dark if ever she wants to find her way out.

©2020 R.J. Jacobs (P)2020 Dreamscape Media, LLC

Slow to start

I have to mention that this book started off quite slowly but then it got really, really good. Jessie Duval had a tough childhood. She cycled through a number of foster homes and at one stage spent 12 months and 9 days locked in a cupboard, her only company a country music CD by country legends Shelley and Owen James. It is therefore unsurprising that she became a little obsessed with the couple. She followed their most recent tour and a misunderstanding lead to her spending a year in prison. Now, out on parole with mandated therapy thrown in and a restraining order against her being anywhere near the couple, 19 year old Jessie is getting her life back on track. She has a place of her own, her own car and a job she loves doing food prep for a catering company. This suits her as she is not good with people and has plenty of anxieties.

However, a chance intersection of circumstances finds her serving drinks at a party being hosted by the James’s. A party Shelley is never present at because she is dead. And Jessie, because her history, rockets to suspect number one. It was impossible not to like Jessie. She was awkward and shy yet determined to sort out her life. The other characters were not fleshed out as well, just enough for their parts in the book.. But Jessie carried this story. Her pain yet subtle strength were inspiring to read about. It’s just a pity it took so long to get to the meat of the story. If you are patient with a slow start I’d recommend this book.

Get ready......

This book is a great weekend grab. I say 'Weekend', because you will not want to put it down… or in this case, stop listening. Our protagonist is understandably damaged and incredibly well written. The story moves quickly and like most great stories will take unexpected turns. Jacobs has an effortless way of creating a scene and does so in breathtaking fashion.

I was drawn to the main character…

Being from TN and working with children and young adults like Jessie had me completely engaged from Chapter 1. I enjoy the twists and turns in the authors writing. The setting details and the familiarity of the text made this a book I couldn’t put down.

Good just not Great

I found this story interesting but tedious at the same time. The first half was on the side of boring. I powered through because as always I was hoping for a dramatic change in events. It did get somewhat better but there was nothing great or earth shattering about the rest of the story or it’s ending. It didn’t help that I didn’t form a connection with anyone or anything for that matter.

Love it!

This is the 2nd book I’ve read by author and I really appreciate the way he offers a fresh perspective on contemporary mysteries. People aren’t stereotypes even though there are recognizable characters. The way characters intersect is very thought provoking.

As a Nashvillian, the depiction of the city felt spot on.
The place isn’t romanticized at all (which is good!) but you come away with an understanding as to why it is such a magnetic force to people who want to be rich and/or famous. Or, at least, seen.