Review: Going to the Bad
Lilly Hawkins is at work at the local television station on Christmas Eve. She’s a “shooter” – someone who films location footage – but today she’s filling in at the assignment desk. A report of a shooting comes in over the police scanner and Lilly quickly realizes the address they’re giving is hers. Worried about her boyfriend, she rushes home and finds that her beloved uncle is the one who was shot. She knows she won’t be able to live with herself until she figures out what happened and why so she sets out to solve the crime.
Going to the Bad, by Nora McFarland, is the third book in the Lilly Hawkins series, but my first experience with it, and I had no problem whatsoever following the story or catching up on Lilly’s background.
The action in the book takes place in a little over thirty one hours so the pace is non-stop. Since she works for the news, Lilly knows the town and its residents fairly well and is able to piece things together without too much problem. Of course, that doesn’t mean she doesn’t put herself in jeopardy while she does it. The book was loaded with tension, but McFarland occasionally uses humor to lighten the mood. Some of the action is heart pounding but it’s not graphic, so even the squeamish will enjoy this book.
Lilly is a wonderful character. She might be a little afraid of commitment, but she’s strong, smart, determined, and hard working. She’ll stop at nothing to help those she loves. She’s just a little bit quirky, but that’s what makes her so much fun. I can’t wait to read more about Lilly Hawkins!
I really enjoyed Going to the Bad, even though I had to suspend disbelief a time or two. I’d recommend it to anyone who likes mysteries.
It does sound good, even a mystery for me
I’ll bet this one is really good. Great review.
Good to know! I hadn’t heard of this series before. I wonder if it’s a good one for fans of the Jacqueline Daniels series by J.A. Konrath. Those get a little gory, though, I think.
This sounds goood. Is it like Janet Evonvich at all?
This sounds like fun (for a mystery!) — I hadn’t heard of the series before. Is it a cozy, or more involved than that?
I like a good mystery, Thanks for your honest review.
This sounds like a good series. Going on my list.
Sounds perfect for a fun Mystery Mondays!
It does sound like a fun series. I like quirky characters.
Sounds like a fun book, I’m putting it on my TBR list.
I feel like I don’t read enough mysteries. I love suspense and thrillers but for whatever reasons, I tend to avoid reading them. This sounds like a series I could get into though. I’ll keep an eye out for it!
A Christmas time mystery – fun! Good to know that it’s easy to follow along even if you haven’t read the whole series. I love quirky characters too, they work well to break the tension in suspenseful stories, don’t they? Great review!
Another great review…and more to read!
That sounds like a great vacation read!
It sounds a bit edgier than a cozy.
I think I’ll save this read until December! Great review.
Lilly sounds like a wonderful, quirky character. Excellent review! I think I’d enjoy this series as well.
Sometimes it’s fun to pick up a mystery or thriller to change the pace of my reading. I just finished reading When the Smoke Clears which sounds the similar to this book in pace.
I like that you liked Lily which makes me think that I could really get into this series!!!
I like books that are set over a period of hours or days because like you mentioned, they move fast. It sounds like this one might be something worth investigating, and trying out for myself. Glad to hear that you loved it!
This sounds great! I think it’s always a testament to an author’s good writing and sense of awareness when a book later in a series is just fine as a stand-alone! Sounds like a read I might have to pick up soon.
i do like mysteries and appreciate being able to pick up a series out of order and keep up with it. Still, I do always have the tendency to want to start at the beginning.