I came for the serial killer. I may stay for Lily Dawn. I will stay for Tim Alexander.
I just finished listening to Still Alive by Ava Strong, the first book in the Lily Dawn series, and this one gets a solid four stars from me.
Lily Dawn is an FBI agent sent to the Bahamas to meet her new partner and investigate a disturbing string of murders. Someone is killing brunettes at an alarming rate, and Lily has more than a professional interest in finding the person responsible. Years ago, her sister disappeared in Aruba. She was never found, and Lily’s parents still blame Lily for what happened.
That history gives Lily some baggage. She’s strong, capable, and good at her job, but she’s also flawed. Her sister’s disappearance still affects her, and this particular case hits much closer to home than she would probably like. She’s exactly the kind of protagonist I enjoy following: smart and tough without being superhuman.
The story itself was solid and kept me interested throughout. It didn’t quite reach the “audiobook has escaped the car and followed me into the house” level, but I never lost interest. More importantly, by the end I was already considering book two. That’s always a good sign with the first book in a series.
And I have to give a big round of applause to Tim Alexander, the narrator. He was excellent. No strange mispronunciations. No ridiculous voices. No stretching his vocal cords into places vocal cords were never intended to go. He simply narrated the book really, really well. Apparently that shouldn’t feel remarkable, but after listening to enough audiobooks, I have learned otherwise. Alexander understands that narrating an audiobook is not an Olympic event.
Four stars for a good mystery, a strong but nicely flawed new protagonist, and a narrator I would happily listen to again. In fact, whether I move on to book two may depend heavily on whether he comes along for the ride.
