Book Review: Cut and Run by Allison Brennan (ARC)

Cut and Run

Author: Allison Brennan

Publication Date: 31 March 2020

Genre: Adult Fiction – Murder Mystery/Police Procedural

Pages: 448

Publisher: Minotaur Books

Three years ago, authorities assumed that the Albright family fled the country to avoid prosecution for embezzlement. But when their remains are discovered after a recent storm, the FBI is called in to investigate — and find the youngest child, whose body wasn’t found with the others. If the child is dead, why wasn’t his body found with his family? If he’s alive, where has he been for the last three years? As FBI Agent Lucy Kincaid and her partner Nate investigate the cold case, they receive surprisingly little help from the original investigators. With minimal forensic evidence and no witnesses, Lucy and Nate don’t know if they’ll be able to find justice for these tragic murders, but with one small clue — the timeline of the victims’ last day — they recreate what might have happened to the family.

While Lucy is deep in her investigation, investigative reporter Maxine Revere arrives in San Antonio because of another case. The confessed killer of a family friend has recanted his statement, and now the family simply wants her to find the truth about what happened to Victoria — Max’s specialty. She hires Sean Rogan, a PI and Lucy’s husband, to assist her. When Max learns that Victoria knew Lucy’s victims, she connects a series of dots that lead to a deadly conspiracy. Lucy, Max, and Sean must work together again if they are to find justice for these two families — and finally uncover the truth about what happened. As they dig deep into the world of corporate embezzlement, high-stakes gambling, and multi-million-dollar land investments, they realize that more than one person has secrets dark enough to kill for … and that one of them is the next target.

While this may be the 16th installment of the Lucy Kincaid series, Cut and Run was my first introduction to the series and can definitely be enjoyed as a standalone.

FBI agent Lucy Kincaid and her partner Nate are assigned to a case after the remains of the Albright family (mother, father, and two teenage daughters) were discovered following a flood. The family supposedly fled to Mexico three years prior to avoid prosecution on embezzlement charges, but the remains clearly showed the family was executed. Interestingly, the remains of the youngest Albright child were not recovered. Now it is up to Lucy and Nate to figure out exactly what happened to the Albright family, and whether or not Ricky Albright is still alive.

Investigative reporter Maxine Revere travels to San Antonio after the confessed killer of a family friend recants his statement. Max specializes in finding out the truth regardless if someone is guilty or innocent. Max is determined to figure out the motive behind the killer recanting his statement in order to find the truth regarding Victoria’s death. She enlists the help of one Sean Rogan, private investigator and Lucy’s husband. Together, they find themselves deep within embezzlement and money laundering, and they quickly learn that everyone must be a suspect if they are to uncover the truth.

First and foremost, I independently loved both Lucy and Max. While the way that they investigate problems is vastly different from one another, both ladies are determined, strong-willed, and able to hold their own in the most dire of situations. I couldn’t help but root for both of them in there respective investigations.

In terms of plot, the plot was propulsive and I found myself glued to the pages. Both investigations were packed with twists and turns as well as a few red herrings to through us down a rabbit hole or two. At first I was a little confused as we oriented ourselves to these two cases, but I loved watching how the cases unfolded and ultimately were interwoven with one another. I wouldn’t say that the ultimate plot twist took me by surprise, but it made for a wonderfully cohesive story.

Overall, if you love a good whodunit murder mystery with well developed characters and a fast paced and engrossing plot, definitely pick this one up!

Thank you to Minotaur Books for providing a review copy. This did not influence my review. All opinions are my own.