Finlay Donovan Rolls the Dice by Elle Cosimano

Finlay Donovan and her nanny/partner-in-crime Vero are in sore need of a girls’ weekend away. They plan a trip to Atlantic City, but odds are―seeing as it’s actually a cover story to negotiate a deal with a dangerous loan shark, save Vero’s childhood crush Javi, and hunt down a stolen car―it won’t be all fun and games. When Finlay’s ex-husband Steven and her mother insist on tagging along too, Finlay and Vero suddenly have a few too many meddlesome passengers along for the ride.

Within hours of arriving in their seedy casino hotel, it becomes clear their rescue mission is going to be a bust. Javi’s kidnapper, Marco, refuses to negotiate, demanding payment in full in exchange for Javi’s life. But that’s not all―he insists on knowing the whereabouts of his missing nephew, Ike, who mysteriously disappeared. Unable to confess what really happened to Ike, Finlay and Vero are forced to come up with a new plan: sleuth out the location of Javi and the Aston Martin, then steal them both back.

But when they sneak into the loan shark’s suite to search for clues, they find more than they bargained for―Marco's already dead. They don’t have a clue who murdered him, only that they themselves have a very convincing motive. Then four members of the police department unexpectedly show up in town, also looking for Ike―and after Finlay's night with hot cop Nick at the police academy, he’s a little too eager to keep her close to his side.

If Finlay can juggle a jealous ex-husband, two precocious kids, her mother’s marital issues, a decomposing loan shark, and find Vero’s missing boyfriend, she might get out of Atlantic City in one piece. But will she fold under the pressure and come clean about the things she’s done, or be forced to double down?

Audiobook, 9 hours, 5 minutes

Published March 5, 2024

 by Macmillan Audio

3.5/5 stars

This is Book 4 in Finlay Donovan Series, right now I am in the middle of book 5, which releases in March and just realized that I have not done my review for Rolls the Dice. The thing is I listened to this book way back in July and I still remember it. I remember my drive home from north as I listened, shaking my head and thinking oh my what do we have here?

I can honestly say this was an entertaining listen.  It seems as the series progresses it gets a little more outrageous and far-fetched.  And that's not always a bad thing. That being said, it was funny and mysterious all at the same time. If I had to suspend my belief in book 3 at the Police Academy, Roll the Dice takes it up a whole other level. If something is gonna go wrong, then it’s gonna go wrong a hundred fold. And it wasn’t just a case of Finley and her sidekick Vero, but the rest of the family gets involved also.

What has been consistent throughout all her books is a mystery, the mob, Finley‘s new boyfriend who happens to be the police detective, her ex-husband, her kids, her sister, and a very strong case of suspending one’s belief. The star of the show... Kevin Bacon. 

Not much more I can say other than you have to read this series in order. And I highly recommend the audiobook as the narrator does an amazing job.

My copy of the audiobook was obtained through my local library via CloudLibrary