Beach Reads and Deadly Deeds

by Allison Brennan

Mia is a financially conservative accountant who is on the verge of achieving partnership in a New York financial consulting firm. Before she signs a contract and gets her name on the door, the company sends her on a Caribbean vacation. She and her friends expect her to have a sexual fling and return home to her predictable life of work, caring for her financially impulsive grandmother, reading, and loving her two cats.

When Mia arrives on the island paradise, she finds almost everyone there is already in a relationship. She resorts to reading a book left by another guest and flirting with a barkeeper. The book Mia is reading is filled with notes about blackmail schemes handwritten by the deceased previous owner of the novel. Most of the characters on the island are rich and unlikable—by Mia’s standards and mine as well. Mia is determined to break the code in the notes and discover the murderer.

The first part of the book is very focused on Mia’s desire to “hook up” with a handsome man, any handsome man. Later that happens and the reader is brought along through several open bedroom door, or in this case naked romp-on-the-beach, scenes. Romance enters into the relationship but the preoccupation is lust. 

Various characters come under consideration as possible murderers, but with some of them murdered themselves along the way, the list of suspects is narrowed. 

Trust is a major issue for several of the characters including Brie, the college age daughter of a potential victim of a honey trap. I almost liked her until she showed no problem instigating illegal activities. Regaining trust, being willing to risk all you have in money and reputation, and following your dreams are themes for Beach Reads and Deadly Deeds. The mystery starts out slow, but picks up the pace later. Although I liked the ending resolution for the main characters, the conclusion is fairly sudden and not very believable. My favorite parts of the novel, unsurprisingly,  encompass books whether in bookstores or libraries. If you are looking for a good, clean mystery, full of intrigue and interesting characters, then this is not the book for you.

Rating: 3/5

Category: Mystery, Fiction, Romance

Notes: Warning—inappropriate language and sexual content

Publication:  June 17, 2025—Mira

Memorable Lines:

I never leave home without a book. The idea that I might be trapped somewhere without something to read gives me nightmares.

I didn’t feel thirty. Sometimes I felt like I was twenty-one and trying to figure out what I wanted to do with my life, and sometimes I felt forty, set in my ways and wanting to tell everyone to get off my lawn.

My imagination had not only gotten away from me, it had landed on Mars then taken a side trip to Jupiter.