Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and author for this eARC.

I was delighted to be approved for Karen Rose’s new book and eager to start reading this. As always, this author does not disappoint and I think she is a very gifted story teller. This is a new series, set in New Orleans with new characters to get to know. Rocky Herbert, a retired police officer commits suicide. His son, Gabe doesn’t believe this and requests a private autopsy and hires a Private Investigation Agency to find out exactly how and why his father died. I really liked the two main characters Gabe and Molly who are portrayed realistically and are very believable. There are a lot of ‘side’ characters in the story, and many story threads where you initially think how will they all connect and I found the more I read slowly everything began to come together beautifully. I love the format the author uses when writing her books, they always take place over a few days, add in the usual romance element and you’re onto a brilliant read. Initially it took me a while to get used to the new characters and they slotted into the story very well the more I read. Overall this is a fast paced, thrilling and entertaining read with lots of twists along the way. It came together very well and raced to a final and fitting conclusion with all loose ends tied up nicely. I would have liked it to wow me though. Or have me desperate to turn the pages wanting to know what was coming next. It is a refreshing change to read a book told from a PI perspective though, and I’d definitely want to read the next book in this series. I’d recommend this if you like crime, mystery books that are written very well and have lots of suspense to keep you interested in the story line.

A page turner. The plot moved along at a fast pace and was easy to keep up with. The characters were written well and weren't annoying. The romance was just enough for the story, but not too much that I'd stop reading. A highly enjoyable book in my opinion

This is the start of a new series by the Author and based on her previous ones looks to hook the reader into a group of new characters with old ones popping in occasionally

Chef , Gabe Herbert is convinced that his , retired Police Officer , father's suicide is anything but that and arranges a private post mortem which confirms his suspicion - it was murder . But his father's old colleagues are brushing the matter under the carpet and even try to set his father up as a drug thief .
He contacts an old colleague of his father , PI Burke Broussard to investigate - who , feeling he is too close to the case , asks his employee PI Molly Sutton to look into the matter and also act as Gabe's bodyguard .
They discover Gabe's father was working an old case that started back during Hurricane Katrina where he rescued a 5yr old boy who had witnessed a murder - a murder no one seemed to want to look into .
Corruption seems to be rife within the Police Department - who can they trust ?

Xavier Morrow has never forgotten the policeman who rescued him all those years ago and finds out that upon his death he has been left money in trust which brings up all those old memories of the murder .
When staying at a friends house he becomes the subject of a gunman who trys to kill him .
Fleeing the scene with his friend he determines to contact Gabe , as Gabe's father had instructed him to in the event of need .

What follows is Murder, upon Murder - anyone who has any connection to the case , even those who have helped Gabe are being killed - just what is going on , who can be trusted


This is a fast paced murder/mystery , full of twists and turns to the last page - but perhaps a little too convoluted , as the reader will need to concentrate fully to keep up with who is who throughout the book

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own

Rocky Hebert walks into his death at quarter to midnight one New Orleans night.

His son Gabe cannot accept the official verdict of suicide and enlists the help of the Burke Broussard Private Investigation Agency to discover the real cause of death.

PI Molly Sutton knows what it's like to lose a father in tragic circumstances and will go to any lengths to crack the investigation, as she tries to fight off her growing feelings for Gabe.

They soon realise Rocky was working on an investigation of his own; one that threatened to expose the deep corruption going all the way to the top of the police department. And that the key to the puzzle lies with a young witness to a murder that happened years earlier: Xavier Morrow. 

Just what did Rocky know? And who might have shut him up? 

As they get closer and closer to the truth, they realise that the killer is not going to stop at Rocky. And that Xavier is in very real danger. Someone will go to any lengths to protect what he witnessed that night coming out...

“Quarter to Midnight” by Karen Rose is the first in a brand new series. There’s no doubting, Karen Rose writes cracking thrillers. Bodies pile up, tension mounts with each chapter and you are guaranteed to be kept reading into the small hours. I don’t like romance in my books, in any capacity, so I would normally avoid books that are marketed as ‘romantic suspense’. However, Rose writes such damn good books, I can overlook the romance parts. To me, they don’t add anything to the books but they don’t affect my overall enjoyment of the story.

I’m a mood reader - I go through phases and sometimes there is nothing more comforting than settling in with a new Karen Rose. Existing fans of her series will eat this up and for anyone who hasn’t yet tried her books, this is the perfect time to discover her with this brand new series.

I have been a fan of Karen Rose for a fourteen long years. I literally screamed the house down once I saw I was approved for this copy. I devoured this in one night. At the start I was upset to find that the book was on a new character and not on the many previous characters I loved so much whose stories I’ve been waiting for. That feeling stopped about 1% into the story when I was literally holding the breath every five seconds as I kept turning the page. Molly and Gabe were thrown together due to unforeseen circumstance when Gabe comes across the suicide of his father… or so someone wants him to think that.

Hiring Molly to get to the bottom of the truth, the two are thrown in a dangerous game of cat and mouse as they find out there also cops involved. Not knowing who they can trust they race against the clock to catch the culprit before they themselves are caught.

The amount of times I had to stop reading in order to wipe tears away from my face is kind of shocking! I cannot believe I’m saying this, but this is has now become my all time favourite book of hers completely! I feel like I’ve cheated on the Chicago/Baltimore family who I hold so dear!

Many people say you can read all of Karen Rose books individually (I DONT) but I really believe you will truly love the series that much more when you’ve read them ALL. Previous characters pop up no matter how brief!

This book will have you second guessing your own family with the amount of tension and betrayal circulating. A MUST READ!

Did I mention you have to read this?!

Quater to midnight by Karen Rose.
Rocky Hebert walks into his death at quarter to midnight one New Orleans night.
His son Gabe cannot accept the official verdict of suicide and enlists the help of the Burke Broussard Private Investigation Agency to discover the real cause of death.
Really enjoyable read. Great story. Couldn't put it down. 4*.