Summoned to take up her estranged father’s post as a medical examiner, surgeon Emily Hartford discovers home is where the bodies are buried in this “intense, riveting mystery” debut (Library Journal) Recently engaged and deeply ensconced in her third year of surgical residency in Chicago, Emily Hartford gets a shock when she’s called home to Freeport, Michigan, the small town she fled a decade … town she fled a decade ago after the death of her mother. Her estranged father, the local medical examiner, has had a massive heart attack and Emily is needed urgently to help with his recovery.
Not sure what to expect, Emily races home, blowing the only stoplight at the center of town and getting pulled over by her former high school love, now Sheriff, Nick Larson. At the hospital, she finds her father in near total denial of the seriousness of his condition. He insists that the best thing Emily can do to help him is to take on the autopsy of a Senator’s teen daughter whose sudden, unexplained death has just rocked the sleepy town.
Reluctantly agreeing to help her father and Nick, Emily gets down to work, only to discover that the girl was murdered. The autopsy reminds her of her many hours in the morgue with her father when she was a young teen—a time which inspired her love of medicine. Before she knows it, she’s pulled deeper into the case and closer to her father and to Nick—much to the dismay of her big-city fiancé. When a threat is made to Emily herself, she must race to catch the killer before he strikes again. Expertly written and sharply plotted, The Coroner is a perfect mystery read for fans of Patricia Cornwell and Julia Spencer Fleming.
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Fast-paced and riveting, The Coronor by Jennifer Dornbush is filled with surprises, authentic detail and memorable characters. Well done!
law-enforcement, murder-investigation, family-dynamics, friendship
Third year surgical resident Emily finished a stressful procedure, received an engagement ring, received a call that her estranged father has had a major heart attack, and drove exhausted from Chicago to small town Michigan. Once there, the surprises just keep on coming. Her high school sweet heart is the sheriff now and needs a Medical Examiner right now, but Emily’s dad is on the critical list so the sheriff begs her to do the autopsy only to discover that the death was no accident. Lots of personal angst, determined sleuthing, plot twists and red herrings keep the reader glued to the action. A good read!
Sophie Amass performs the narration with aplomb.
Emily’s birthday was one she won’t forget. A successful surgery, a suprise cupcake, and a call that changes everything. (I want to say more, but can’t spoil it)
Emily was raised a medical examiner’s daughter, giving her an edge in her field.
Nick, her old flame, now the sheriff, needs her assistance. Will the duo be able to find the answers they’re looking for?
After thirteen years away, Emily Hartford finally came home.
Estranged from her father, grieving her mother’s death, heartbroken, in high school she escaped to live with an aunt in Chicago and continued with her life, never looking back.
When her father’s heart attack summons her from a prestigious residency and new fiance, she’s forced to confront everything about her past she’d denied for so long. Emily agrees to do the autopsy on a local girl’s suspicious death which pulls her further into the local politics and community.
What follows is a murder mystery layered with themes about grieving the loss of a parent at a young age, taking the road less traveled, losing yourself in a romantic relationship, and what does home truly mean? Emily has to answer all these questions and solve the mystery before she can move on.
The characters’ emotions are gripping and the mystery is not easy to solve. This book can be read as a standalone, but you’ll want to keep reading the next in the series to find out what happens to everyone next.
A good read and a good story. Well written and holds your interest. The story draws you in and the characters are believable.
I loved it! I watched the tv show so it was an easy read. R there more in this series?
I didn’t think I would like it – but ended up reading it almost nonstop – ordered next book, but haven’t had time to start it yet.
If you like small town mysteries, twisty reads or books by Lisa Black or Patricia Cornwell, you’ll love The Coroner.
Emily is strong and competent, vulnerable and kind… Add a twisty plot, romance, and family drama and the result is this satisfying first-in-a-series mystery.
The ending ruined it for me!! If I had known I would not have wasted my time.
A fantastic start to a new favorite series.
I really enjoyed this book and the characters that keep you turning each page. I would have given it 5 stars if not for the ending that completely leaves you hanging. I am definitely hoping there is a second one on the way soon!
I liked this book, caught my interest and kept me turning pages! Left me hanging at the end and can’t wait to read the next one!
I cannot say enough good things about this book. It holds your attention throughout and I never wanted it to end. I hope there is another one soon by this author. One of the most enjoyable for me this year.
I just now finished this book and I am really hoping there is a sequel in the works!
This was a very enjoyable and interesting mystery with a nice mix of romance thrown in. Emily is a surgical resident in Chicago, very recently engaged to her boyfriend Brandon, another surgeon. Emily gets a call that her father has suffered a serious heart attack and she heads back home to Michigan to be with him. At the same time, also in Emily’s hometown, a young girl has been found murdered. Since Emily’s father is the medical examiner and she learned his job as she was growing up, she steps in, performing the autopsy and assisting with some sleuthing alongside her former high school sweetheart, Nick, the current sheriff. The story is very well written and just flows. The characters were interesting and likeable. The ending is an interesting cliffhanger which I am hoping is indicative of a soon to come second book in what should absolutely be a new mystery series.
Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for a review copy.
Emily Hartford seems to be doing well for herself with a promising surgical career in Chicago and having been recently engaged to a third-year surgical resident. Her world is turned upside down when she receives a call telling her that her estranged medical examiner father has suffered a major heart attack and she must come home.
Upon arrival at her hometown of Freeport, which she fled over 12 years ago after the mysterious death of her mother, Emily is pulled into an investigation. With her ME father unable to assist, Sheriff Nick Larson (Em’s old high school flame) asks her help in finding out if the sudden unexplained death of a Senator’s teen daughter was an accident or murder.
This book is engaging with several different stories going on at once. The first story is the mystery of the Senator’s daughter who was an equestrian, good student, and all around loved individual. How and why was she killed? The second story is about the relationship between Emily and her father. They once were so close, but with the mysterious accident her mother suffered leaving her dead, daughter and father have a rocky relationship. The third story is of Emily and trying to find out what she really wants in life.
The is a true mystery-suspense drama with a very surprising ending.
I received a ARC copy of this from #NetGalley
Very good book. Emily a young doctor is called back to her hometown that she left twelve years ago after her father has a heart attack. The same day she got called home she just became engaged to Brandon, also a doctor. Emily’s father Robert is a doctor and the medical examiner/coroner for the area. When Emily was thirteen years old she started helping her father with autopsies. She has been estranged from her father for years and they have to work on mending their relationship. Emily only plans to stay a short time, but then a teenage equestrian dies. Emily’s father and the Sheriff, Nick (her high school boyfriend) talk her into doing the autopsy since her father is recuperating in the hospital. What they thought was an accidental death turns out to be murder, Emily starts helping Nick investigate. She reconnects with her old best friend. When Emily finds out her fiancé’s mother is planning everything for their wedding and Brandon seems to want her to return to Chicago quicker than she can, plus he doesn’t seem to want to come to her hometown, she starts to have second thoughts on many things. She also starts to think she may be happy to once again live in her hometown. The way the book ended makes me think their will possibly be a series made out of this story. I certainly hope so. I loved this book.