#NewBlogPost #BookReview #HappyReading...Peter Miles Has to Die...#NetGalley #KatieCollom

Four friends became three. Only murder will set things right.

An emotional "what would you do?" thriller debut about revenge, the bonds of friendship, the reverberations of a small-town crime, the limits of justice.

Peter Miles has to die. And Dylan Darcy, Priyanka Shah, and Isabel Guerrero—a bartender, a nurse, and a student—have to be the ones to kill him. As they see it, this local cop deserves death for murdering their best friend and getting away with it. All they need to do to pull off the perfect crime is stick to their carefully prepared plan.

So that's exactly what they do. Murder, it turns out, is surprisingly easy when you're fueled by revenge. What comes after is the hard part.

As the dry Texas heat gives way to cooler weather, their blazing rage is replaced by a chill fear. Because there’s a fallout that comes from settling the score against someone like Peter, and it could cost them more than they’ve bargained for. When the lead investigator on the case starts sniffing around for a cop-killer, the three friends are not feeling as confident as they did on that fateful night. And when they start receiving death threats, it weakens their resolve even further . . . but it’s too little too late.

What they don’t realize is that this detective has her own reasons for wanting to get to the bottom of Peter's murder. Reasons that don’t involve them at all. The investigation ramps up, and so does the pressure, leaving Dylan, Priya, and Isabel to wonder if ending his life may end up costing them theirs.

As the guilt of what they've done settles in their bones, they realize there's no going back. Someone is going to have to take the fall.

The Sexy Nerd's Review. . .

I had a couple scenarios brewing from a few paragraphs as to how this story may go and I was dead on. What an interesting read indeed!

Imagine having four close friends with whom you’ve known most of your life and one of those friends begins dating a guy and she’s all giddy like a school-girl crush with the excitement of a new love abound and something goes horribly wrong. What do I mean by “wrong” you ask? After your friend discovers the guy she’s dating is not only a jerk, but also happens to be a police officer, who do you call when he has stalker-ish behavior?

If only Dylan, Priya, and Isabel could have saved their beloved friend, Rebecca, better known as Beck. Peter Miles, the police officer, has brought so much chaos to the girlfriends that all they can think about is getting even with him. He murdered their best friend and has gotten away with it. Where’s the justice in that?

Dylan wasn’t quite sure where Lady Justice went, but she knew how to rectify the current situation. There was only one conclusion for her to come to, Peter Miles must die. Sometimes you find when you wish for something so hard, wishes really do come true because Peter was found murdered. There wasn’t any love lost among the friends. The police were upset that someone murdered one of their own. Immediately they began questioning Beck’s family and friends because naturally they’d have a vendetta against Peter. But no matter how hard they tried, the friends weren’t giving up any information.

However, although the ladies wouldn’t cooperate with the police, there’s something to be said about holding on to secrets. Everyone isn’t cut out to deal with guilt. Some people, no matter how angry they are at a situation can't follow through with being on the wrong side of the law. Because let’s face it, these ladies didn’t have anything to hide, right? These friends were tested and then some.

At the end of the day, what these women found out is that some plans sound good in theory when you speak them into existence, but once they are executed, there’s no “do over” button. Real life just doesn’t work that way. I figured out the ending long before I got there, but it did not take anything away from the story.

The Sexy Nerd gives Peter Miles Has to Die four stars. This is the first time I’ve ever read this author. Her style was extremely detail-oriented which grated on my nerves. She put so much side attractions into the story, there wasn’t much room for dialogue. I found myself skipping the background noise and cut right to the interaction of the characters. I realize some readers like that type of detail, but it was way too much for my tastes. I appreciate having some detail, but this story oozed detail causing the story to be entirely too long. But, as my readers know, those are my pet-peeves. It’s still a good story to read. I enjoyed the journey. Peter Miles Has to Die goes on sale, Tues., August 12, 2025 at your favorite book retailers or wherever books are sold.

Until next time, Nerds, you know how we do!  😉

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