Where No One Will See by Felicia Watson

 

Where No One Will See

Felicia Watson

5 Stars

Genre: Thriller, Mystery, Crime, Detective

Pages: 271

Published: 11 April 2023

Publisher: DX Varos Publishing

Publisher's Blurb

Lucia Scafetti, a Philly private eye, has tried to move out of the shadow of her infamous crime family. 

She has her own business, her beloved dog Rocco, and she’s starting to date the cute lawyer down the hall. 

Her life is upended when her notorious hitman father disappears while in search of the diamond and gold coins he stole from his last victim. 

Lucia races to unravel the mystery of her father’s disappearance before a crooked and powerful cop beats her to it. 

Though Lucia’s allies are scanty and her enemies numerous, she tries to resist the questionable help on offer from her Mafiosi family. 

It looks like Lucia must finally decide on which side of the law she truly belongs, knowing the wrong choice could send her to prison – or an early grave.

Review

Where No One Will See by Felicia Watson is a stand-alone novel featuring a Philadelphia private investigator whose family have deep rooted Mafia connections.

Italian-American Lucia Scarfetti has always tried to distance herself from her organised crime family but when he newly released from prison Father is murdered she is plunged into the most perilous investigation of her career.

Mixing a hard-boiled gumshoe with the Mafia, politicians and corrupt law enforcement is always going to be a dangerous game. One that Lucia is more than ready for.

This is a tightly plotted thriller balanced by the character driven story of Lucia’s personal life and relationships. I enjoyed the wise cracking lead character and the ‘Goodfellas’ style language used throughout the book as this lent an aura of authenticity to the gangsters and their molls whilst not straying into a caricature stereotypical Mafiosi goon.

The plot is fast paced and written in an easy to read style that draws the reader in. I feel that some of the evidence is discovered too easily and a couple of the bit parts are somewhat two dimensional but these don’t affect the overall quality of the story.

My only real concern is that, without revealing any spoilers, I had the feeling by the end that the lead character / narrator was being less than honest with the reader and this gives the impression that she is lying to herself.

I’d recommend this to anyone who enjoys nineteen forties style hard bitten private dick stories or anyone with an interest in organised crime family thrillers.

I’d like to think that this is just the beginning for Lucia and she’ll be back with more investigations in the future as I’m sure she has more stories to tell.

In summary, this is a well written detective thriller with a likable but flawed lead character and an interesting collection of supporting roles that was easy to read and entertaining. A few tweaks to the investigative process to make the evidence harder to discover and this has the makings of a great series opener.

If you are wondering about the book title then it all becomes clear by the end

The Author

Website: https://www.feliciawatsonwrites.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/FeliciaTes
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/feliciatheauthor/
Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/FeliciaWatsontheAuthor/

I started writing stories as soon as they handed me a pencil in first grade. Both as an author and a reader, I am captivated by character driven tales where we see people we recognize, people who are good, bad, and indifferent – all at the same time.

My novels all feature deeply flawed characters who struggle with their mistakes and shortcomings, are forced by circumstances to face them, and use that knowledge to grow into wiser human beings.

This is what I mean when I say that story-telling is a kind of paradox – a lie (since it’s all an invention of my somewhat warped mind) that tells us a recognizable truth.

My newest novel, Where No One Will See, is a mystery novel, set in Philadelphia (rather close to home). It stars Lucia Scafetti, a young women torn between her mafioso family and her desire to be a law-abiding PI.

My scifi novels encompass the 3-book Lovelace Series. This first book, We Have Met the Enemy, won 1st Place in the 2020 EVVY Awards for Science Fiction, and the entire Lovelace Series was chosen as a Distinguished Favorite by the Independent Press Awards.

I have also written the romance novel, Where the Allegheny Meets the Monongahela.