Going to the Bad by Nora McFarland

". . . not fairy tale mystery nor is it fluffy."

Few books get a 10, but Nora McFarland and Lilly Hawkins are the lead story on news at five.

Lilly Hawkins dreads the day that her boyfriend pops the question. She found the ring, so she knows the day is not far away, especially since it is Christmas Eve. The newsroom where she works is running on a skeleton shift and more shooters (camera journalists) have lost their jobs as more on air personalities shoot and cut their own videos. One thing she does not need is death in the family, and that is what she gets.

Lilly’s Uncle Bud was shot in her living room and Rod Strong, Lilly’s boyfriend, is on the scene. Worse, there is something he is not saying and that something is what she needs to find out even if it means taking on billionaire Leland Warner. They have tangled before and Lilly is not about to back down now.

From the first page on, Nora McFarland’s Lilly Hawkins is a salty, no-nonsense realist who does not go in for sentimentality and soft emotions. She wears size 10 shoes and has a smart mouth and sharp tongue. Lilly is what every mystery novel needs, a strong, uncompromising woman that lets no one and nothing stand in her way. Lilly is that in spades.

Going to the Bad is Lilly Hawkins’ third adventure and the first I have read. I like her gritty personality and her salty demeanor. Lilly is the first protagonist I have liked from page one. McFarland knows Bakersfield and she knows television journalism, and it is obvious she loves the work, even when things are difficult.

From the billionaire Warner’s protected domain to the crumbling edges of Bakersfield, Lilly commands attention and gets it. Going to the Bad is not fairy tale mystery nor is it fluffy. This is hard news with a dogged shooter determined to get the story, even when it rips the scabs off her heart.

Reviewer: J. M. Cornwell