Savannah Blues | Mary Kay Andrews

Title: Savannah Blues
Author: Mary Kay Andrews


I am a sucker for Southern literature. Give me some Spanish moss, a humid mystery, and a glass of sweet tea, and I'm usually a happy camper. When I realized Savannah Blues was leaning into the Southern mystery genre, I was actually pretty excited. Unfortunately, that excitement soured fast.

The character development--or lack thereof--was the biggest letdown. Let's discuss Daniel. If the goal was to create a romantic lead who is defensive, quick to anger, and entirely unappealing, then Mary Kay Andrews nailed it. He's a total dud. I'm placing my bets now: Weezie and Daniel aren't making it past Valentine's Day. He has the charm of a sunburned tourist and twice the irritability.

Then there's Weezie herself. She was just...silly. Her decision-making skills were questionable at best, and her depth was paper-thin. To top it off, the subplot involving her alcoholic mother felt like it was thrown in haphazardly, as if the author realized at the last minute the book needed "texture" and just tossed some trauma into the mix. It didn't land; it just felt strange and distracting.

The ending was the final nail in the coffin. I HATED it. Between the ending and the inappropriate content that felt totally unnecessary for the story being told, I was left with a bad taste in my mouth.

I wanted a cozy Southern mystery; I got a chaotic mess of unlikeable people. 

Two out of five stars.

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