Crossed by Death by A.C.F. Bookens

When salvage expert, historian, and single mom Paisley Sutton crawls into an abandoned store with a house attached, she certainly isn’t expecting to find a body on site. But soon, her discovery sends Paisley on an expedition through history that links this murder to the one that led the previous owners to abandon the building in the first place. And someone doesn’t want her to salvage this story from the wreckage.

Can Paisley preserve herself and her young son while also uncovering the stories that matter most?

Honestly, the first third of this book is just the main character driving around with her toddler and talking about how poorly behaved he is, while also talking about how good of a white woman she herself is. The White Savior stuff is pretty annoying, and if the book wasn't so flat-out boring, I probably would have at least finished it, but reading about nothing happening and then having the main character annoyingly brag about how not-racist she is all the time just made it not enjoyable at all

I love this new series! I love Paisley's job, salvaging and telling history. In trying to tell the history of the place she salvaged, she got herself in deep on this mystery. She kept trying to stay out of it, but that didn't work. I like the way she ends up discovering things accidentally. The history of this one family is just a small piece of the history of this area, but it touches multiple different people. I like the way it seems small, but important.
I like the way the people around her support her and Sawyer. Mika, Dad, and Lucille offer so much love and support. Santiago is a great character as well. He is trying to keep her safe and solve the murder, but doesn't discount her insights. And she is careful not to step into his investigation. It works really well.
I can't wait to see what is next!
I received an ARC from the author. This is my review.