Murder Under Her Skin

3.5 stars. This was a serviceable enough mystery. It was pretty engaging while it lasted and had a pretty decent cast of characters. I just thought that the gimmick of it could've been better developed. The murder victim is our narrator Willowjean Parker's old friend from the circus she used to travel with before she left and found an alternative job as assistant to the detective Lillian Pentecost. Ruby Donner was hired by the circus for the number of tattoos she had inked on her body, but was discovered stabbed to death one night, and the only person with the biggest motive is the Russian knifethrower Val, who also happens to be Willow's mentor.

My issue with the gimmick of the story might be a spoilery so hidden under spoilers here: The title, “Murder Under Her Skin”, makes it sounds like Ruby's tattooes would play a big role in the resolution of the murder. Indeed, we do focus a lot on the various designs inked on Ruby's skin, especially since Will was offered the chance to dress her body for the funeral. In the end, there is only one clue to the murder tattooed on Ruby - the daisies on her chest, somehow alluding to a past pregnancy which only has a very, very slight connection to the bigger conspiracy that is unearthed at the end. For a book that pretty much references tattooing in its title, I would expect tattooes to play a much larger role somehow.

It was hard to rate this one. On one hand, it's a pretty solid mystery without being overly generic. On the other, it doesn't pack oomph-y plot twists that make a mystery truly hard to forget.