Book Review: And Jilly Came Tumbling After

Not your grandma’s romance novel. In fact, this book is a bit more of a Sherlock Holmes meets Fifty Shades of Gray in a highly entertaining romantic comedy kind of way. If you are looking for a well-written romance with a bit of murder and suspense spun into the mix, look no further. 

And Jilly Came Tumbling After is a story about Detective Delmar who finds herself leading a homicide investigation, blessedly – or perhaps un-blessedly – forced to work alongside a long-lost romantic partner. 

The story opens with a quick dive into Gillian Delmar’s story and lands us right smack in the center of a homicide. Detective Delmar, better known as Jilly to the readers, is a modern-day career woman who is a bit past her prime. She is tough, tender at times and very relatable. It was a breath of fresh air to read from the perspective of a woman of a more mature age who seems to be balancing a full-time career as well as a new love interest.

The story artfully weaves a bit of Jilly’s past into the present, giving the readers a glimpse of how she and her long-lost romantic partner came to be. The romance is not sappy, nor your cliché heroine-who-must-be-saved, but instead told from the viewpoint of a strong character who needs absolutely no saving at all. It’s a great modern-day romance for a modern-day reader. 

This novel also delivers your classic whodunit plot right from the very beginning. For those who enjoy a good murder mystery, with a little bit of dark humor sprinkled over the top, this just might be the novel to pick up.

In fact, you feel as if you are driving right alongside Jilly as she investigates the homicide, stepping into the autopsy room and meeting with possible suspects. If you weren’t interested in reading crime novels before, this one will simply whet your appetite. 

As quoted from the novel, “An untrained observer might pass the phenomenon off as a trick of the mind; one that left behind a vague doubt that perhaps the fleeting but utterly malignant presence had ever been there at all.” And Jilly Came Tumbling After leaves you intrigued, unable to put the book down for a moment, and ready for more.

Looking for more great reads? Check out our other book reviews.

• Sealfinger – book 1 in the Sam Applewhite crime caper series
• Doggerland – book 2 in the Sam Applewhite crime caper series
• Sandraker – book 3 in the Same Applewhite crime caper series
• Mimi Lee Cracks the Code – cozy mystery
• Cat Who… – cozy mystery book series review

Dana Reeves

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Meet Florida born-and-raised Dana Reeves: Wife, dog mom, certified personal trainer and lover of all things reading and writing. What began as a hobby in writing short stories while in school soon turned into a full-fledged passion for all things writing as an adult. She loves to create fiction, poetry and fitness-related articles. When Dana isn’t writing, she loves running, traveling with her husband and family, exploring the world via cruise ship, and, as always, searching the universe over for more exciting writing material.

You can follow her on Instagram or read her blog.

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