Title:  The Rooftop Party
Author:  Ellen Meister
Genre:  Mystery/thriller
Rating:  DNF

Dana Barry, the Shopping Channel’s star host, stops by the company’s rooftop party to pitch the new CEO her brilliant idea that just might save the flagging business, her job and possibly her love life.

As she chats with the smarmy executive, he backs her into a dark corner. For Dana, it’s a quid pro oh-hell-no. She escapes his lecherous grasp and grabs her drink on her way to the dance floor. Woozy, she blacks out.

When she comes to, the CEO is dead, fallen from the roof. Or was he pushed? And if so, by whom? It’s hard to know, but one thing is certain: Dana was close enough to be suspect.

Sure, she loathed how the creep moved in on her, but she’s no killer. Or is she? Truth is, Dana can’t remember much about those minutes. Now she has to use all her skills to prove her innocence to everyone, including her police detective boyfriend—and herself.

I only read about 15% of this before stopping. Dana comes across as vapid and self-absorbed, and the other characters were about the same, so I just couldn’t continue reading. And…if Dana is supposedly so smart and savvy, would she really have left a drink beside a guy who creeped her out and then returned for it a few minutes later and drank it? Really?

Ellen Meister is an editor, book coach, ghostwriter, and teaches creative writing. The Rooftop Party is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Harlequin/MIRA in exchange for an honest review.)

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