Review copy was received from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Family Lies by Karen Rose Series: Romantic Suspense #33, San Diego #4
Published by Berkley on March 31, 2026
Genres: Romantic Suspense
Pages: 528
Format: eARC
Source: NetGalley
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As an infant, Kit McKittrick’s foster sister Akiko was abandoned at a firehouse. Now 32, Akiko has received an unsettling phone call from a woman who says that she knew her birth mother but refuses to divulge any details except in person. Akiko is nervous but also thrilled at the prospect of finally learning about her blood relations.
Kit has a bad feeling about this and insists on accompanying Akiko to meet the woman. Sure enough, as they stand on Mary Sherman’s doorstep, shots are fired and Kit is hit...and inside the house is a corpse: Mary Sherman herself.
Although she’s on medical leave and forbidden to work the case, Kit cannot rest. With police psychologist Sam Reeves, she undertakes a covert investigation into the mysterious Mary Sherman. Was she Akiko’s birth mother? Why did she reach out after all these years? And who had a motive to kill her?
I love the Romantic Suspense series. I’ve read them all. I started the series with the first Cincinnati book, with Faith and Deacon. It was actually #16 overall. Then I went back and read the previous 15 books. I would not jump into this in the middle of a series. One could start at the beginning of a city since those stories connect well, and they seem to be labelled on Goodreads.
The San Diego series continues with Family LIes. This city series is different because rather than one couple / romance per book, this romance is very slow burn taking 4 books so far. The main characters are Kit McKittrick, a homicide detective and Sam Reeves, a therapist. Sam does some work with profiling for the department, as well as a lot of volunteer work.
Kit grew up in the foster system until as a teenager she came to the McKittricks and was adopted. Her impetus to become a police officer started when her sister Wren was murdered. Her background makes her a bit prickly to trust anyone but Sam is willing to wait for her. After 4 books, they are more comfortable together.
With the McKittricks fostering so many children and their strange, unknown or complex backgrounds it is the perfect backdrop for family secrets and intrigue. Akiko has a very complex history which she knows nothing about until now. Then the people who have protected her for years start dying.
Kit isn’t allowed to investigate as she is too close to the case. But she still stands by Akiko to protect her. Kit and most of the other police working the case end up shot. The people who know anything aren’t forthcoming or disappear. The action is fast paced. It is a race to interview witnesses before they die.
The McKittricks are a special family and have many meals they share with family and friends. Sam’s family comes to visit and meets Kit for the first time. They like her and her family. I would love another book in the series, both to continue the relationship development and because there is a new lead on Wren’s cold case.
About Karen Rose
Internationally bestselling, RITA-award winning, author Karen Rose was born and raised in the Maryland suburbs of Washington, DC. She met her husband, Martin, on a blind date when they were seventeen and after they both graduated from the University of Maryland, (Karen with a degree in Chemical Engineering) they moved to Cincinnati, Ohio. Karen worked as an engineer for a large consumer goods company, earning two patents, but as Karen says, “scenes were roiling in my head and I couldn’t concentrate on my job so I started writing them down. I started out writing for fun, and soon found I was hooked.”
Her debut suspense novel, DON’T TELL, was released in July, 2003. Her novels, I’M WATCHING YOU and SILENT SCREAM, received the Romance Writers of America’s RITA award for Best Romantic Suspense for 2005 and 2011. Five of her other books have been RITA finalists. To date, her books have been translated into twenty-four languages.
A former high school teacher of chemistry and physics, Karen lives in Florida with her husband of more than twenty years, her two daughters, two dogs, and a cat.
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I read all types of books but my favorites are urban fantasy and romantic suspense.I like some romance and some action / adventure / mystery in everything.I like sex in my books but please, only between TWO people.Intimate conversation is equally important to the sex in a book.It lets me see the characters.The other thing I enjoy is humor.
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I miss this series and wish I had the time to get caught up. Great to see all these stars, Anne💜
It is such a great series with world building and character development and good plors and pacing.
Happy to see you enjoyed this, too. Yes, the romance is very different in this series and while I enjoy their bond, the romance isn’t my focus. I really like the friendships and mysteries and like you, I’m looking forward to the next one!
Karen Rose just has a such a great skill with world building and character development and plots.
I love her books and they always pack a punch.
She is amazing at both character and world development. The plots are good too.