Thank you Atlantic Crime, #partner, for the advanced copy of What About the Bodies in exchange for my honest review.
Publisher: Atlantic Crime
Published: September 2, 2025
Summary:
In this propulsive crime novel from Edgar Award nominee Ken Jaworowski, three lives collide in a gritty rust-belt town—a single mother covering up a deadly mistake, a young man on a mission to honor a dying wish, and a musician racing to escape a violent debt.
Carla, a single mom poised to finally break free from her cycle of poverty, must risk it all, including her morality, to help her son hide a terrible secret.
Reed, an autistic young man, sets out on a journey to keep a deathbed promise to the mother he just lost. Along the way he’ll encounter both kindhearted residents and a cold-blooded nemesis.
And Liz, an aspiring musician on the cusp of a breakthrough, needs to quickly come up with the cash she owes a brutal ex-con. If she can’t pay him, both her dream and her life will be in grave danger.
As these three compelling characters intersect, the novel ignites into a story filled with explosive twists, hair-raising chills, and boundless love.
My thoughts:
Two years ago, I read Ken Jaworowski’s debut novel, Small Town Sins, and I absolutely loved it. I knew I would be reading anything he wrote moving forward and was thrilled to get an early copy of his next book…and it did not disappoint. This book shows Jaworowski has staying power and is absolutely a must-read author for me!
Once again, I found myself completely invested in the three characters that we meet. I didn’t always agree the decisions they made, but I could see where they felt they had no other options at the time and often acted out of desperation. This is the type of book that seeps into your soul, and you find yourself unable to think of anything other than these characters…and even after finishing the book, they are still on my mind – that’s how vivid they are. I devoured this book – reading it in 24 hours and even though it is not an easy read, it’s one I couldn’t put down. The circumstances these characters find themselves in are ones I hope never to be in – it’s dark and depressing what happens to them and yet I needed to know how it would all work out and where it would all lead.
While the book starts off as a slow-burn, it eventually takes off, and with many of the chapters ending with mini-cliffhangers, it makes it very hard to put down. I also loved that even though this is a hard-hitting book emotionally, there is quite a bit of humor woven in.
I loved the way this one wrapped up…though I wouldn’t say no to seeing any of these characters again.
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