This wasn't quite what I expected, and it wasn't as much about a murder mystery with Vera doing amateur sleuthing or the like as it was about her being a gay woman in the 70s and navigating her life as a gay woman with a relationship with another woman who had a harder time with her family and them accepting her and her way of life.
This was about Vera and Max going to visit Max's parents, where there was chaos with her parents and their marriage ending. It was about whether and how Vera and Max were going to reveal themselves and their relationship to her parents, etc. This was also about how it was easier for them to just say they were friends and hide their relationship and true nature around certain people and in certain situations. It was also interesting yet strange to see the similarities and differences in how women and gays/homosexuality was viewed back then versus how it is now.
And once again, this story led to a woman being taken against her will and admitted into a hospital or mental institution of some sort for 'sick people. I've now read 3 or 4 books this year relating to history and women being put in mental institutions because of reasons that are not related to them being sick and needing to be in a hospital the way the hospitals described it back then.
I was a bit disappointed in this story as I was expecting something fun and great, like other amateur sleuth stories I've read. It was a decent read with some interesting things and a good storyline, but I feel like it should have been identified differently, perhaps as a light mystery with more historical fiction.
Thanks to NetGalley and Tin House for letting me read and review this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. ( )

On a visit to Vera’s girlfriend Max’s family home, she discovers that Max’s father is really not happy with the direction that his daughter’s life has taken. When Vera wakes up the next day she finds that Max has disappeared. With no help from the family and just a confusing telephone message to go on, Vera sets out to track down Max in her own inimitable way

This is book 3 in the Vera Kelly series but is the first one that I’ve read. It works perfectly well as a stand-alone novel as anything you need to know from the previous tales is slipped in whenever it is needed.

The main characters are well defined and ably supported by a small collection of quirky secondary ones that keep it all interesting.

The plot starts slowly but picks up speed following Max’s disappearance and then races to its frantic conclusion as Max’s investigations lead her to a family conspiracy designed to keep her apart from her true love. ( )

Looking back from 2022, it's surprising how much has changed...and how much has stayed the same.. for same-sex couples since the 1970s. Vera Kelly's girlfriend was disowned by her wealthy family, only to be called back home by her younger sister in response to her parents' pending divorce. Vera must face their outright hostility and track down Max when she mysteriously disappears early one morning. It's always great fun to see Vera use her wits to solve problems and the period touches are perfect (a paper ticket for a Pan Am flight? shoes for $3.99?). Enjoy!

Thanks to Tin House for access to a digital ARC via NetGalley.