Still grieving the loss of her daughter, New Jersey PI Vandy Myrick is surprised by her feelings when her ex-husband, Philip Bolden, reappears in her life at a homecoming gala at a prestigious boarding school. Phil’s son attends the school, and his wife is a guidance counselor. Vandy finds herself wishing for the family she lost after Phil’s abandonment and the death of her daughter. One night with her ex may help quell her emotions, but when he leaves her home in the night and is found shot dead in a parking lot hours later, Vandy knows Phil must have led a complicated and messy life in DEATH OF AN EX, the second Vandy Myrick mystery by Delia Pitts.

As Vandy decides to investigate Phil’s death, she learns more about the Rome School and Phil’s artistically gifted son, Tariq. This prestigious school has a high college admissions rate, even for underachieving students, and the headmaster has been acting awfully strange since Phil’s death. As Vandy digs deeper, she finds Phil was involved in many things. Could his murder have been a result of an angry wife, a community redevelopment venture, a college admissions scandal, a conflicted son, or a dangerous obsession? Vandy has many angles to investigate, and she hopes to get it right; otherwise, she may never survive the fallout.

DEATH OF AN EX is an excellent mystery with a tough and tenacious private investigator who is messy and complicated. Vandy’s world is colored with grief, and her decisions sometimes lead to further complications for those she’s trying to protect. Yet in the end, Vandy always finds a way to make things right. The writing is rich and vibrant, and the plot is multi-layered and intriguing. From a college admissions scandal to a community redevelopment plan with money laundering to an inappropriate relationship between a student and a teacher, there are many avenues for Vandy to explore and find the truth. Her journey is entertaining and harrowing as she deals with murder, a fire, a grazing bullet, a final showdown with no good options, and eventually Tulips. DEATH OF AN EX keeps readers riveted with its action and engaged with the gritty, messy lives of its characters.