Jesse Hudson had left Canton, Missouri without a second thought. Her stepmother and stepsister had disappeared under suspicious circumstances, making her father a murder suspect, but he vanished. Unable to take it after months of waiting, she left. Years of bartending at one bar to the next, Jesse returns. All she wants is to sell off whatever was left of her father’s belongings and move on again. Why does she keep getting the feeling that someone is thinking SHE’S GOING TO PAY when she only wants closure?

When the attorney handling his estate drops a bombshell, she finds that she needs more than just selling off the bar; she needs answers. Who was her stepmother and stepsister? Her father found that the woman was living under a false name. Victoria Hudson didn’t really exist. So, who was she?

SHE’S GOING TO PAY is author Alexandra Ivy at her best. Jesse returned to her hometown to cut ties completely and finds herself in a web of secrets. Secrets that could get her killed, because someone doesn’t want the truth to be found.

There is little romance in this book. Noah is a local who is protective of Jesse and agrees to help her get the deserted bar up and running to sell it and Parker, her so-called fiancé, who shows up and then gets impatient and leaves when she isn’t moving fast enough for the bar to be sold. I would have liked to see a little more steam to go with the mystery.

The mystery and suspense is well-written with numerous twists and turns and a really surprise ending. As I am fond of trying to solve the mystery before the author gives me the final results, I have to admit this one was not one I got right. A part of it was solved early, but not the ending.

If you enjoy a small-town mystery where more than one person hits the radar of “was it him/ her,” then SHE’S GOING TO PAY will be the perfect read.