Perhaps the problem is with Scarlett, who never quite seems to believe it either. Yet even with this sprawling plot, I never felt the enormity of the situation. The story starts out simply enough but blows up into something enormous.

There is a magical ring that plays a large role in the last half and all I could think of was:īut seriously. Rings…cults…magic…churches…Jewish boys…guardian angels…end of the world…this plot is everywhere. However, as the book progressed, I grew more and more confused about what was going on. The story does live up to some of its promise. I was excited for the unusual heroine and I was even down with the fantasy/mythical/chosen one style mystery that went along with her. Thoughts: I’m a sucker for a good noir style detective story and I was drawn to Scarlet Undercover‘s promise of just that. However, she quickly stumbles into something much larger and more dangerous, something that might even lead her to solve her Father’s murder. When she gets hired to investigate the suicide of a local teenager, she assumes the case will be pretty open and closed. Plot: Scarlett is a smart, fifteen-year-old Muslim-American orphan who runs a detective business. However, it never lived up to its potential.

Even once I figured out my mistake, I was pleasantly intrigued by the premise of the story and decided to finish it. I remembered that I had a book on my to-read list that was something-Undercover ( Velvet Undercover by Teri Brown, as it happens) but I had forgotten what so I decided to check Scarlett out. I picked up Scarlett Undercover by Jennifer Latham by accident.