Donna M. Cramer’s Vegas Goodbye is the story of two broken souls who have drifted to the same place with the intention of ending their lives. Debra is a widow burdened with grief over the death of her husband, and she travels with pills. John is distressed after the death of his son due to an overdose. John also hides his anger and more. He travels to Las Vegas with a gun. When Debra meets John, it is awkward at first as he asks for a seat, but they quickly realize they might need each other, at least for the time being. In Las Vegas, they bond over dinners and shared concert tickets until the moment each of them discovers the chilling secret the other carries. Will they continue to fool each other or rethink their destinies at this moment?

This book was pure joy to read, and the dialogue shone through every page. It felt like I sat at the same table with the characters, watching them tease and mislead each other about their identities and who they had come to Las Vegas with, while someone else filled the gap with their backstories. Vegas Goodbye has short sentences and timely paragraph breaks that augment the narrative, while the humor elevates the quality of the writing, distilled in quirky situations and snappy conversations. Donna M. Cramer’s characters instantly draw sympathy; Debra and John have had a lot to deal with, and they are at a point of choosing an easy way out. The premise introduces the suspense that moves the story forward, and I wanted to know what happens next to these characters. You won’t want to put this book down once you start reading.

Donna M. Cramer’s Vegas Goodbye introduces Debra and Jim, two strangers who arrive in Las Vegas with the same purpose: to end their lives. Debra is a widow grieving the death of her husband, Ron. She had been his sole caregiver since the diagnosis of cancer, which eventually claimed his life. Now all that is left for her is a disturbing sense of guilt. She meets Jim, who is traveling under the name of “John” to escape the aftermath of his son’s overdose, leading to death, and his growing alcoholism and divorce. Under the neon lights of Las Vegas, they share concert tickets and meals, each pretending to be someone else. They will have to confront each other and face the truth when Debra discovers Jim’s handgun in the hotel room, and Jim discovers her stockpile of pills. What happens to their growing connection, and will they honor the reasons that brought them to Las Vegas?

Vegas Goodbye pulses with drama, starting on the first page with awkward encounters and lies, and growing in magnitude through each page. The narrative is character-driven, and the dialogue not only fuels the drama but also reveals deeper layers in characterization. The narrative voice is irresistible, and the storytelling is superb. The author switches between the present and the past with flashbacks that give powerful glimpses into the pasts of the characters and explain why they came to Las Vegas at this point. Debra is a people-pleaser, and Jim is a man with anger that is almost always misguided, and these traits make them compellingly flawed. From the gorgeous prose to the humor, from the elaborately developed characters to the brisk pacing, this book is the creation of a master storyteller.