When I’m Dead is the third entry in Hannah Morrissey’s Black Harbor mystery/suspense series. Morrissey calls her genre “Midwestern Noir;” think Scandi Noir, but set in Wisconsin! So far, you can read the Black Harbor books in a standalone fashion. Each story is mostly its own thing, although they all take place in the same city, and occasionally a character will drift from one book into another. Just read them in order, though, don’t be dramatic. 
This book is about the Winthrop family, and what living in a spiritually caustic place does to them. Rowan Winthrop is Black Harbor’s medical examiner. Her husband, Axel (!), is a detective. Unfortunately, they stay pretty busy due to the frequent murders and deaths in the city. They compartmentalize work and home as effectively as possible. However, keeping personal and work lives separate becomes impossible when their teenage daughter’s friend is found murdered on a walking trail. Further, their daughter, Chloe Winthorp, is missing. In a city like Black Harbor, there’s no reason not to fear the worst.
As they investigate Chloe’s disappearance, Rowan and Axel vacillate between hope and grief, between being drawn to one another and repelled apart. The investigation dredges up things about each member of the family that they probably wanted to stay sunk below view. It’s a race not just to find Chloe, but to find her before the family falls apart for good.
Most compelling to me was the parents’ exploration of trying to raise a good person in a rotting and toxic place. And how to stay good people themselves in such a world. The moral fatigue of trying to do no harm is relevant as ever, as is the need to decide whether or not we can trust and rely on other people.
You can also read my reviews of the first and second books in the Black Harbor series.
This book is taking the “TBR” spot on my Bingo card because it has been in my Goodreads TBR shelf since it was announced.