Another Review at MyShelf.Com

Read and Gone
Haunted Library #2
BY Allison Brook

Crooked Lane
September 11, 2018/ ISBN 978-1-68331-734-0
Mystery/Cozy / Holiday - Christmas

Reviewed by  Laura Hinds

AMAZON

Jim Singleton has come back to Clover Ridge after years on the lam. He sneaks into his daughter Carrie’s cottage in the wee hours and gives her a bad scare. Of course, he’s up to something, she just isn’t prepared for him to ask her to help him with one of his capers. He’s in town to try to retrieve some gems from a heist he was involved with years ago. His so-called retirement fund.

Carrie runs the programs and events at the local library and loves her job. She loves her friends and has a wonderful beau, Dylan who is an insurance investigator. Who just happens to be on the trail of the same gems and the thieves!

Torn between her father and her boyfriend, Carrie spends most of her time this holiday season upset and worried. At least she has the job she loves, her Aunt Harriet and Uncle Bosco and her beloved cat, Smokey Joe. No to mention several good friends, one of whom is the library’s ghost, Evelyn.

While this is an entertaining and easy enough read, I’m afraid I didn’t love it as much as the first book. All the right elements of a cozy mystery are checked off, but the protagonist, Carrie Singleton seems to have regressed emotionally instead of maturing and growing. There were times I wanted to talk some sense into her. Yes, I know, a fictional character!

The mystery itself did not disappoint, but the family drama and relationships seemed to be more at the forefront of the story. I believe the author tried to strike a fair balance between the two, but it felt somewhat strained and I think that something special which I had found in the first book is missing.

You’ll want to read the first book, “Death Overdue” before this one, so pick up or order both and have a mini-binge reading weekend.

I will certainly be watching for book three and hopefully, the magic will be back. This very well could simply be a sophomore slump. You may find that you love the book! I think it’s a case of your mileage may vary as the saying goes.

Reviews of other titles in this series

Death Overdue #1
Read and Gone #2
Buried in the Stacks #3
Checked Out for Murder #4

Reviewed 2018
© MyShelf.com