Reading Between the Crimes

Reading Between the Crimes by Kate Young is the 2nd A Jane Doe Book Club Mystery. It can be read as a standalone for those new to the series. Lyla Moody finds herself helping Harper Richardson after her husband is murdered in Moody's home during a charity soiree. Reading Between the Crimes has a convoluted mystery. There are a handful of suspects in this strange whodunit. There is a cliché tough guy detective (Detective Battle) who does not believe Lyla's story (of course). The reveal was action packed and filled with tension. I was left with numerous unanswered questions at the end of the book. I would have liked a better wrap-up. I like how the mystery tied into the Jane Doe Book Club's current selection of Crooked House. I wish Lyla and the ladies had compared the current murder to the one in the book (gone into detail). Agatha Christie fans will enjoy this story. I love Lyla's grandmother, Daisy. She is a hoot and my favorite character in the book. I would love a cozy with her as the protagonist. There is a great deal of repetition of murder related details, and I did not appreciate the foul language. From the summary of the book, I was anticipating a spooky Halloween themed cozy. There are references to the October pub crawl, but Halloween seemed to have fallen through the cracks. I was surprised by Lyla's sleuthing skills. As a private investigator, I expected her be different than an amateur sleuth. I expected her to dig deep to uncover information especially about the victims past. I thought she would be more curious especially when it appeared there was a tie-in to her own mother. While I liked the beginning, I had trouble completing Reading Between the Crimes. Reading Between the Crimes is a literary themed cozy mystery with jovial grandmother, a Christie related crime, a remote mother, tempting treats, a determined detective, and an alarming murder.