Friday, September 14, 2018

Book Review and Giveaway - Read and Gone: A Haunted Library Mystery by Allison Brook

Book Synopsis:
Twenty million dollars’ worth of missing gems bring Carrie Singleton’s long-lost and larcenous dad back into her life and it’s up to Carrie to clear his name.

A devoted dad is as precious as diamonds, but Carrie Singleton wouldn’t know since her dad Jim’s been on the lam most of her life. In an unusual family reunion, she finds Jim breaking into her cottage in the middle of the night. The fun really starts when he begs her to help him recover his half of a twenty-million-dollar gem heist he pulled off with the local jeweler, Benton Parr. When she refuses, Jim takes off again.

Carrie finds her father again behind bars for the recent murder of Benton Parr. Who made the connection? Unbeknownst to her, Carrie’s boyfriend Dylan, an insurance investigator, has been searching for the gems. Determined to find the jewels herself, she starts examining every facet of Parr’s life. She turns up a treasure trove of suspects, one of whom bashes her on the head as she’s searching the victim’s country cabin.

Retreating to the quiet confines of the library where she works, Carrie watches as Smokey Joe, the resident cat, paws at a hole in the wall. Is he after the library’s ghost Evelyn, or something shinier?


My Review:
Read and Gone is the second book in the Haunted Library Mystery series.  Carrie Singleton works at a small Connecticut library.  She loves her work, has made friends with several coworkers, and even has a ghost friend -- Evelyn, who worked at the library years ago.  When Carrie's father, a reformed jewel thief, returns unexpectedly, her life is up-ended ... especially since her boyfriend is an insurance investigator who specializes in theft cases.   When there is an unexpected murder, Carrie works to solve the mystery.

This is my second read in this series.  I enjoyed both books, Death Overdue and Read and Gone, and look forward to future reads in this series.  The details of Carrie's life unfold in both books, and I would recommend reading them in order.

There is just so much that I enjoyed about this cozy mystery.  I loved the holiday setting, as Carrie and the library staff prepared for Christmas.  I like the continuing romance between Carrie and Dylan;  they are so well matched and their scenes together are great.  I also loved the glimpses of Carrie's family, especially her dad, Jim.

Evelyn continues to be a delightful character.  I have pictured her a bit like Aunt Clara in the Bewitched TV series, popping in as a very properly dressed older lady.  I found the way that Evelyn sent Carrie to visit her senior citizen friend in a nursing home very touching.

And of course I loved that kitty, Smoky Joe.  He even played a part in solving the mystery!

The mystery itself was well plotted and had enough possible suspects to make this a very enjoyable read.  

I highly recommend Read and Gone to fans of cozy mysteries, especially for readers who enjoy holiday mysteries and library settings.


Author Bio:
Allison Brook is the pseudonym for Marilyn Levinson, who writes mysteries, romantic suspense, and novels for kids. She lives on Long Island and enjoys traveling, reading, watching foreign films, doing Sudoku and dining out. She especially loves to visit with her grandchildren on FaceTime. 

Author Links
Website: http://www.marilynlevinson.com
My Amazon page: http://amzn.to/K6Md1O
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marilyn.levinson.10?ref=ts&fref=ts
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/161602.Marilyn_Levinson
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MarilynLevinson
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/marilev/ 

Purchase Links
Amazon   B&N  BookBub

Giveaway:
a Rafflecopter giveaway
 

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and Great Escapes Book Tours.

1 comment:

Marilyn Levinson said...

Thanks for having me here today and for your kind review of READ AND GONE!