This is the second in the Haunted Library series, about one Carrie Singleton, recently the new head of Programs and Events at her local library; for reasons (self-absorbed mother, dead-beat thieving ex-con father), she’s lived most of her life away from her hometown, and so is still finding her footing around her extended family and the community at large.

Things are looking up, and her life is finally falling into place, when dear old dad shows up, ready to screw it all up for her again.

I had never read anything by this author, but given the setup (haunted library! library worker! library cat! mysteries!), I was ready to love it.

Reader, I did not.

In fact, I’m not quite sure why I even finished it.

The story is narrated in first person, past tense, by Carrie; in the first chapters, the writing was fairly good, but the polish wore off early on. By the time we hit two thirds of the story, it’s utilitarian at best, with truck loads of extraneous detail and multiple repetitions of the same three or four things.

And look, given the setup, I could have forgiven the blah writing voice if the characterizations had been good and/or the mystery had been well crafted.

Instead, I ended up reading to the end in a kind of horrified “how much worse can this get?” trance.

And yo, it’s bad.

Carrie may have just turned 30, but she swings between spoiled hormonal teenager (twice running away in tears rather than have a conversation with the man she’s dating; hanging up on him, also twice; pining for a phone call or text from him after telling him she doesn’t want to see him again, and so on), and a preteen Nancy Drew with zero common sense (drives alone to an isolated location to search for the gems, gets hit on the head twice for her troubles, then gets angry when it’s pointed out she was reckless).

Then there’s the whole, “but he’s my father, and blood is thicker!” schtick: after bemoaning how he abandoned her and her late brother when they were children, and how he never loved them, and so on, Carrie not only lets her father stay with her, but also agrees to search for the gems he stole–like, “yes, of course, I’ll become your accomplice after the fact, no problem. Oh, someone has already been murdered for these? No worries, I’ll just ~be careful~ while I look for them”.

Seriously, Carrie goes from, “he’s a loser, the sooner he’s gone, the better” to “he really cares about me, he even made breakfast!”, to “oh, he actually doesn’t care about me, I’m heartbroken” and back again at least twice, and she even breaks up with her boyfriend over her father (twice!).

The whole thing is so ridiculous, even secondary characters call her on it.

Speaking of the boyfriend, every time it looks like they’re back “on”, she starts to mope because he travels a lot for work, and that “is not relationship material”. Never mind that he has had the same job since she returned to town, so you knew what was what before she started seeing him.

Have you guessed yet that I found Carrie incredibly annoying?

But wait, that’s not even the worst part.

All of the other characters are utterly two-dimensional; given what’s in the book, the reader may be forgiven for thinking Carrie’s family and friends have no personal lives, or interests, they are so clearly written to serve as background grounding for her character.

Plot threads and minor characters are introduced and abandoned all over the place–perhaps to reappear at some point later in the series, perhaps having done their duty as “ham-handed red herring du jour”–, and there are characters and plot threads from the previous book that just show up at random points in the book, then are never mentioned again, let alone resolved in any way.

There’s several episodes of “and I sat at my desk and answered emails and returned phone calls”, followed by painfully detailed descriptions of scenes and conversations about everyday library things that have nothing to do with the murder or missing gems.

There’s cooking, baking, shopping for Christmas presents, Secret Santa, Carrie’s co-worker who’s mean and has no friends, her other co-worker who only exists to listen to Carrie and give her sound advice (that Carrie always ignores), feeding the cat, petting the cat, talking to the cat…

We even get fashion and hair reports on the ghost, for crying out loud.

And while I enjoy “slice of life” fiction as well as anyone else, that’s not really what I signed up for here.

As for the murder and the missing gems, it’s another instance of a heroine who spends a lot of time musing over the same few facts five or six times throughout the book, runs around recklessly yet learns nothing of importance, then literally stumbles over the solution by accident.

The fact that after that little climas everyone, including Carrie, go on about how she “solves murders”, made my eye twitch.

Read and Gone gets a 5.00 out of 10

The second book in the Haunted Mystery Series, this story checked off several boxes for what I look for in a mystery. Evelyn the ghost, however, was sadly minimized to the point of being irrelevant, a missed opportunity there. The haunted library aspect also seemed under utilized. Smokey Joe, the library cat, was adorable and true to life; obviously the author knows cats and provided some laugh out loud moments. The supporting cast was colorful and interesting yet the protagonist, Carrie, had me skimming through her relationship woes and rolling my eyes over some painfully bad decisions which undermined her alleged crime-solving IQ. That said, as a cozy mystery, it served its purpose for bedtime reading and I will try another book in the series.

Read and Gone,is the second of a delightful series. I recommend this Christmas themed mystery for all who love cozy mysteries.

Read and Gone, the second in The Haunted Library Mystery series.

I tried, this book was just not for me. I love cozy mysteries and the premise is good...a library with a ever present ghost and murder and mystery.

What I have trouble getting past is the main character. Every other chapter she is breaking up with Drew...getting back together,...breaking up...having someone point out she's being unreasonable...seeing the error of her way. Honestly it was like reading about a high schooler. I wouldn't have been surprised if the conversation was " the sky is blue, he said it is cerulean blue...we obviously can't be compatible and must break up".

Also, WHY is she breaking up over her Father???? A man who has abandoned her and been nothing but trouble.

Looking through my reading log, I saw I gave book one 2 stars for the same reason.

Time for me to give up on this series.

I love a cozy mystery and this one was no exception. I loved the holiday twist on this format. There was so much to enjoy in this and I love being able to fall in love with a new character and find a new series to read my way through.

Just finished READ AND GONE, the second book in Allison Brook's Haunted Library series. As far as cozy mystery series goes, Brooks continues to hit all of the key elements within the series. I absolutely adore Dylan as a leaning male love interest, yet was sort of saddened by the cliche use of his interlocking relationship with Carrie's father during this particular book.

A great book by a fantastic author. The writing is excellent and the mystery keeps you turning the pages. Characters are well developed. Highly recommend.

Read this a while back and even though it seemed like a book I'd enjoy, I didn't like it so much. I love mysteries especially amateur sleuths but I'm not really a fan of these at the moment.

I really enjoy this series. In this one Christmas and Carrie's Dad have arrived along with a load of stolen gems. All the same wonderful characters from the first book are here. The library hosts a local jeweler to talk about precious gems. When he is found dead the next day and her father is a suspect she sets out to solve the crime. The bodies and suspects start to pile up. The mystery was good and the solution made sense. I was able to figure out the killer. Even Smokey Joe has a hand in solving the crime. There are lots of Christmas spirit and treats here too. I look for word to reading the next book in the series. This is a perfect read for the season. Enjoy

This is one of my favorite cozy series but somehow I never managed to read the second book. I'm so glad I took the time to go back and give it a read! Here are stolen gems, a murdered jewelry store owner, and Carrie's father who just happens to be a career thief just happens to be back in town and in exactly the wrong place at exactly the wrong time! Luckily, Carrie is on the case with some resistance from local police chief John and her boyfriend Dylan who works for the insurance company that is trying to find the gems. Everyone has a motive and no one seems to know just where the gems are located which makes for lots of searching and an extra dead body or two. The conclusion was satisfying both for the mystery and for Carrie's personal life. If you enjoy a good cozy read this is a fun series and a great book. While there is a ghost (hence the Haunted Library series title) it is a very minor aspect in this book especially so don't let that scare you away if you prefer your mysteries ghost free.

I enjoy cozy mysteries and this one was a fast read. Although I immediately knew the killer, I enjoyed leading up to the climax. Thank you Net Galley for providing me this ARC for an unbiased review.

If you are looking for a fun book with paranormal activity and a bit of romance this book is for you! No worries if you haven't read the first book in the series yet! Sit down with a cup of tea and a cozy blanket get ready for a fun ride.

I apologize due to a death in the family I was unable to read and review this book. I apologize to the author, publisher and Netgalley for my inability to follow through.

Read and Gone is such a fun, entertaining, and easy read. I am a huge thriller fan, but sometimes what you need is just a cozy mystery. The setting of the haunted library was so much fun and an interesting and unique background for the story. While the beginning felt a little formulaic, the more I read, the more I enjoyed the story. The twists and turns will take you on an exciting journey as you try to solve the mystery alongside the characters. If you like cozy mysteries, I definitely recommend this one.

This was an interesting mystery with some good twists and turns. I had a hard time connecting with the supernatural elements in the story. They almost felt forced. The main character is like able but seems frustrated much of the time. I liked this book but I’m not sure I would pick up the next book in the series.

Head of Programs and Events at the public library, Carrie Singleton, is settling nicely into her new cottage and life in Clover Ridge. On the night of her birthday and house warming party, she is awakened in the wee hours of the morning by her father who has a favor to ask. Carrie hasn’t seen him in years, and his visit now is less than welcome. He was in and out of her life when she was growing up, stealing and serving time in prison. Now he wants her to talk to his former partner in crime about getting his share of gems they had stolen together. Carrie, of course, says no immediately. Then the body of the jeweler her dad had asked her to speak to is discovered—with her dad caught at the scene of the murder. Carrie believes her dad is innocent of the murder.

Despite everything he’s done in the past, Carrie feels protective towards her dad. When it comes to him, her decisions are not always the brightest. His presence in her life threatens the perfect life she’s created, including getting in the way of her fairly new romantic relationship. I felt like I got to see a different side to Carrie in Read and Gone. Family can bring out the best and worst of us. And with a personal stake in this particular case, Carrie isn’t always at her best. Still, with the help of Evelyn, the librarian ghost, and her cat Smokey Joe, Carrie is able to keep her head enough to ask the right questions to get closer to the truth.

I raced through Read and Gone just as I had the first book in the series. There is just something about the way Allison Brook writes that has me wanting to read her books every chance I get—and even when I’m not supposed to. The reader gets to know more of the Clover Ridge residents, as well as more about Carrie’s past. The mystery was strong—at times intense—and I enjoyed seeing more of Carrie’s love interest in this second book of the series. I am really enjoying this series so far.

Read and Gone is the second book in the Haunted Library Mysteries series and, once again, ghostly former librarian Evelyn will be called upon to help Carrie Singleton – seemingly the only one who can see her aside from the library cat, Smokey Joe – to solve a murder. This case is very personal for Carrie, as her estranged father Jim soon emerges as the prime suspect when local jeweller Benton Parr is murdered. Jim had be absent from Carrie’s life for years before he showed up out the blue one night asking for her help recovering his share of the multi-million pound heist he pulled off with Parr. Carrie wasn’t filling to help him get his ill-gotten gains back, but she can’t sit back and do nothing when he is accused of murder.

There are actually two intriguing mysteries for Carrie to solve in this book: Who murdered Benton Parr? And where are the missing jewels hidden? The crimes are really well woven together and the story draws you in from the start. It’s hard to warm to Jim at first, although it’s understandable why Carrie ultimately wants to help him, but he becomes easier to like as the story progresses. It’s also interesting to watch the dynamic with Carrie’s boyfriend Dylan, the insurance investigator who had been tasked with tracking down Jim and recovering the jewels. There’s plenty for readers to puzzle out as Carrie sets to work cracking the case. Bonus point, too, for the haunted library – it’s a great idea.

Though this is the second book in the Haunted Library series, it is the first one I've read. And I'm not sure I was at a disadvantage having not read the first book. I enjoyed the story and the characters. You are drawn into the mystery from the beginning and you find yourself guessing where the gems are hidden.

I enjoyed the story line and the characters. They were well developed and you felt an investment in their lives.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I was already lost within the first few pages with the onslaught of so many characters. And then there were Tacey and Trish, George and Gillian, Carrie and Mrs C ... Far too confusing. And then I hit a complete roadblock with "Here, Here" . This is such a lazy error. (For those who really don't know, it's "hear, hear"!) And I couldn't get past it. Sorry.

However, I won't give a one-star review to a book I haven't read. But I do wish the editors and proofreaders would do a proper job.

What a book! This was great for a bookish mystery read. Usually bookish reads are less thrilling but I found this one fully entertaining and read it in less than a day!! I highly recommend this novel!