Cute cozy but very, very predictable. I enjoyed that the main character works in a library as I adore libraries. I may continue on with this series.

Cute, clever mystery featuring a ghost, a library cat, an absent father and $20 million in stolen gems. Carrie Singleton is shocked to find her long-absent father Jim breaking into her cottage in the middle of the night. When he asks her to help him get his share of the jewel heist, she says no. But when Jim is arrested for the murder of his alleged accomplice in the crime, Benton Parr, Carrie is quick to jump in.

Read and Gone is Allison Brook’s second Haunted Library mystery.. This is an interesting series with librarian Carrie Singleton in the premier role. She has recently returned to her childhood home of Clover Ridge, Connecticut. First living with her great aunt and uncle, then on her own in a lovely little cottage, Carrie is resurrecting her life from the nowhere she came from. As director of programs and events at the city’s library, Carrie and her cat, Smoky Joe, have earned their place as special people in the library and community.

With a very special celebration for Carrie’s birthday the present she never expected was the appearance of her father later that evening. Her dad, Jim, always seemed to be on the wrong side of the law. Having been an absent parent and served time for his misdeeds, Jim is now back in Clover Ridge searching for the lost gems his partner in crime Benton Farr has hidden away. However, when Benton turns up dead, followed by two other Clover Ridge residents, with the suspected gems still missing, we have a major mystery.

Although this book did not capture me at first, I was soon roped in to a wonderful twisty turny mystery that kept you guessing right up to the final chapters. I very much enjoyed this book and do recommend it!

Carrie Singleton is head of programs and events at Clover Ridge Public Library, but she may not be able to get anyone to come speak if things keep going the way they are now. Al Buckley, a retired detective, died right after his presentation, and now Benton Parr, a local jeweler, has been murdered at his shop immediately after his presentation about the differences between real and fake gems.
And as it happens, Parr, along with Carrie’s father, Jim,” are credited with stealing $7 million in loose stones a few years back. Jim is probably the most logical suspect in Parr’s death, but Carrie is sure her dad, while a thief, is not a murderer. Confiding in her boyfriend Dylan is out since she doesn’t want to “out” her father, so she bounces ideas off her cat, Smoky Joe, and Evelyn Havers, a ghost who only appears to Carrie and her niece.
This is the first of Brook’s cozy series I’ve come across. An enjoyable read.

Carrie Singleton, the main character, is still adjusting to a more permanent lifestyle in contrast to the itinerant one she had been living. She's beginning to put down roots, but when her past shows up in the form of her ex-con father, it threatens her new life, including her relationship with her new boyfriend. In order to get him out of her life, she decides to look for the gems he's searching for.

This was the second book in the Haunted Library series. Sometimes, in a series, subsequent books reveal too much information about previous books, spoiling parts of the plot. I think this book suffered from the opposite - it should have had a bit more information. I think the housekeeper is just referred to as "Mrs. C"; it would have been nice to have a bit more context around what her full name is. I don't believe it's mentioned where the town is located, either. There's also a couple of references of a secret Carrie shares with her cousin's daughter, Tacey; since it's part of the first book, it would have been nice to be included (mild spoilers: it has to do with Mrs. Evelyn Havers, the resident library ghost who's referenced in the book blurb).

Otherwise, it's a fun book! I liked seeing the community's interaction with the library. The characters were interesting without being overly eccentric. Smokey Joe as the library cat was a nice touch without stealing the show. While this book didn't have any cliffhangers, there are some potential arcs that I'm hoping gets resolved in future books, including why Ms. Evelyn is a ghost.

Recommended.

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley.com and voluntarily chose to review.

A nice, cozy mystery revolving around a librarian, her cat, her family and her romance.. The mystery includes multiple suspects, romance and even a ghost.

I was given an advanced copy through Netgalley for my review. I would highly recommend this book to family and friends and will buy a copy for myself.

Over all, this mystery was just alright. I like that Carrie has her life in order, but I have many questions and concerns. It still bothers me that she felt the need to completely change her style and preferences to work in the library. Let's say the clothing is not appropriate for her job, why can't she wear what she wants when she's off? On the plus side, at least she is standing up more for herself. As with many female amateur sleuth novels, many people in her life ( mainly men) want her to stop detecting for her safety. She doesn't really listen much, but she also doesn't tell them to buzz off.
The book feels a bit dragged out; during the middle I just kept on waiting for something to happen. When the murders are solved, everything is wrapped up into a neat bow. Oh, also Carrie complains constantly about how her boyfriend has a job that requires him to leave, ans that her former their father who has been staying with her after years of absence in her youth will be leaving. I really want her to be stronger, especially because she did without him for so long. Her attachment to her boyfriend bothers me because he lives on the same property, and they've only been dating a month. Carrie can chase after murderers, stolen goods etc but heaven forbid she keeps her style or a man tells her he will be gone for a few days.
I do like Evelyn and that she can see her ghost when so few people do. I like that she does the favor for Evelyn too, Carrie helping others is one of her saving graces. The mysteries and New England setting add value to the story for me. While I understand that Carrie is growing, I am skeptical about some of the choices she feels she has to make.
In the next book, I hope to see Carrie stand up for herself more, work her old style into her new one, and not just dissolve into a puddle of misery if a man tells her he will be gone for a few days. Maybe use the time constructively?

This is the second in the series. I enjoyed the first so much, I jumped at the chance to read the second when Netgalley offered it. The cover is quaint and is putting me in the Christmas spirit.
This installment started out slow and dry but about page 30, it begins to pick up. There are plenty of simple plot twists, motives, red herrings and suspense but not much haunting.
So, we have a mystery with a dysfunctional set of family members. Carrie’s father is believed to have killed Bento Parr, her father’s partner in crime, over gems. Once Carrie leaves her pity party, she needs to resolve the murder.
I’m sorry to say, I did not like this as much as the first book. I hope the characters become more developed, and Carrie quits making bad decisions. I was not surprised at finding out who the killer was nor the motive.

I enjoy this series, and I think the dialogue has really improved! I would like to see a little bit more justification for the library being haunted. I'm not really sure what the ghost is there for (though, in my opinion, the ghost makes more sense in this series than in the Aunt Dimity series).

Read and Gone is a cozy library mystery with a splash of paranormal. Carrie is the local librarian who is beginning to enjoy her life-- her new job, her new friends( including a friendly ghost in her library), and a new love. Just when things seem to be great, Carrie's estranged father shows up and brings loads of trouble. A jewel thief, her father has returned for his half of the loot but he's not the only one looking for the jewels. His partner in crime is murdered and her father is beaten as the secret jewels do not appear to be a secret any longer. A string of murders and a bunch of suspects that kept me guessing whodunit until the very end. All the elements of the story add up to a fast-paced, suspenseful cozy mystery cozy readers are sure to enjoy. A new author I will be sure to add to my to must read list. My voluntary, unbiased review is based upon a review copy from Netgalley.

This is the second book in this series .
With Christmas on its way Carrie has a busy life at the haunted library with all the activities going on.
Carrie's dad comes back into her life having not see him for a long time looking for a fortune in diamonds that's been hidden.
A wonderful book to read with a lot of twist and turns . Loved all the Characters.
Thank you net galley and crooked lane books for letting me read and review .

Entertaining cozy. Carrie Singleton has made a good life for herself when her long-estranged father shows up in the middle of the night. He's a convicted felon--a thief-- who's on the hunt for his share of a jewelry heist. Carrie investigates the missing gems and the murders which are proliferating while coming to terms with her father and her hopeful boyfriend.

I tend to easily pick up any book that has the words book, read or library in the title. This one said haunted as well so it was a definite must read for me. [book:Read and Gone|37928555] turned out to be the second in a series but I did not find that a problem.

This is a cosy mystery and as such it is an easy, entertaining read. It stays true to the genre - there are a number of corpses, lots and lots of characters and the main character goes where she should not but always survives to tell the tale. There is also the requisite overly intelligent cat.

The story moves along well despite frequent descriptions of meals and bathroom breaks (both the MC's and the cat's). I actually started to worry about the amount the cat was eating. He will be a total fur ball by book 3. I was disappointed too by the haunting or rather the lack of it. There is a ghost but she is very tame and barely has a role in the book.

So just three stars I think. It was an entertaining book and a way to pass a few hours but I am not rushing out to find book 1.

Carrie Singleton's life is going great, she's happy with her job, she has an amazing boyfriend, great friends including the spectral librarian Evelyn , and loving family. Well she's happy with most of her family, that is with the exception of her grifter Dad who is in town and involved with some missing diamonds. While Carrie tries to create a Christmas to remember she also has to nurse her father back to health when he is roughed up, while keeping her insurance investigator boyfriend in the dark while she desperately tries to figure out who killed the crooked jeweler, where are the gems, and how is her Dad ever going to go straight, and all without losing her heart or her life as she second guesses herself and Dylan her boyfriend. This was a great read with so much depth of character, my heart absolutely ached for Carrie between choosing family, choosing love, and choosing to do the right thing. This one is sure to be a hit and I can 't wait for the next one!

Read and Gone by Allison Brook is the second in the Haunted Library series. I had not read book one but, that was fine, there is enough of book one sprinkled throughout so you can catch up
Christmas is coming and Carrie is busy running the programs at the library. When her father shows up, in the middle of the night, after being out of her life looking for millions of dollars of gems she knows it won't be smooth sailing.
When the local jeweler is found dead, the first suspect is her father. She knows he couldn't have done it or could he. Carrie sets out to find out and has a few adventures of her own. The story keeps you guessing until the end.
The story flows and has a good cast of characters, some humor, romance, a touch of ghostly visits, and a library cat.
Though set at Christmas, it is a good read anytime.
I received an ARC from Crooked Lane books and Netgalley for an honest review.

A dedicated father is a precious thing, but Carrie Singleton wouldn’t know since her dad Jim’s been in and out of her life. In an unusual family reunion, she finds Jim breaking into her cottage in the middle of the night. The fun starts when he begs her to help him recover his half of a twenty-million-dollar gem heist he pulled off with a local jeweler, Benton Parr. Who ends up dead.

Carrie finds her father 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 knocks her over the head as she searches the victim’s 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, mice or something shinier?

--

Series: A Haunted Library Mystery - Book 2
Author: Allison Brook (Marilyn Levinson) https://www.marilynlevinson.com
Genre: Library Cozy Mystery
Publisher: Crooked Lane Books http://www.crookedlanebooks.com/

Read and Gone is a study in a dysfunctional family dynamic that for some reason, works. Oddly enough, even though Carrie’s father has been absent or in jail for most of her life, she still finds that she loves and cares for him. Odder still, it seems that Jim loves her as well. So why did he keep getting himself in trouble and disappearing from her life?

The characters in this book/series are just beginning to develop, but they hold a great deal of promise. It is easy to like Carrie, and Jim, as well as some other reoccurring characters. Unfortunately, the ghost of the library does not play a significant part in this book, but hopefully, this will develop as well as the series goes on. Many of the characters have nice personalities and hopefully will be fleshed out more to make them memorable and identifiable for the reader.

The setting is nice, and there is no need for detailed background information as this book can stand alone. However, a bit of background wouldn’t hurt in future books to enhance the enjoyment of the reader and to help the stories move along. A library is often used in this type of book. There are several very good cozies that are set in a library with a ghost. It is hoped that this series will be able to incorporate these elements without becoming too much like others of its kind.

The resolution and the identity of the killer were not complex to figure out. There were plenty of clues and twist and turns to help the reader figure out who the killer was. For some readers, it may even be a bit too easy.

There are many things in this book that a reader will find enjoyable. For that reason I am happy to recommend it to anyone who has a taste for books, murder, and a family that has issues but, in the end, still love each other.

ARC provided by NetGalley

Carrie Singleton, head of Programming and Events at Clover Ridge Local Library, is stunned to find her thieving father in her house one night. He’s on the hunt for some stolen gems and needs Carrie’s help. Her boyfriend, Dylan is an insurance investigator who is also looking for them. When three local citizens are murdered while looking for the gems, can Carrie find them before someone else is killed?
This cozy mystery is full of the twists and turns (and things that go bump in the night) that can keep readers awake trying to figure out the identity of the culprit. All of the suspects are diabolically created and have their own motives. It’s also great to revisit the characters we fell in love with from the first Haunted Library Mystery. But, what I love most is the theme of forgiveness and healing during my favorite holiday, Christmas! I received an Advanced Reader Copy of this book from NetGalley and am voluntarily reviewing it.

Wonderful story, well written, interesting. Carrie is a great main character and the library ghost is a hoot! This is an enjoyable, intriguing mystery that will keep you entertained until the very end. Murder, mystery and gorgeous gems abound! Enjoy readers!

Princess Fuzzypants here: This could have fallen into a cozy formula with many oftly repeated elements: dysfunctional families, the theft and disappearance of a huge treasure, a library, conflicting and conflicted loyalties and a marvellous cat named Smokey Joe who steals every scene he is in. What elevates it is the characters including a n’er do well father whom the reader, and Carrie, cannot help but love.
Oh yes, and there are murders. The first is the partner of Carrie’s father who stole the jewels in the first place. Jim shows up unexpectedly at Carrie’s home the same night the jeweller meets his demise. Naturally, with his shady past, he is considered a person of great interest, not only by the local fuzz but by Carrie’s new boyfriend who is on the lookout for the stolen property. Her feelings of abandonment from childhood leads Carrie to suspect Dylan only wants to find the stuff and is using her. She know Jim, who has flitted in and out of her life, wants something. Everyone wants something except her loyal and loving furry buddy.
The entire book is a hunt for the stolen jewels that were hidden so well by the first deceased, the killer cannot find them no matter how many bodies stack up.
When the loot is found, it is Smokey Joe who uncovers them. But there is still lots of excitement and action before the finale. It is a great read and I want to read more stories about Smokey Joe and Carrie.
I give it five purrs and two paws up.