I went back and forth about how I'd rate 'On Borrowed Crime' book 1 in the Jane Doe Book Club mystery series by Kate Young, but ultimately I give it 5 stars! The few qualms I had with this novel couldn't outweigh the good time I had trying to unravel the mystery along with the main sleuth Lyla. So let's start with the positives! This cozy married a cold case with a fresh case of murder which forced our sleuth to dig into a past murder to uncover the present murder - a really fun dynamic that I see rarely in other cozies!

There's also the character dynamics to consider - the author wasn't afraid to show a sort of ugly side to everyone. Lyla's parents were having arguments, her mother is cold, withholding and judgemental, her ex love interest is mostly dismissive, and some of her fellow book club members were nasty about her interest in wanting to help solve the case. There were a lot of not-so-cozy, prickly personalities which at first felt unpleasant to read, but that I ultimately decided was a nice change of pace. It's ok to be different!

I honestly couldn't put the book down and just wanted to know how everything tied together. And a bigger part of me wanted Lyla to overcome all of the negativity that was coming at her from all directions (her parents, her ex, her 'friends'), and I was not disappointed.

The only negatives I felt were... that as a northerner I struggled with the southern aspect of the novel to a small extent. Not so much the 'ya'lls' and cultural differences but the use of 'Daddy' coming from a 31 year old is weird to me, and the Mother constantly talking about Lyla needing to get married and have babies - ugh. The constant show of disrespect from the Mother about Lyla's 'dead' club and her choice of profession, the one member of the book club who had kids acting like she was fed up with Lyla because she was just trying to have "me time" and solving the murder of her friend wasn't as important as relaxing while she had time away from her kids - wow. The book also lacked diversity - you definitely get the sense that it's the white south and the characters are in their own bubble of privilege. But if I'm being honest - we all know that some social circles really are that insular in real life.

I gave this one the old college try but I just couldn't get into it. The story just fell flat for me.

Lyla Moody has the world at her fingertips. She is the attractive daughter of wealthy parents. Her father merely wants her to be happy (within reason) and her mother wants nothing more than for Lyla to be living the respectable life of “Married with 2.4 children.” Lyla, however, has other plans. She works for her uncle, a private detective. And, in her spare time, she enjoys discussing - sometimes solving = cold case murders. Lyla is quite happy with the path her life is taking until one day she discovers the Body of one of her friends stuffed into a suitcase and abandoned on her front porch. As it happens, her friend had a secret; a horrible secret that might very well lead Lyla and her friends to the murderer behind an old cold-case that they have been investigating. Suddenly, Lyla is embroiled in an investigation that moves beyond the bounds of her own small town. With the help of a GBI Agent and the local police chief (an ex-boyfriend), Lyla must get to the bottom of her friend’s murder before the killer strikes again.

On Borrowed Crime is a sometimes cozy, sometimes gritty, always interesting read. Lyla is a complex character with plenty of charisma and charm. The deep-south setting is extraordinarily effective. One can practically feel the humidity in the air and smell the warm apple pie. The family dynamic among Lyla and her loved ones is surprisingly rich and lends a degree of coziness that could easily be lacking in such a gritty storyline. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good murder mystery because the author had me guessing until the very end.

There are a couple of issues with this book that could easily draw the reader out of the story. First, the author tries to do too much with her story. The sheer number of characters introduced in this book is staggering. Lyla’s friends, family, coworkers, ex-boyfriends, and neighbors all play roles, and it can get quite confusing. Second, the romance aspect of this story was underwhelming to say the least. With three men interested in our main character, one would think there would be moments of tenderness - perhaps even shenanigans! - But, no. The romance is practically non-existent. That might have been deliberate, however, so we’ll withhold our judgement until the second book. And make no mistake, Lyla is certainly a character worthy of a second book!

A very well written and entertaining cozy mystery. A good plot and character development. I look forward to reading more books in this this series. I received an advance ebook from the publisher and this is my unbiased review.

The author did a great job in telling this evenly paced drama that had me immersed in all aspects. From meeting the various characters and the pivotal role they played, this was an enjoyable read. The mystery was well-written where the potential suspects were hiding in plain sight and the clues, were told in a way that kept me guessing. I had my suspicion as to the perpetrator and it was fun watching all the pieces fit together. There were a few red herrings, one in particular, that enhanced my reading pleasure. Lyla is a likable protagonist and I like the relationship she has with her friends and family. Overall, when all was said and done, this was a great start in this debut series, and I look forward to more exciting cases with Lyla and her friends.

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for an ARC of On Borrowed Crime in exchange for an unbiased review. This book is the first in a new series that follows members of the Jane Doe book club. The writing is good, the plot is engaging and the book is a relatively quick read that is able to keep the reader interested until the end.
I look forward to more character development in future books. I need to know, for example, how the club members get along, why they continue to meet and more about some individual back stories. Their chemistry felt flat to me. I'm also curious to know more about Lyla's mother and uncle and their history. In short, there are some loose ends that will make me want to read the next book in the series.

I've not read this author before, so it may just be me, but I was finding it hard to keep track who the characters were. Very early on one of the characters gave me creeps. The actions of police was also a concern. It was a little heavier than my normal cozies.

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for my eARC in exchange for an honest review.

On Borrowed Crime is the first book in the new Jane Doe Book Club series. This was my first Kate Young book, and I absolutely loved it. I loved the protagonist Lyla, and all the secondary characters involved. Makes me want to start my own Jane Doe Book Club! If you're a fan of cozies, this is a fantastic book!

This was a good first book in the series. Lyla Moody is part of a book club called the Jane Does. She is also a receptionist for her Uncle's PI business. Her mother hates Lyla's obsession with crime. All she wants is for Lyla to settle down and get married. Lyla arrives home after one of the Jane Doe meetings to find that her ex and cousin have moved in next door to her, making things extremely awkward. Later the same evening a suitcase is dropped off. Initially Layla thinks it is her friend Melanie's as she just returned from vacation and the airport had lost her luggage. What she doesn't expect is for one of her friends from the Jane Does to be dead inside the suitcase. Once the suitcase is discovered to be Melanie's the police zero in on her as a suspect. Lyla won't let her best friend get arrested.

I enjoyed this book. I liked Lyla and Melanie. Lyla's mother was overbearing and at times just plain annoying. Your daughter is happy with her job. Let her be happy. She does balance nicely with Lyla's father who is more laid back and accepting of what Lyla wants to do with her life.. Lyla's cousin was just horrible and vindictive. I figured out who the killer was pretty early on. It was pretty obvious if you were paying attention. There was a romance hinted towards the end but it wasn't really developed. Hopefully that will be fleshed out in the next book. There were also some typos in the books as this was an ARC. Hopefully that will be fixed before publication. All in all, I liked this enough to read the next book to see where some storylines go.

On Borrowed Crime was a fun and entertaining cosy mystery. The mystery was layered and had several red herrings thrown in the mix, that kept me guessing a bit. Although I sometimes got a bit frustrated with Lyla Moody, I loved the relationship she had with her grandmother. Also, I felt the characters were uneven in terms of complexity, some had it, while others didn't.

It was an entertaining read, though, with a bunch of Agatha Christie references.

On Borrowed Crime is the first title in the A Jane Doe Book Club Mystery series. Lyla Moody works for her uncle's private detective company and finds herself wrapped up in the murder case of a friend and fellow member of the Jane Doe Book Club. Quite literally, as the friend's body is left in a suitcase at Lyla's dooor. Lyla must work to not only prove that her best friend Melanie isn't the killer but manage to get used to the fact her ex and cousin have moved in together in her building.

I had a hard time getting into this book but appreciated the writing style. I do feel there were so many characters to follow and did not feel like I got to know most of them in a way that made me care about what happened to or with most of them. Lyla's grandmother, however, was a real character who made me laugh several times, reminding me of Grandma Mazur from the Stephanie Plum novels. I will give the series another chance when the next book comes out and would reread On Borrowed Crime as a refresher.

Thank you to Net Galley, Crooked Lane Publishing and Kate Young for allowing me to read an ARC of this book.

A first in a new series by Kate Young, author of Southern Sass and Killer Cravings.

On Borrowed Crime follows Sweet Mountain, Georgia resident Lyla Jane Moody. Lyla is obsessed with a good "who done it" and true crime. She and her friends are members of the Jane Doe Book Club where they gather to discuss fiction and true crime cases. Lyla has a passion for these topics and being just a receptionist at her Uncle's PI firm isn't going to cut it. So, when a fellow Jane Doe shows up dead on her doorstep it's time to put her knowledge and investigation skills to the test.

This was such a great start to a new series! One of my favorite cozy series is Kate Young's Marygene Brown Mystery series. If you have read and enjoyed that I think you will like this one. If you enjoy a southern small town setting and realistic family/friend relationships in your cozies then give this a try! To me, this story had a little more detail and darkness to it that we usually don't get in a "cozy". I found it to be very refreshing. I can't wait for the next in this series!

*Thank you to Net Galley and Crooked Lane Books for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
*All opinions are my own.

This one was a bit hard for me to read because the ARC that I received was formatted oddly, but I did enjoy the story. Lyla was a great character and I liked reading about her. The story moved along at a nice pace and I was determined to finish the book to see who was the murderer. Looking forward to the next book in the series.

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC.
Similar concept to Charlaine Harris’ book Real Murders, first in the Aurora Teagarden series, published in 1990. In this book, also the first in a series, the murderer stuck out like a sore thumb. That was pretty apparent although there were other things that were not. What is the backstory on Lyla’s mom? What is the thing about Lyla’s previous obsession? What about these two ex-boyfriends? I also felt character development was very limited.
And the biggest taboo ever in a mystery, never reveal whodunnit for another author’s book. Even if it is a book written by Agatha Christie in 1939. I’ve read it but that doesn’t mean everyone has.
After all that, I might try a book in the author’s other series which sounds more cozy-like than this one was.

Firstly, I want to thank Netgalley, Kate Young, and Crooked Lane Books for giving me a chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

I am so scared writing this review because this is my first ever "critical" book review. And i'm thinking that i'm giving different opinion than those who reviewed this book. But here we go...

(I'll be getting the synopsis on Goodreads because i'm not really good on explaining what the books are about. Lol.)

This is the first book in Jane Doe Book Club series. It follows Lyla Jane Moody who is a mystery book enthusiast. Lyla Moody loves her sleepy little town of Sweet Mountain, Georgia. She likes her job as receptionist for her uncle's private investigative firm, her fellow true crime obsessed Jane Doe members are the friends she's always wanted, and her parents just celebrated their fiftieth wedding anniversary. But recently, with her best friend Melanie on vacation, and her ex-boyfriend and horrible cousin becoming an item and moving in next door to her, her idyllic life is on the fritz. The cherry on top of it all is finding Carol, a member of the club, dead and shoved into a suitcase, left at Lyla's front door.

I'm getting started with the things I love in this book: First, Lyla is a relatable character (atleast for me) because of her fascination with true-crimes and mystery books. Every reader who also love those kind of topics will surely fall in love with Lyla's character.

Also, the main character is so independent. You can really see that the main character's characteristics were really fit into the story, because she is very observant, and notice even the small things. And it also means that her character is very well-written. Lyla is so inspiring, despite her parents strongly and verbally disagreed to her passion, she keeps pursuing what she wants and doesn't give up with her beliefs. You can also really see that she is a determined character.

At the first 30 percent of this book, it was so fun to read because some well-known mystery and thriller books were mentioned. And it has true-crime references also.

But after that 30 percent, that when it starts to go downhill. It's somehow repeating to mentioned some parts, it's kinda annoying and I feel like instead of giving a chance the readers to process the information, I feel like it somehow spoon feeding us. I laughed when one of the characters said that “Everything was right in front of you, and you never saw it." because it was ironic. Although I said that Lyla is an observant character, later in the book, the clues are already spoon-fed and she's still processing or analyzing or dismissing those clues. Other side characters are kinda annoying and too cartoonish. I feel like for some characters, you can't clearly see what they really want with what there characters should be.

The ending was so convenient for me. Because just when the culprit was discovered, somehow the things that was discussing in the first 30 percent was instantly solved. Like the author just wrote the ending like "This is the ending of the book and things will all fall into place". It was a little ridiculous.

I understand that this book was supposed to be a 'cozy atmospheric read' but in the later part of the book it became so frustrating for me. And I just didn't vibe with it. So I only rated this 2 stars. I'm really sorry for the low-rating.

I hope that the other future readers of this book will have an opposite opinion to me. But if you are looking for a cozy mystery read, you should consider giving this book a try. Just because I didn't loved this book it doesn't mean that you'll also hate it.

Thank you for reading! Until next time!

Lyla Moody wants to be a private investigator so she goes to work at her uncle's agency as the receptionist, but when he is called out of town for a case, she takes on the job of finding the murderer of her friend Carol, whose body was literally dropped on her doorstep. Along with her book Club, The Jane Does, Lyla is determine to find justice for her friend.

Not the greatest start for a series. The characters need more depth as well as stronger stomachs if they are going to continue to investigate murders. It did seem a bit repetitive when Lyla comes into the cross-hairs of the murderer.

This is a great start to a new series. I liked the main character, Lyla and the members of the Jane Doe book club. I look forward to getting to know them better. The mystery was well written and had me guessing to the end. I look forward to reading more of this series.

Thank you to Netgalley and Crooked Lane Books for a digital arc in exchange for an honest review.

I had many issues with this book, not the least of which was I was dropped into a story with so much going on, and it was as if I was expected to know all of the back stories to understand it. We never were told why Lyla and Kyle broke up, or what the problem was with Quinn and Lyla. Plus, I don't need Lyla's mother to tell me more than twice about how her 'obsession' with death is a relationship issue. The characters were so uneven, just all over the place. I figured out very early on who was the murderer, and even much as to why. This Aurora Teagarden with her Real Murders Society rip-off has a lot of work to do before it is appealing for me.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

I am a huge fan of Kate Young's Marygene Brown Mystery series and was really excited to see that the author has a new series .

On Borrowed Crime is Book 1 in the Jane Doe Book Club Mystery.

The protagonist in this story is Lyla Moody. Along with her friends she is a member of the Jane Does, a mystery book club. When Carol , one of the members of the club turns up dead they are on the case to solve the murder. Since Lyla is an up and coming PI, she is anxious to solve the mystery.

The characters are fun and well written. I especially like Melanie, Lyla's bestie. Lyla works for her Uncle Calvin who is also a PI.

There is quite a cast of characters and I enjoyed learning about their history.

The story is well written and complex. There was NO WAY I would of guessed the ending.

I look forward to the next book in this series.

I'm a big cozy mystery fan, love reading them love the themes, and this one was no exception. I did get a different vibe from this one regarding the Jane Does Book Club and how they reacted to a real murder versus a fictional one they may discuss in their group. Refreshing to read, and I look forward to reading more in this series.