Setting is in a small town in GA where everyone knows everyone. A PI named Lyla Moody has a book club called The Jane Does and getting ready to have a (WHO DONE IT) Halloween Party. When it all goes wrong with an actual murder, Lyla Moody has a mission to keep her town safe, works with the police department to find the killer.

Crime for the Books will go through the story of Lyla Moody and what she gives up, she is head strong and very independent women.

This is a lovely written and highly entertaining story.

Thank you for the Advance read in exchange for my honest review.

Georgia, family-dynamics, family, friendship, private-investigators, small-town, small-business, southern, amateur-sleuth, cozy-mystery, greed, family-drama, murder, murder-investigation, lawyers, law-enforcement, madness*****

Lyla works for her uncle in his PI office, lives alone because she doesn't care to live with her wealthy dysfunctional parents (and her fun Grandmother), belongs to a book club devoted to solving fictional crimes and works on cold cases for fun.
A murder mystery event at a Bed & Breakfast in town in a small southern town hosted by the book club dedicated to solving a particular type of cold case. What could go wrong?
The publisher's blurb sets the hook, but it's the realistic characters and excellent sleuthing that kept my nose in the book. A very good read!
I requested and received a free temporary e-book copy from Crooked Lane Books via NetGalley. Thank you!

By now, I am well and truly a fan of this murder mystery series. "Crime for the Books" is the third book in Kate Young’s story about the Jane Doe Book Club.
This time, one of their own book club members is in the middle of the investigation when a murder happens right under Lylas’s and her friends eyes at the Halloween Party they organised.
I quite liked that the storyline is not predictable which kept me on my toes guessing and wanting to know how the story enfolds. The friendship between the main characters is something I enjoyed lots. None of them are perfect or the go to stereotypes and even when secrets are kept from each other, they continue to always have each other’s back.
This is another successful book by author Kate Young that I can warmly recommend. Many thanks to NetGalley for giving me a chance to read this ebook in exchange for an honest review.

This was the first book I read by this author, and I loved it!! It was slow to start but it had great characters!

Kate Young does it again in book #3! Her cozy mysteries are compelling, suspenseful, and keep me on the edge of my seat to the very end. This is her best book yet! I'm super excited for the next book in the series!

What could be better than Fall and Halloween in Sweet Mountain, Georgia.
Lyla Moody and her Jane Doe Book Club have planned a murder mystery event at a Bed & Breakfast in town.
What was not part of the plan was a real murder to take place.
Time for Lyla to use her Investigator skills and figure out what went wrong.
Fast paced, full of twists, tension between friends all had me not able to turn those pages fast enough.

Thank you NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for the opportunity to read this book.

I enjoyed this new addition to the jane doe mystery series by Kate Young. It has a nod to Agatha Christie’s Murder is Announced. It also has a cozy feel to it like you would expect.

A good standard cozy with a nice nod to A Murder is Announced.
I would have enjoyed it more with less characters and minus the romance storylines.
I voluntarily reviewed an advance reader copy of this book.

i was currently reading this book by Agatha Christi "A Murder is Announced" as the book club was. The book club was getting together to discuss the book on a stormy night. in the paper in stated a Murder is Announced and where they should be and when they should arrive and by the book club.. A mysterious car goes racing by with no licenses plate on it and dark windows. The lights go out at the party and someone is shot, a few days later there is another posting for a bonfire in the park. Another is dead. Everyone is pointing at one person but things are not always as they seem. A really good read!!!

This is the third book in the Jane Doe Book Club Mystery series. Kate Young does a wonderful job of storytelling. Her characters are vividly written and come to life on the pages. The story flows and keeps you guessing. The Jane Doe Book Club is hosting a murder mystery party for Halloween. When one of the attendees is murdered for real, Rosa, who is on the acting police chief, is in charge of the investigation. She isn't acting like herself and becomes aggressive. The whole town turns against her. Then, the killer sends Rosa a message that she is next. Why is Rosa acting like she is going crazy? Can Lyla and the rest of the Jane Does figure out who the killer is before something happens to Rosa?

I absolutely love cozy mysteries and "Crime for the Books" was a wonderful addition to the genre. Great read!

I am still loving a great cosy mystery tale and this one had me reading and reading so I could find out what happened and who dunnit! Such a great book that kept me guessing and kept the suspense building so it never got boring.

I also love the Agatha Christie angle and Halloween I just had to read it. Fun, enjoyable, cosy and a good mystery with some great characters. I really enjoyed this one.

After reading the first two books, this newest edition was unfortunately disappointing. On the part of the mystery, I liked the idea of involving Rosa more in with the plot. I loved her addition to the previous book, and it felt like a good move for Lyla to have a more positive connection to the police with Sheriff Quinn and her complicated past. However, there was a lot here that felt too complicated and yet boring at the same time. There are a lot of characters and suspects to the point where I just didn’t think I could connect to anyone. Also, all the romantic elements just felt unnecessarily dramatic. We get the very quick introduction to Courtney as Quinn’s new wife when they weren’t even dating last book. So, Quinn and Courtney have issues that Lyla unknowingly gets involved with. Then, we also get drama with Lyla and Brad. It was just a lot for one book. And although the book was longer than normal, it still felt like everything was being crammed in. It seemed like we were given a bird’s eye view of three books instead of one, and so I never felt centered into the one story. Also, this is the third book with an Agatha Christie theme. When the series was introduced, it seemed more like the club would be involved with true crime and advocating for Jane Does. All the fictional references seem unrelated to what the book presents itself as. That added onto a pretty obvious whodunnit made me give the book a lower rating. I will probably continue to read the series, in hopes it will get better again, but if this is the new tone of the series, I don’t think it’s for me,

Lydia Moody and her Jane Does book club are holding a murder mystery Halloween party at Magnolia Manor. When the lights come back on, a real victim lies dead of a gunshot wound on the floor. As the owner Elaine Morgan had recently proved her rightful ownership to the property over the murder victim's, she is considered a suspect. Lydia sets out to prove that Elaine is not responsible. However, Rosa, acting chief of the police force and a Jane Doe member, is acting strangely as she conducts the investigation. Reports of her behavior seem out of character and Lydia must consider how well she knows Rosa.
Thanks to NetGalley for a copy.

Lyla Moody and her Jane Doe Book Club are putting on a murder mystery party for Halloween, and with a Elaine, a local offering the use of her B & B, Magnolia Manor they have what should be the perfect setting. The perfect setting changed when a woman was actually murdered when the lights went out, and Lyla watched Patricia die.
The crime scene investigation, led by acting Police Chief Rosa ,was poorly done from the get-go and led to an arrest that should never have happened. Who committed the murder, who is planning additional "Murder Mystery" parties, one of which takes place in a cemetery! Who is really behind all of this, who is being set-up to take the fall and why?

I love a good mystery with twists and turns, and this story had it in spades! It's very like Agatha Christie style, so you're just not sure of who actually committed the murder of Patricia,.

I want to thank Net Galley, the author-Kate Young and the publisher for the copy of this ARC for an honest review

Thank you to Netgalley and Crooked Lane books for early read. Enjoyed reading about all the characters in this story. Love a great cozy mystery and this one definitely fit the bill.. Author did a fabulous job with this cozy mystery!

Words to the wise: Don't start reading this one late at night. You won't be able to put it down. The tensions and unease in the air kept me reading long past my bedtime.

I won't delve into the plot as a synopsis is readily available elsewhere, but will say "Crime for the Books" is enjoyable in the sense that it isn't predictable. Not only is the murder mystery itself intriguing and well plotted, but the characters show depth and, surprisingly for a cozy mystery, aren't always on the same page. The friends, tight friends Lyla, Mel, Amelia, and Rosa, who finds herself under tremendous pressure and stress, care about each other and have each other's back, however, even when they keep secrets from each other. Lyla's grandmother Daisy provides some comic relief, at first appearing the rather stereotyped feisty ol' lady, but later displays layers of caring and putting that caring into action, adding depth to her personality. To be honest, I found the side-story involving Lyla's boyfriend more distracting than interesting but others may be intrigued. It was the relationships between those involved that made the story work for me.

Not to give away any plot twists but a few hints: Who killed Patricia? Why does she whisper that she's sorry as she dies? What is going on with Rosa? Why are even her fellow officers doubting her? What is Courtney's problem? What secret is Mel keeping from Lyla? And, whoa, how about the big secret Amelia reveals? Why is a strange guy hitting on Lyla? How do Lyla's investigative skills prove helpful? Could things not be as they seem? Or, could people not be what they seem? Would you attend a murder mystery party on the proverbial "dark and stormy night," even if the weather was a random act of nature? Why is Lyla reluctant to call police chief Quinn, an old friend? And, oh, so many more question, ranging from what the heck is going on with Brad to the community reaction to the discord. Seriously, if you like small town mysteries, unpredictable ones at that, and friends who stick by each other no matter what, you'll enjoy this one. Give it a read.

Thanks #NetGalley and #CrookedLaneBooks for allowing me to drop in on the Jane Does again. It's been awhile but I'm already looking forward to the next adventure.

3.5 stars!

Crime for the Books is the third book in the Jane Doe Book Club Mystery series by Kate Young and it was a lot of fun!

It follows Lyla Moody and her friends in the Jane Doe book club as one of the sweet old ladies in their town is arrested for a murder that happened during one of their events. The Jane Doe’s don’t believe that Elaine is guilty and Lyla sets out to help her and find the true killer!

My favorite character, hands down, was Lylas grandmother! She’s so funny and was so fun to read about.

I really liked Lyla and I loved that she didn’t let anyone tell her what she should be doing. She loved investigating and wouldn’t let anyone tell her that she should be doing anything else and I really admired that.

Maybe it was because this is the first book I’ve read in this series (and I will definitely read the others!) but I didn’t feel as connected to the side characters as I probably should have.

Also the whole mystery part of it was kinda meh, I loved the story but the big reveal wasn’t particularly shocking which is why it wasn’t a five star read but I really did enjoy this book and I’d recommend it to any mystery lover or someone who wants to start getting into mystery books.

Huge thanks to Netgalley and the author/publisher for providing me with an arc in exchange for an honest review!

Crime for the Books, the third Jane Doe Book Club Mystery, by Kate Young introduces a darker side to this series. When Lyla Moody and her Jane Doe Book Club plan a murder mystery event at a local bed and breakfast, they never expected a real murder to occur or for there to be implications for one of their own members. As if that weren’t enough, someone is impersonating their book club and inviting the public to other “murders”. When the body count goes up Lyla springs into action.

This mystery was taut, twisty and fast-paced. It definitely kept me turning the pages far later than I had intended. As much as this well-written plot kept me engaged it did seem that all of the main and a fair number of supporting characters were deeply unhappy for one reason or another, which weighed down the storyline. I read to escape the anxieties of real life not to experience it in a book. When all of the characters are unhappy and stressed out some of my reading pleasure is diminished. I do look forward to the next in this series and hope that it finds the characters back on track and more upbeat. (I voluntarily reviewed an advance reader copy and all opinions are my own.). For any reader looking for a gripping cozy that leans toward suspense, I highly recommend this series.

Crime for the Books is the third book in the Jane Doe Bookclub Mystery series. In this book, Lyla and her friends from the book club are hosting a murder mystery night. Things go bad and someone is really killed when the lights go out. The mystery continues with other weird occurrences. There are several plot twists to keep you guessing and a lot of relationship turmoil. Turmoil between Lyla and her friends, and between Lyla and her boyfriend. While all the relationship drama seams very real, it was a bit too real for me for a cozy mystery book. Also, one can’t get attached to any of Lyla’s male character leads, which is a bit tiring.

Overall, it’s a good book and series. I like how strong Lyla is, love the Georgia setting (and southern charm), and love Lyla’s gran. Just be prepared for very real and flawed characters, and lots of personal drama. For me, it’s definitely on the “heavy” side of a typical cozy mystery.

Thank you NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for this interesting ARC. I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion. I will post this review to my blog, Goodreads, Bookbub, & Amazon accounts on the publication date, 10-11-22.