Review: A fun and funny read, but not much of a mystery
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 01 25, 2014
I didn't read the first book in this series, The Escape Diaries, before picking this one up on NetGalley. That meant I spent the first several chapters of this book playing catch-up, trying to pick up from context all the stuff I would have known if I'd been more prepared. I managed, though, and though it took a little while, I appreciate that Ms. Rosetti didn't just give all that background information in one huge, boring info-dump, but spread it out over the course of the first few chapters in a way that segued naturally into the plot.I used to read a lot of mysteries, but I've lost my taste for them since becoming a criminal prosecutor. Initially, I didn't think I'd like this one much: there is very little realism, the police procedure is wrong and usually unconstitutional, the officer in charge of investigating the case is a buffoon, and I was pretty sure I knew who the killer was before the crime was even committed (and I turned out to be right). So, as a mystery, this book really didn't work for me.But then again, mysteries rarely work for me any more, and setting aside that (admittedly fairly major) part of the plot, I still found Crazy for You pretty entertaining. I have a soft-spot for blue collar heroines, and Mazie is a good one: she's funny, pragmatic, warm and good with people, but also flawed -- she's paranoid and suspicious, and yet her desire to see the best in people sometimes makes her put her trust where she shouldn't. She's a far cry from too stupid to live, but she's not an intellectual Mary Sue, either.I had less of a sense of the hero, Ben. Maybe if I'd read the first book I'd feel like I knew him better, but he felt sort of undeveloped to me. Neither good nor bad, just there: any cute, reasonably fit, mouthy guy could have played the part.But I liked Mazie a lot, and the plot was well-paced, fast-moving, and entertaining. Fans of Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series will probably get a kick out of Mazie Maguire, too.***ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.***