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gillianw's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 stars
Another good but not great novella from Josh Lanyon. Although I generally favour most of Josh's books, and would say that an average book from her would be a great book from someone else, this one didn't *quite* work for me. I think this is one of those stories that would have worked best fleshed out into a full length novel. I liked the characters, I just didn't think they were given enough time to fully develop. The story was interesting and I loved the mystery, but it just needed a little more room to grow. Still, reading a Lanyon novel is never a terrible way to spend a little time :)
Another good but not great novella from Josh Lanyon. Although I generally favour most of Josh's books, and would say that an average book from her would be a great book from someone else, this one didn't *quite* work for me. I think this is one of those stories that would have worked best fleshed out into a full length novel. I liked the characters, I just didn't think they were given enough time to fully develop. The story was interesting and I loved the mystery, but it just needed a little more room to grow. Still, reading a Lanyon novel is never a terrible way to spend a little time :)
braincell4rent's review against another edition
2.0
This one was a bit strange.
It was a murder mystery (ah, the classic murder in a locked room) full of clichés and plot holes, where you can´t really guess who did it on your own because the entire story is drifting so much that you just know before it happens the ending will be a thing that suits the author (and not necessarily the plot). I don´t know if I´ve made myself understood.
Here I´m going to list some things that didn´t convince me:
- How the murder was commited. How is it possible someone gets shot in a room full of people and NO ONE turns to the place the shot came from, even later, to investigate if a person or weapon is still there?
- Why would someone throw away a pistol when they didn´t use it and knowing there´s a murderer on the lose & police is investigating? Isn´t that more sus that just keeping the pistol and saying you got it for whatever invented reason? Like they pointed out in the story, after investigating the corpse they´d realize that´s not the murder weapon.
- Lack of real motive or depth in any character (maybe the protagonists got saved a bit from this... just a bit). It was like watching an low budget crime film where everyone is sus suddenly and for no reason (but the one someone invented 5 minutes ago).
- I struggled a bit trying to distinguish the narrator for they were awfully similar (not only in profession).
Anyway, it was a pleasant novella to read in spite of everything. And probably if I see something by this author again somewhere, I´d give it another chance because it wasn´t terrible and I particularly enjoyed the fact it focused more on crime than in romance.
It was a murder mystery (ah, the classic murder in a locked room) full of clichés and plot holes, where you can´t really guess who did it on your own because the entire story is drifting so much that you just know before it happens the ending will be a thing that suits the author (and not necessarily the plot). I don´t know if I´ve made myself understood.
Here I´m going to list some things that didn´t convince me:
- How the murder was commited. How is it possible someone gets shot in a room full of people and NO ONE turns to the place the shot came from, even later, to investigate if a person or weapon is still there?
- Why would someone throw away a pistol when they didn´t use it and knowing there´s a murderer on the lose & police is investigating? Isn´t that more sus that just keeping the pistol and saying you got it for whatever invented reason? Like they pointed out in the story, after investigating the corpse they´d realize that´s not the murder weapon.
- Lack of real motive or depth in any character (maybe the protagonists got saved a bit from this... just a bit). It was like watching an low budget crime film where everyone is sus suddenly and for no reason (but the one someone invented 5 minutes ago).
- I struggled a bit trying to distinguish the narrator for they were awfully similar (not only in profession).
Anyway, it was a pleasant novella to read in spite of everything. And probably if I see something by this author again somewhere, I´d give it another chance because it wasn´t terrible and I particularly enjoyed the fact it focused more on crime than in romance.
ele_lieb_reads's review
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
historical mystery novella, mmromance
Frenemies & sleuthing mystery writers 👌🏻
★★★★★
Murder Between The Pages by Josh Lanyon, as published in Shadows Left Behind Historical Mysteries Box Set
Last novella in the Box Set/Last read in 2023
_What I liked and why it is 5 ★ for me:
It's a very good classic mystery - I followed every red herring as per instruction ^^`
I felt that the humour was subtle, but once I saw it, I couldn't stop smile-shaking my head at the mc
Is it self-parody when Josh writes about mystery authors who are excited to snoop & sleuth
and more writers' parody: I think there was a joke about tropes and how it's not stealing an idea, no, it's getting inspired by it! I love their arguments 😅
On a more serious note, the novella adresses mental post-war-consequences, in main characters and in side characters. I don't want to spoil the experience, by naming them, but will say, it adresses a few different things.
Information distribution. Not just in terms of clues about the mystery, but also how the reader gets to know the main characters. Their motivation to act the way they act, as well as the character of their existing relationship(s) is introduced gradually. I don't think anything stays between the lines eventually, but it starts there.
The audiobook is narrated by Kale Williams (a reminder: this was a list.of things why it's a 5 star experience ;)
_TAGs:
post-war, amateur sleuths, frenemies - who pretend to be enemies - to lovers, dual POV in 1st person
steam lvl: very mild chilli, very Josh. It's not fade to black, but it's not detailed either. Josh often highlights the best parts rather than describing everything. It fits the narrative. I liked it.
Frenemies & sleuthing mystery writers 👌🏻
★★★★★
Murder Between The Pages by Josh Lanyon, as published in Shadows Left Behind Historical Mysteries Box Set
Last novella in the Box Set/Last read in 2023
_What I liked and why it is 5 ★ for me:
It's a very good classic mystery - I followed every red herring as per instruction ^^`
I felt that the humour was subtle, but once I saw it, I couldn't stop smile-shaking my head at the mc
Is it self-parody when Josh writes about mystery authors who are excited to snoop & sleuth
and more writers' parody: I think there was a joke about tropes and how it's not stealing an idea, no, it's getting inspired by it! I love their arguments 😅
On a more serious note, the novella adresses mental post-war-consequences, in main characters and in side characters. I don't want to spoil the experience, by naming them, but will say, it adresses a few different things.
Information distribution. Not just in terms of clues about the mystery, but also how the reader gets to know the main characters. Their motivation to act the way they act, as well as the character of their existing relationship(s) is introduced gradually. I don't think anything stays between the lines eventually, but it starts there.
The audiobook is narrated by Kale Williams (a reminder: this was a list.of things why it's a 5 star experience ;)
_TAGs:
post-war, amateur sleuths, frenemies - who pretend to be enemies - to lovers, dual POV in 1st person
steam lvl: very mild chilli, very Josh. It's not fade to black, but it's not detailed either. Josh often highlights the best parts rather than describing everything. It fits the narrative. I liked it.
millah's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
lighthearted
sad
tense
medium-paced
4.0
nelsonseye's review against another edition
3.0
Short but sweet. I really liked the post World War 2 setting, and I appreciated the delicacy with which Felix and Leonard had to approach relationships.
rebeccabadger's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
missawn's review against another edition
2.0
I could not figure this book out at all. The mystery -- and actually the entire plot -- remained entirely obscure to me. It is strange to rate this book this way as I am such a huge fan of this author. She is usually brilliant in ways other writers could only dream of being. But this was a dramatic departure from how I usually feel when I read her books. There are moments that are good -- but for the most part, I could not follow along and could not figure out who all the many (and I mean MANY) characters where and how they fit into the whole storyline. In a way, this is something we've seen before -- mystery enthusiasts (readers or writers) inserting themselves into a real-life murder/mystery. This was Adrien English's thing too - and even there I was never a fan. This was a disappointment for me ...
writtenjems's review
slow-paced
3.0
This book was hard to read as it was inundated with similes. I found it distracting, and the attempts to sound sophisticated detracted from the storyline. Sometimes, less is more.
scarletine6's review
2.0
This story and the romance within really never got out of the starting blocks for me. The pace was plodding, and i really didn't feel the connection between the two MC's at all. The narration was well done though, so it helped me pass a few hours.