The big rewind

Although this is a breezy read, it's not as fun as it should be, based on its premise. A Brooklyn-based hipster living in her grandmother's rent-controlled apartment intends to give her neighbor a mixed tape that she accidentally received, only to discover her body. She hopes to find killer through that tape, but her hunt sets her off on a journey through her own romantic past and its soundtrack. Unfortunately, the dual threads of the narrative lack drive and never really gel, while the setting and the narrator's voice feel forced. The name-dropping of locations and pop-culture references is over-the-top and kept throwing me out of the story instead of connecting me to it. And for an alleged music obsessive, amateur sleuth Jett has pretty pedestrian tastes.

What does it say about a book when the names of the characters, Jett, Catch, Bronco, etc, (something that bothered some readers, though not so much me) are more colourful than the characters themselves?

Jett's neighbour has been murdered, and together with friends and contacts, Jett sets out, by way of a long winding road, to try and bring the killer to justice.

The story has its moments (I'm not referring to the romantic aspects, any of them), but I read through to the end to see whodunnit. In that, there was some intrigue I thought.

Thin on characterization, unless you count describing people by their musical tastes as character development. Plot meanders somewhat awkwardly between cozy mystery and chick lit romance. Gets one extra star from me for using two Steely Dan songs as chapter titles.