This book was cute and entertaining, just like the first. I docked two stars because it was very predictable, and for character discrepancies. 
 Katie is a very smart, on-the-ball girl, but her complete ineptitude at figuring out the predictable outcome of her current mystery annoyed me. The author shouldn't make it so obvious to the reader and expect us to enjoy her heroine bumbling along. The shoes were identified as the culprit in the first lines of the story. It takes Katie waaaay too long to get there. It was incongruous with her character; up until now, Katie has been an intelligent, common-sense girl, picking up on clues and social nuances to solve problems and the mystery at hand. However, this time she doesn't see blatant hints and oddness that would have alerted her before. 
 Katie's oafishness (that's a word in my world) in understanding men annoyed me to no end. Her sheer stupidity concerning Owen made me exasperated through most of the book. There are women out there who are socially/dating awkward. But I feel as if it was taken too far. It made Katie look stupid. 
 I was also dismayed by Katie not telling anyone about something major that happens to her. As soon as she fessed up, the problem was taken care of. I feel that she should have known she could trust at least Owen and Merlin, and she put her own safety at risk over an (imho) irrational fear of losing her job. 
 I will definitely read the next one because I love the story and characters, and because the ending made me happy, but if the author continues to use Katie-isn't-getting-it-even-though-she-should as a plot device, I may quit the series.