This took me longer to read than it should have. I was not pulled in to the storyline or particularly drawn to any of the characters. This book is part of a series and I disagree that it can be read as a standalone. While I haven't read the other books in this series to say for certain that it isn't just the author's style, I felt that the book jumped in too quickly and did not take enough time to develop the characters leading me to believe the other books did. Up to the end of the book I was still mixing up the characters and forgetting who was who. Aside from that, the crime didn't pull me in and give me that 'can't put it down' experience. I also thought the dialogue felt awkward at times. Sometimes characters would say or do something that didn't seem to impact the story and also seemed oddly placed. Overall, I can't say I would recommend this book on its own. I would suggest starting with the first book in the series and deciding from there if you want to keep reading.