Books like Bloody Winter

This is one of those books that I'd like to give both a 4 and a 2 and feel a bit discontented with settling for a 3.Why the 4?This was the first Pyke mystery I have read and I felt it stood on its own well.I found the gritty setting and backdrop of the Irish Famine and industrial politics intriguing. The story felt well set in this backdrop, I did not find myself questioning events. The plot is complex and though I was able to work a few things out there were plenty of times I was kept guessing. I found a few parts gave me a little tear and felt there was a good balance of the emotional demands the book places on you as a reader.The split viewpoint worked quite well though I felt that the characterisation could have been a little stronger between Pyke and Knox. Why the desire to also give it 2 stars?Oh. My. Goodness. the TIMELINE! Pyke and Knox's stories are set about 3 months apart. It drove me positively insane to keep flipping around. As if the 3 month gap wasn't bad enough, at one point Pyke's OWN story jumps into the future by a month.I understand why it was done this way but I think there might have been other approaches to doing this in a less confusing manner.Would I read another? I honestly don't know.