The Bookseller (The DS Cross Mysteries #7), by Tim Sullivan
The Bookseller by Tim Sullivan
Five stars out of five.
“The Bookseller” places DS George Cross in Bristol’s world of rare and second-hand bookselling. When Ed Squire is murdered in his own shop, the investigation takes in more than a crime scene: the business has a long history and loyalties stretching across generations. Squire’s Rare Books feels lived in, rather than arranged as a picturesque backdrop. I liked how the antiquarian setting gives the case its own character through the value of old stock and the people who know its history. This is a procedural with a specific subject, not just another murder in another town.
Cross fits this world, and his attentive, methodical questions give the investigation a steady centre. Ottey’s more socially intuitive approach helps widen the team’s view of the people around the shop. Their partnership is familiar, but the family tensions and professional loyalties provide new ground for it. The supporting cast feels connected to the business, not like a row of convenient suspects. I liked how old relationships shape what people will say and what they would rather leave unsaid.
The novel’s humour can be bracingly awkward. One mother-daughter interaction is described as »toe-curlingly, sick-in-the-mouth-inducing«; the phrasing captures Sullivan’s talent for making social discomfort memorable. Not every such moment is pleasant, but the characters rarely feel like mere pieces in the mystery.
The pacing is the main weakness. Sullivan sometimes pauses to explain the rare-book trade or trace old business relationships. Most of that background enriches the setting, but a few passages outstay their welcome and the case loses momentum. I felt the drag, though it never undid my interest: the shop’s history and the people bound up in it kept me engaged. This is a distinctive, very good continuation of the series.
Five stars out of five.
Ceterum censeo Putin esse delendam
