Homicide in Hardcover by Kate Carlisle is the first book in the new “Bibliophile” cozy mystery series. Publisher: Signet, February 2009
murder is always a bestseller…
first in the new bibliophile mystery series!The streets of San Francisco would be lined with hardcovers if rare book expert Brooklyn Wainwright had her way. And her mentor wouldn’t be lying in a pool of his own blood on the eve of a celebration for his latest book restoration.
With his final breath he leaves Brooklyn a cryptic message, and gives her a priceless—and supposedly cursed—copy of Goethe’s Faust for safekeeping.
Brooklyn suddenly finds herself accused of murder and theft, thanks to the humorless—but attractive—British security officer who finds her kneeling over the body. Now she has to read the clues left behind by her mentor if she is going to restore justice…
This book introduces Brooklyn Wainwright, a rare book expert involved in book restoration and conservation. While attending a book restoration event for her mentor, Abraham Karastovsky, who she hasn’t seen in 6 months due to a disagreement, Brooklyn is asked to meet him in his workroom so he could show her some things. On her way, she runs into her mother and a family who had harsh words for a colleague. When Brooks enters Abraham’s workroom, she finds his gasping for his last breath and he gives her a cryptic message. Derek Stone, a British security officer, at first suspects her as the killer. Because she saw her mother on the stairwell, Brooks when talking to the cops does not mention seeing her mother or the cryptic message left to her. Soon Brooklyn’s life is threatened, a colleague is murdered and her boss has a secret worth being blackmailed for and Brooks has to sift through all the clues to apprehend the killer before she becomes the next victim. I loved this book. It was fast-paced, filled with action, filled with rare books information and most of all, it was fun. I can’t wait to read the next book in this new series. [4 stars – really liked it]