If you open your dictionary, you will discover that there is no such word as “bibliomystery.” However, most mystery readers know that the word refers to a mystery story that involves the world of books: a bookshop, a rare volume, a library, a collector, or a bookseller.
The stories in this unique collection were commissioned by the Mysterious Bookshop. They were written by some of the mystery genre’s most distinguished authors. Tough guys like Ken Bruen, Reed Farrel Coleman, Loren D. Estleman, and Mickey Spillane and Max Allan Collins. Bestsellers like Nelson DeMille, Anne Perry, and Jeffery Deaver. Edgar winners such as C. J. Box, Thomas H. Cook, and Laura Lippman.
Here you will discover Sigmund Freud dealing with an unwelcome visitor; Columbo confronting a murderous bookseller; a Mexican cartel kingpin with a fatal weakness for rare books; and deadly secrets deep in the London Library; plus books with hidden messages, beguiling booksellers, crafty collectors, and a magical library that is guaranteed to enchant you. The stories have been published in seven languages—one has sold more than 250,000 copies as an e-book (“The Book Case” by Nelson DeMille)—and another won the Edgar Allan Poe Award as the Best Short Story of the Year (“The Caxton Lending Library and Book Depository” by John Connolly).
Who knew literature could be so lethal!
When Halloween Bingo was kicking off, and we had to submit the seven squares we didn't want included on our card, I was a little bit flummoxed, because there were 9 squares on my list. I knew I wouldn't be able to convince Moonlight Reader to just give me three cozy mystery squares instead, so I had to pick the 2 lesser evils. Classic Noir was one of them. I'm generally not a fan of the sub-genre as it's all a bit too 'dame' and 'broad' for me; the slang wears on my nerves after awhile and feels too affected.
But I'd just received Bibliomysteries: Stories of Crime in the World of Books and Bookstores; it's the (presumably) first collection of the Bibliomysteries Otto Penzler commissions from authors each year, which he then publishes to offer first as gifts to his good customers, then to sell to the general public. One of the stories is It's in the Book; originally started by Mickey Spillane before his death, it was found amongst his papers and Max Allan Collins finished it for Penzler. I don't know if Spillane meant for it to be a short story, but it certainly works beautifully as one.
Hammer is hired, first by the NYPD, then by the mafia. Both want the same book: a ledger allegedly used by a recently passed Don to record every nefarious deed and transaction he ever undertook. Names are named and nobody wants it to see the light of day, although a few would kill to use it themselves.
It was a lot of fun riding along with Hammer as he makes short work of finding the book, and while the noir was thick, it wasn't overdone (perhaps by virtue of being a short story). The ending is purposefully foreshadowed early on, making me think that it was more about the action and savoir-faire than about the conclusion of the 'mystery' itself. Collins did offer up a slight, pretty comical twist at the end, and it had me smiling as I closed the book last night.
I won't rush out to read more noir, but I definitely had a good time with this one!
Reading updates
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11 September, 2017:
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11 September, 2017:
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