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HOMICIDE IN HARDCOVER
by Kate Carlisle
Obsidian, February 2009
289 pages
$6.99
ISBN: 0451226151


Buy in the UK | Buy in Canada

HOMICIDE IN HARDCOVER kicks off the new "Bibliophile Mysteries" about Brooklyn Wainwright, book restorer. As the story opens, she is dithering about seeing her old mentor for the first time in months; they had been very close, but he had not taken it well when she left to start a business of her own. A private showing of his latest commission – the restoration of the Heinrich Winslow collection, which includes a supposedly cursed copy of Faust – allows Brooklyn and Abraham a triumphant reunion. Unfortunately for Brooklyn, the reunion is cut short when she finds Abraham dying in his workroom. He gives her the copy of Faust, tells her to "remember the devil," and dies in her arms.

The Winslows want her to step in to finish Abraham's work. The police and private security agents, always suspicious of the first person on the scene, want to know what happened. An old enemy wants to know if she can frame Brooklyn and take her place. And Brooklyn wants to know what happened to Abraham.

The bare bones of the book are quite good and the story is pleasantly readable, but Carlisle comes across as trying too hard. Her characters are all ramped up to 11. Brooklyn's best friend isn't just pretty, she's incredibly sexy. Her enemy isn't just someone who dislikes her, she's a psycho who's stalked her for years. And then there's Brooklyn herself. In trying to make her unusual, Carlisle has also made her unbelievable. Brooklyn not only has an unusual name and an obscure profession, she is the child of a pair of Deadheads who joined a commune run by a benevolent cult leader which has since become a noted winery. That was about three items too long for my suspension of disbelief. Added to that was the paint-by-numbers predictable conversion of the private detective from antagonist to love interest. There are also touches that are meant to make Brooklyn seem human but instead make her unlikeable, such as the running joke about her forgetting to feed her friend's cats. That segment alone knocks HOMICIDE IN HARDCOVER out of the running for fans of animal-oriented mysteries.

Carlisle further limits her readership by adding a blast of anti-Semitism at the grand conclusion. This comes from the murderer so it's not endorsed, but readers ought to be aware that it's going to be lurking in wait for them.

Still, the premise was interesting. Book binding and restoration is a new path in the glutted concept cozy genre; for that reason alone I hope Carlisle manages to settle down and live up to the potential of the concept and her character.

Reviewed by Linnea Dodson, February 2009

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Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)


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