Author: Eva Jurczyk
Series: None
Publication Date: January 25, 2022
Publisher: Poisoned Pen Publishing
Pages: 341
Obtained: Publisher via NetGalley
Genre: Mystery
Rating: 4/5
Bottom Line: An ode to libraries, books and librarians everywhere
Grab, Just get it at the library, or Remove from your TBR list? Grab
Summary: Liesl Weiss long ago learned to be content working behind the scenes in the distinguished rare books department of a large university, managing details and working behind the scenes to make the head of the department look good. But when her boss has a stroke and she's left to run things, she discovers that the library's most prized manuscript is missing. Liesl tries to sound the alarm and inform the police about the missing priceless book, but is told repeatedly to keep quiet, to keep the doors open and the donors happy. But then a librarian unexpectedly stops showing up to work. Liesl must investigate both disappearances, unspooling her colleagues' pasts like the threads of a rare book binding as it becomes clear that someone in the department must be responsible for the theft. What Liesl discovers about the dusty manuscripts she has worked among for so long—and about the people who care for and revere them—shakes the very foundation on which she has built her life. ~amazon.com
Review: Sometimes I feel that a good mystery gets lost with all the suspense and thriller books out there now, so when I read the summary for The Department of Rare Books & Special Collections I knew it would be a good switch to some of my current reads.
When a rare, collectible book goes missing at the same time the library director has a massive stroke it's up to Associate Director, Liesl to figure out what exactly is going on. Is the book stolen or just misplaced? If misplaced or shelved in the wrong place, why can't the team of librarians find it? And why does everyone, including the University President, want her to keep this quiet, brush it under the rug and not get the police involved? For the life of her she can't figure out what's going on.
Add to the missing book, another department wants to do carbon dating on another one of their rare books. For some reason Liesl is hesitant but eventually gives in and allows Rhonda to do the testing. What's interesting is how this comes full circle in the novel.
This novel is choc full of interesting characters and interesting relationships. Everyone is linked in some way or has something in their path that they don't all know about. That's about to changes as one of the librarians goes missing and everything starts unraveling. Liesl feels that things are out of her control and starts to let herself go a bit as well.
I really enjoyed the character development in this one along with the plot. The interactions between all the characters are curious and lend to the mystery. I enjoyed the mystery and the inner workings of how a library and donors work at a university.
I definitely recommend this novel for book lovers.
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