Jannelies's Reviews > Death of a Bookseller

A somewhat slow but irresistible story about two women who represent the black and white (or the good and bad maybe?) of people.

Bogdan/Brodie Roach, who grew up in a pub where her mother has more interest in the punters than in her daughter, is clingy, moody, dark and generally unhappy. She starts working as a bookseller when she’s only sixteen and there is no other path, let alone a whole world, for her. She’s completely focussed on true-crime, especially on serial killers.
Laura Bunting, she with the festive family name, is the woman who is very dedicated to her work, only wears colour-coordinated clothing and doesn’t realize she has more in common with Roach than she thinks. Laura’s mother was murdered by a serial killer, a fact that she mostly wants to keep a secret. But keeping secrets for Roach is difficult, because Roach is always snooping.
We read their story from both POV’s, and the similarity between their stories becomes gradually known. Another similarity is the fact that they both drink. A lot. An awful lot. Why in heavens’ name would you spend almost every evening after work getting drunk with your colleagues? Every character in this story – because there are more people working in Spines, the store where the story is set – is on his/her way to become a full fledged alcoholic. If you cannot call them that already.
Everything that happens in this story is set off by booze, booze and more booze. It seems none of the people who work in Spines is having one original thought without getting very drunk first. Which is a pity because there is a lot going on here. We get to know Roach and Laura pretty well and although they are both not very nice persons, you cannot help but feel for them sometimes.

I think I’m not the only reviewer here who loves bookstores but it’s not always fun working in one. It’s not so much about the books, it’s about selling books and making a profit. I liked the parts where Laura and her colleagues moan about the customers and all the hard work that has to be done to keep the store running. Although I’ve never heard of a bookstore where you have to work during the night to get it stocked. Certainly not where I come from.

It's a creepy story in places and the end is fitting. I loved the writing but sometimes I got a bit nauseous from reading about the huge amounts of alcohol that’s consumed.

Thanks to Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for this review copy.