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v_nessa 's review for:
Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore
by Matthew Sullivan
I feel like the title of this book is disingenuous to what you get. I, like many others it seems, expected a cozy type murder mystery and this is what the book is not. This book does revolve around books and Lydia, the main character works at Bright Ideas Bookstore but besides the suicide in the beginning she really isn't there for the remainder of the book. Lydia has a childhood trauma that comes into focus with the death of Joey (the suicide at the beginning) and a murderer that was never caught as well as a mystery bequeathed to her by Joey.
The characters are...okay. I didn't feel that Lydia was justified in her treatment of David and knowing her past because obviously he didn't care about that. I also didn't like the sudden shoehorn return of Raj like no time had passed between them as well as the romantic undertones shared between them; I mean if you always have your childhood 'friend' leave before your boyfriend comes home then there is something up.
The murder was solvable about 30% of the way into the book, though the motive wasn't revealed until the end and that was a bit surprising to me.
**Spoilers**
It doesn't take long in the cast of characters to figure out that Raj's father murdered the O'toole family. It's obviously not Tomas, no matter what the author tried to play out, given that he was surprised by Carol that night. I was rather annoyed there wasn't a wrap-up for the detective who could have had an answer to his case, even if he was unable to prosecute anyone. Also, why did Tomas become a prison guard? Because plot reasons, to have the connection to Joey? It just seemed like such a strange change to explain his distance to Lydia later in her life and the "problems" she has with her father. Wouldn't he be even more protective of her since she almost got murdered with her classmate?
I can't say that any of the characters struck me as particularly compelling and largely they were used as plot devices. Ernest was there to help her get the body down and then leave the store. Lyle was there to give context to the goings on with Joey. The woman whose name I can't remember, who stood on the corner smoking to "advertise the bookstore" as she put it was there to have a car for Lydia to borrow. The main characters, David to provide a security net and get Lydia started on the mystery of the books left by Joey. Raj, the childhood bestfriend who got dropped by the wayside when the murder happened and reappears when he sees her in the newspaper and who coincidentally is half-brother to Joey and helps her secure Joey's records because of that connection. Tomas who retired(?) from being a security guard and is now a hoarder of discarded books while he wastes away with no money. Mr. Patel, the Hammerman and Raj's father who runs Gas and Doughnuts and Mrs. Patel, both Raj and Joey's mother who is pressed down under the iron boot of Mr. Patel and coincidentally also initiates Joey's tragic trajectory. There is also the poor detective, in his dirty cabin who never solved the Hammerman murders and is only there to provide some clarity and information to Lydia and then is never spoken of again. Oh, and all the murdered characters, Carol, Lydia's troublemaker friend, Dotty O'toole, the promiscuous woman Tomas falls in love with who is married to Mr. O'toole (whose first name I can't even remember), also Joey's father.
The epilogue chapter was....weird and not in a good way. Raj is at Lydia's apartment (who is not longer with David) and they see an international special on the haunted O'toole house. I get that the special was supposed to tell you Lydia lost at least part of herself in that house that day but it felt cliché, I guess. There was only talking of her repairing relations with her father, no scenes showing it, and then news of Mr. Patel's murder. I do have to admit that I did enjoy at least Mr. Patel finally getting his due in some way.
Also, I would have named this something else. The Body Under the Sink, Secrets in the Dark, The Hammerman, Skeletons Under the Sink, The Haunting of Lydia Smith, Messages from the Grave; I don't know. I know why it's named the way it is because book nerds want to read about books and bookstores and other book nerds.
The characters are...okay. I didn't feel that Lydia was justified in her treatment of David and knowing her past because obviously he didn't care about that. I also didn't like the sudden shoehorn return of Raj like no time had passed between them as well as the romantic undertones shared between them; I mean if you always have your childhood 'friend' leave before your boyfriend comes home then there is something up.
The murder was solvable about 30% of the way into the book, though the motive wasn't revealed until the end and that was a bit surprising to me.
**Spoilers**
It doesn't take long in the cast of characters to figure out that Raj's father murdered the O'toole family. It's obviously not Tomas, no matter what the author tried to play out, given that he was surprised by Carol that night. I was rather annoyed there wasn't a wrap-up for the detective who could have had an answer to his case, even if he was unable to prosecute anyone. Also, why did Tomas become a prison guard? Because plot reasons, to have the connection to Joey? It just seemed like such a strange change to explain his distance to Lydia later in her life and the "problems" she has with her father. Wouldn't he be even more protective of her since she almost got murdered with her classmate?
I can't say that any of the characters struck me as particularly compelling and largely they were used as plot devices. Ernest was there to help her get the body down and then leave the store. Lyle was there to give context to the goings on with Joey. The woman whose name I can't remember, who stood on the corner smoking to "advertise the bookstore" as she put it was there to have a car for Lydia to borrow. The main characters, David to provide a security net and get Lydia started on the mystery of the books left by Joey. Raj, the childhood bestfriend who got dropped by the wayside when the murder happened and reappears when he sees her in the newspaper and who coincidentally is half-brother to Joey and helps her secure Joey's records because of that connection. Tomas who retired(?) from being a security guard and is now a hoarder of discarded books while he wastes away with no money. Mr. Patel, the Hammerman and Raj's father who runs Gas and Doughnuts and Mrs. Patel, both Raj and Joey's mother who is pressed down under the iron boot of Mr. Patel and coincidentally also initiates Joey's tragic trajectory. There is also the poor detective, in his dirty cabin who never solved the Hammerman murders and is only there to provide some clarity and information to Lydia and then is never spoken of again. Oh, and all the murdered characters, Carol, Lydia's troublemaker friend, Dotty O'toole, the promiscuous woman Tomas falls in love with who is married to Mr. O'toole (whose first name I can't even remember), also Joey's father.
The epilogue chapter was....weird and not in a good way. Raj is at Lydia's apartment (who is not longer with David) and they see an international special on the haunted O'toole house. I get that the special was supposed to tell you Lydia lost at least part of herself in that house that day but it felt cliché, I guess. There was only talking of her repairing relations with her father, no scenes showing it, and then news of Mr. Patel's murder. I do have to admit that I did enjoy at least Mr. Patel finally getting his due in some way.
Also, I would have named this something else. The Body Under the Sink, Secrets in the Dark, The Hammerman, Skeletons Under the Sink, The Haunting of Lydia Smith, Messages from the Grave; I don't know. I know why it's named the way it is because book nerds want to read about books and bookstores and other book nerds.