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A review by the_bookishkat
Death of a Bookseller by Alice Slater
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
This was such an eerie and unsettling read in the best possible way. If you want to read a book where neither POV you trust or like, this is the book for you!
It follows two booksellers: unalike in almost every way possible, but united by the overarching branch of true crime. While Laura seems to be doing her best to avoid the topic as much as she can, Roach is obsessed with the genre and embodies it entirely.
The POVs of this book are where it truly shines: Slater manages to encapsulate both personalities to the point where even the writing style feels slightly different. Both perspectives are written brilliantly: we get to see what makes both Laura and Roach unique, but thought has gone into how each of their actions and thoughts might even be different. I couldn't stop cringing and wincing while reading Roach's POV in fear of what would come next and Laura's POV had me consistently questioning whether she was nice or not. In terms of the plot line as well, Slater does an excellent job at always keeping you on your toes and guessing what was coming up next - once hooked, I couldn't put it down.
The role of the bookseller plays into the plot really well - you can almost imagine both characters roaming around your local bookstore and I loved the attention given to how the store runs and how it affects both characters' moods.
While reading the entire thing, I loved how much it made me question whether any of the characters were truly in the right, while also offering some slithers of sympathy for everyone involved at different times. The only reason I didn't give it 5 stars was the ending: it ended a little too quickly through the epilogues for my liking, we didn't spend enough time on that aspect of the closure!
Overall though, this was a brilliant book and I fully expect to see it gain in popularity very quickly... Personally, I now can't wait to see how the real booksellers in stores sell this book to customers!
Thanks to NetGalley and Hodder & Staughton for early access to this book!
It follows two booksellers: unalike in almost every way possible, but united by the overarching branch of true crime. While Laura seems to be doing her best to avoid the topic as much as she can, Roach is obsessed with the genre and embodies it entirely.
The POVs of this book are where it truly shines: Slater manages to encapsulate both personalities to the point where even the writing style feels slightly different. Both perspectives are written brilliantly: we get to see what makes both Laura and Roach unique, but thought has gone into how each of their actions and thoughts might even be different. I couldn't stop cringing and wincing while reading Roach's POV in fear of what would come next and Laura's POV had me consistently questioning whether she was nice or not. In terms of the plot line as well, Slater does an excellent job at always keeping you on your toes and guessing what was coming up next - once hooked, I couldn't put it down.
The role of the bookseller plays into the plot really well - you can almost imagine both characters roaming around your local bookstore and I loved the attention given to how the store runs and how it affects both characters' moods.
While reading the entire thing, I loved how much it made me question whether any of the characters were truly in the right, while also offering some slithers of sympathy for everyone involved at different times. The only reason I didn't give it 5 stars was the ending: it ended a little too quickly through the epilogues for my liking, we didn't spend enough time on that aspect of the closure!
Overall though, this was a brilliant book and I fully expect to see it gain in popularity very quickly... Personally, I now can't wait to see how the real booksellers in stores sell this book to customers!
Thanks to NetGalley and Hodder & Staughton for early access to this book!