My father was a gardener. One of his favorite songs was “The Garden Song” that begins “Inch by inch and row by row”. That’s exactly how I feel with recovery from the flu, and trying to read. Both, inch by inch on health progress, and row by row for reading. I hope my enjoyment of Tim Sullivan’s The Bookseller doesn’t suffer because of this.

The recent DS George Cross mystery is a story of family. There are surprises in the murder investigation, and in George’s personal life, but the final solution doesn’t really come as a surprise. The biggest surprise is about the timeframe of the story itself. Unlike other books in the series that cover just the course of the case, this book covers over a year and a half.

Sullivan messes with the reader’s expectations from the very beginning when a ninety-year-old bookseller travels to London while his son waits at the bookstore in Bristol. We’re set up. When Cross and his partner, Ottey, are called to the murder scene at the bookstore, Cross is the one who finds the bookseller’s niece has locked herself in the bathroom. She says she saw the killer, but can’t identify him.

Cross is already discombobulated. Ottey has been promoted to a Detective Inspector, and hadn’t found the right time to tell him before it was announced to everyone. Now, she’s his superior office, no longer on equal grounds. And, George’s father, Raymond, is facing an operation for a tumor, one he decided to have without consulting George. He knew his son would have all kinds of questions for the doctors and would do his own research. There’s always danger, though, with a man of Raymond’s age.

With his personal and professional lives off-kilter, it’s no wonder George missed an entire direction of the investigation. If fact, it’s a suspect’s comments that remind Cross that he was so caught up in one aspect of the case that he ignored an entire group of suspects.

As I said, this is a story of family; George and the family that surrounds him, both at home and at work, and the bookseller’s family. There are secrets and support networks and family upheaval. For those of us who have followed the series, it’s a story of Cross’ personal growth and a growth in his self-awareness. And, if you love books about books and the book business, it’s a fascinating story.

Tim Sullivan’s website is https://timsullivanusa.com/

The Bookseller by Tim Sullivan. Head of Zeus, 2025. 360p.

FTC Full Disclosure – I bought my copy of the book.