A Review of John Dunning's "Booked to Die"

Every so often a book catches readers by surprise; even more rarely that book becomes part of the very world it seeks to chronicle. Both were the case with John Dunning's Booked to Die, the first in the remarkable Cliff Janeway "Bookman" series.

Booked to Die is the story of a burned out cop named Cliff Janeway who quits the police force to become a rare book dealer. Janeway has turned in his badge; he keeps both his gun and his penchant for solving crimes. The mysteries now revolve around the new world of rare books he inhabits, which puts this book squarely in the genre of bibliomystery.

A bibliomystery is one in which a book or manuscript is central to the plot of the novel. The definition can be expanded to include mystery novels in which libraries, librarians, bookstores, booksellers, publishers and/or authors play a key role in the story. The genre existed well before Booked to Die, going back at least as far as Agnes Miller's The Colfax Book-Plate in 1926, but Dunning's contribution was a turning point, much like Springsteen's Born to Run helped both save and redefine rock music.In many ways, Dunning opened the door for many of today's hugely popular bibliomysteries, from Arturo Perez-Reverte's The Club Dumas to Carlos Ruiz Zafon's The Shadow of the Wind.

What stands out in Booked to Die is not simply the solving of a mystery, though Dunning takes the reader on a non-stop thrill ride in doing so. This novel is unique because it gives the reader a behind the scenes look at the world of rare book dealers, as well as an education into rare books themselves, without ever bogging down the narrative. In the end, watching Janeway scout through a pile of books in an East Denver thrift shop is as interesting as witnessing the brutal fight that ends his career as a cop. And Dunning gives us some twists at the end that would surprise even Sherlock Holmes.