There’s a lot to love in this book. Firstly, the setting. As a lover of books, I really enjoyed the bookshop location, the little deals about marketing and sales and busy times, speaking to customer, upselling, choosing what goes on displays. Found all that minutiae fascinating.

Secondly, I found the ramping up of the creepy obsession really effective. It all escalated so slowly and seeing love (well deep fascinating really) turn to hate was compelling and well done.

Thirdly, I liked the deep dive into true crime. The examination of its fans, it’s legitimacy as a genre, the impact on families, the ethics of monetising murder - all good and fascinating.

Characterisation is what is going to really divide readers, I think because - frankly - both protagonists are vile. One on the outskirts of society, hates people, mean, weirdly obsessed with murders. Actually there’s a lot to sympathise with when it comes to Roach, but the author is not sympathetic at all. Equally Laura, a very sympathetic back story, but again painted as a terrible person, judgmental, bitchy, alcoholic, violent, cheater etc. What’s clear is that the characterisation is brilliant - and you are really, really going to hate these women. The problem for many readers will be that it can be hard to enjoy a book where you loathe all the main movers.

That said - it didn’t bother me. I read it quickly, I was engrossed. I was surprised by the ending in an unusual way (won’t spoil but safe to say it didn’t turn out quite like I thought it would).

I’d love to have seen a little more of some of the background characters. It was a diverse and interesting cast and I felt more time could and should have been spent there.

Totally readable - but I suspect not one everyone will love.

This is my last book im reviewing for 2022 before the new year starts. I finished this book today and i absolutely loved it. kept me pulled into it. highly recommend it. 5 star book. most likey will reread this book next year. already told a few people that they need to read this book asap

To be honest here I couldn’t get past the second chapter due to the main character’s pick me girl energy, soon-to-be-dated pop culture references, and strange superiority that she feels at knowing more about serial killers than the average girl. (Oof)
And like, maybe I’m missing the point here and it probably gets way better as it goes on but I just couldn’t bring myself to look at it any longer than I did.

As always, thank you to Net Galley and the publisher of this novel for choosing me for this ARC; I greatly enjoy being granted the opportunity to read and review!

A story of obsession and selling books. The writing is enchanting, the characters were well written and compelling and the storyline was so original. Recommended to mystery fans.

We meet Roach (Brogan) who is a book seller at Spines, as well as true crime addict. Roach loved to true books about serial killers and listen to true crime podcasts while hanging out with her pet snail. Then in comes Laura. From the beginning, Laura doesn’t like Roach, and Roach can’t figure out why. Until it’s revealed that Laura’s mom was a victim of a local serial killer, and Laura doesn’t like the way true crime podcasts and fan, like Roach, have trivialized her mother’s death. Things get out of hand, and eventually Roach does something that may cause her to end up with her episode of a true crime podcast.
I enjoyed this book because I am a true crime fan. This story made me take a step back and look at the morality of the genre as a whole. Plus, I feel like I could see a little bit of myself in Roach. Trying to fit in with the cool group at work, but not figuring out quite how.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book!

Multiple points of view take readers on a journey through a seemingly innocuous setting — a bookstore — and throw them into a suspenseful discussion around trauma, true crime, the consequences of our actions, the nature of storytelling, and the dangerous side of infatuation. I never would have imagined I would be so intrigued by very unlikeable and troubled characters who didn’t seem to learn anything from their mistakes! But maybe I could see a little justification from both their points of view?! Clearly this book is both simple and complex, as only a great story can be.

Woooooow. What a book!

I loved the concept of this book - true crime, bookseller and anti-social people has me written all over it! From the title I did expect it to be a murder mystery but it was so much better than that.

It follows 2 perspectives, Laura and Roach, who have similar interests but polar opposite personalities. I liked seeing both of their views on the same situation and actually I liked and felt sorry for Roach at the beginning until Laura was introduced and the realisation that not everything is as it seems set in.

This is such a good psychological thriller that slowly became more creepy and stalker-ish as time went on. I thoroughly enjoyed it and would recommend it for other thriller fans.

As a huge fan of mystery/thrillers, I was extremely excited to read Death of a Bookseller. I hate to say it though but I did not enjoy Alice Slater’s book and felt that it was extremely lacking.

The problem with the book is that it kept ramping up a mystery that doesn’t feel important, with characters who are also lacking in any emotion or empathy and ending in a sloppy and boring way. Slater has a good structure but lacks the ability to fill it in a great way.

Overall I wish I loved this book but I can not say that Death of a Bookseller is worth reading.

3.5 stars. This was a fascinating one. Seeing a truly disgusting protagonist told from the first person, and seeing her descent into a stalker was so fascinating! And the conversations about the ethics of the true crime genre are extremely well done. The big fault of the book is that every other character besides Roach and Laura are irrelevant and underdeveloped. There were also a TON of formatting errors that made the book distracting to read

Roach is completely intolerable but I really liked this. some parts moved a little slowly - lots of description of mundane activities - but I loved being in Roach's weird little mind and seeing her views of the world, other people, and herself. the ending was open ended but still satisfying and so good!
definitely for fans of You by Caroline Kepnes!

Book: Death of a Bookseller
Author: Alice Slater
Publisher: Penzler Publishers
Pub Date: April 25, 2023

I had never read anything by this author and thought the cover looked interesting. I was hooked from the very beginning. I connected to each of the characters and felt the emotions they felt…well maybe not the killing part. But seriously the writing made you a part of the emotions that each character felt. And the ending. The ending was perfect! Absolutely perfect. This book wasn’t even on my radar and pulled out 5 books! But I have one question….what is up with the slugs?!?

Thank you Penzler Publishers and NetGalley for this sneak peak! Publication date is April 25, 2023

Roach works at Spines, a bookstore in Walthamstow. The shop isn't doing as great as it is expected to be so that's where our other main character, Laura comes in. Roach and Laura seem like polar opposites at first - Roach is a goth girl but Laura is a "normie" - but Roach recognises something within Laura as they have a shared interest in true crime (although for different reasons) but Laura is unresponsive to Roach's advances to becoming friends, which is when Roach's obsession starts.

I saw the blurb and thought that the book sounded really interesting, however I did not expect the book to turn into what it did when I started and then finished the book. Roach makes true crime her entire personality, which is all she thinks and talks about, which gets a bit tiring to read about. She is so desensitised to the effects of true crime that she fails to realise the impact that it has on the victim's families, which is evident by how she continues to want information about the murder of Laura's mother, despite numerous people telling her to leave it alone. I found Roach's obsession with Laura incredibly weird, as well as the lengths that she would go to in order to find information about the murder of Laura's mother.

On the topic of Laura, I couldn't stand her - I hated how different she treated Roach compared to the other booksellers and as a consequence, how the other booksellers began to treat Roach too. Laura's entire personality was complaining about Roach and how horrible true crime is and the fact that people profit off writing about it (which is understandable since her mother was killed by a serial killer), as well as doing things that she knew would upset Roach. However, I didn't like how I didn't like the victim within this story as she was made out to be crazy, when in actuality she was just extremely fearful of the world and honestly, rightfully so. However, that is one of the aspects that is well done within this book as the sense of Laura's fear is so strong against Roach's obsession, which makes for a nice contrast when reading both of their POVs, especially as Roach's chapter can be incredibly dark and hard to read.

There were a few things that happened in this book which I guessed as it felt quite predictable, hence why I was not surprised at the ending or the epilogues. I didn't connect nor like any of the characters introduced within this book - they were all awful in their own way. However, this book includes gay and lesbian characters, which I was happy to see. I also didn't like how it tells you about events that happen further on in the future before they even happen as it ruined the shock for when these events actually happen. Also, there is a lot of serial killers mentioned within this book, which comes across as Roach (and I guess Sam too) romanticising them, which was uncomfortable to read. It was hard to see any character development because it was hidden by Roach's obsession for Laura and true crime and Laura's by her hatred for Roach, which would have helped to drive the story forward especially as it's told from both of their POVs.

However, this book was an interesting debut and I did struggle to put it down - it was unlike any other book I have read. It did feel dragged out at times with quite a lot of repetition as the same kinds of things would constantly happen throughout the book. This book is definitely a slow burner but it gets interesting very fast. I really liked Alice Slater's writing style, as well as how descriptive this book was as it really helps to set the scene. This book also includes gay and lesbian characters, which I was happy to see.

⚠️ Content warning: profanity, vomiting, mentions real life serial killers and how they killed their victims, alcohol and drug use, alcoholism, strangulation, murder, mentions people with a drug problem, school shooters, guns, self harm, domestic abuse, Nazi reference, suicide and sex workers, grief, police officer as a murderer, Satanism, sleeping pills, blood, rape, sexism, misogyny, animal death, cheating and physical assault ⚠️

Thank you very much to NetGalley and the publisher Penzler Publishers, Scarlet for the opportunity to read this book!

I have posted this review to my NetGalley and Goodreads accounts. I will also post a review on my Instagram and Tiktok a week before the publication date (25th April 2023). This book will be available as a hardback for £14.99 or an e-book for £6.99.

I don't know what to say about this book. I have so many conflicting thoughts. For starters, I wonder why anyone would give it more than 1 star.

TW: SA

When I first saw this book, I was excited. I was so thankful I got the arc from Netgalley! Like WOW, this book sounded so good. And the cover? Chefs kiss. Truly pulled me in. The synopsis explains that there is a girl named Roach (interesting name) who is into true crime (love a good mystery) and meets a girl named Laura and she feels intrigued by her. She soon realizes there is more to Laura than meets the eye... DUN DUN DUNNNNN

The synopsis is a lie.

The first few pages of the book really details out who our main character is. She is judgmental. She puts other women down. She is whiny. She thinks she is superior to everyone around her. And she is simple minded, a child really. I could not stand the main character and I was incredibly upset with the author for trying to make us not like the victim of the story.

Roach becomes so obsessed with Laura that she steals her poetry, her rapey boyfriend tries to publish it, and then she LIES and pretends she didn't blatantly plagerise. When I tell you that this was the worst book ever written ever... that's an understatement.

The writer glorified a sick girl who manipulates everyone around her. The writer made this character seem misunderstood whe she wasn't at all. The writer also made the victim look crazy and like she deserved to be murdered! Let me make this very clear: NO ONE DESERVES TO BE MURDERED. Also, very early in the book, Roach meets a guy who casually rapes her and then she's just fine with it? She lost her virginity to this guy and then he asks her all of these disgusting innappropriate questions and she just tells him what he wants to hear. They are both derranged but he needed to be arrested for simply breathing in the general direction of the human population. He was possibly the worst book boyfriend I have ever read ever.

At the end of the book, Roach gets away with everything. Nothing happens to her. And Laura? The victim? She is seen as the person who went crazy and caused all this drama. That everything was always in her head. I have never hated a book from beggining, middle, end, as much as I did this one.

I really didn't want to write this review because I don't want anyone to read this book. I figured if no one talked about it, then maybe no one would read it. But there are so many positive reviews on Goodreads that I felt like I needed to make sure people understood, THIS IS A BAD BOOK.

Roach has been working in a branch of Spines bookshop forever, meticulously building up its' True Crime section, when the arrival of a new member of staff shatters her routines. She's drawn to Laura and is excited about their shared interest in serial killers. But Laura is determined to keep her distance as much as Roach is eager to close it. There must be secrets in Laura's life that she has to discover.
"Death of a Bookseller" is for those who enjoy reading about toxic relationships and obsessions - it reminded me of "The Doll Factory" (creepy Silas!) and "If I Can't Have You", both of which absolutely stunned me. Roach was an amazingly messed up character, very intense and believable. Plus it's set in a bookshop, so as a former bookseller and current librarian I could not resist it, especially as it deals with some great themes - the privacy of victims, people's obsession with crime and their perpetrators, the voyeuristic entertainment of mass produced titles about serial killers.
This is a superbly dark and atmospheric book - the tension ratcheted up in subtle increments, till the explosive finale. I cannot wait to recommend it to everyone.

This is quite good, and already has a number of helpful, high-star reviews, so I'll just recommend it to mystery fans. I enjoyed it and stayed engaged.

I really appreciate the free ARC for review!!

A dark and addictive thriller. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for a review.

I've read so many versions of this kind of dual obsession story set in the literary world, but this one was one of the first that felt appropriately sordid. Slater's voice is engaging and I got second-hand stress from all the Christmas-in-retail scenes.

If you love books with an unlikeable main character you should pick up this book. Roach is quite possibly the worst character I've read from the perspective of. She shows the worst of the true crime community and how it can affect victims and their families negatively. I did struggle to rate this as while I did appreciate the commentary regarding true crime I did struggle to read it as I'm not that big of a fan of unlikeable main characters.

This book is uncomfortable, twisted, and cringy - and perfectly illustrates the dark side of obsession. Death of a Bookseller is part thriller and part dark comedy, and Slater pulls no punches as she invites the reader into the gritty inner workings of Roach and Laura's minds. This is one of those books that you feel in your gut and that makes you want to shower afterwards, and I wouldn't have it any other way. A truly formidable debut.

Thank you to Penzler Pub/Scarlet and NetGalley for providing a digital copy of Death of a Bookseller in exchange for an honest review. Death of a Bookseller will be available April 25, 2023.

2 Stars ⭐️

I'm really sad to say that this just didn't hit the mark for me and fell flat.

It started off strong and I was enjoying the first 25% of the book. The multiple povs are interesting and Roach was an interesting character. She first came off likeable and Laura was just a terrible person.

However it quickly began repetitive with the two povs. We' get s pov of Roach being obsessed and acting more creepy/cringey, then Laura acting mean and vindictive to Roach at the book store or out drinking, and then Laura gets drunk and someone has to take her home. Then scenario just kept repeating itself over and over. The fun I was having quickly dissipated.

This book seems to be wanting to also take stance about true crime podcasts, books, podcasts. It's either in Laura's POV talking about why it's bad and how she can't respect roach/anyone weird who's interested in it. Then in Roach's pov it's used as a tool to make us think she is weird, creepy, and why she's obsessed.

The writing style of this book was well done and it is generally well written. I will be keeping an eye out for future work by Alice Slater.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penzler Publishing for this advanced reader copy. My review is voluntarily my own.