Murder is Binding (A Booktown Mystery) by Lorna Barrett

First line in the book:  "I tell you, Trish, we're all victims."

The picturesque village of Stoneham is hailed as the Safest Town in New Hampshire until a body of a septuagenarian bookseller is discovered in The Cookery bookshop by none other than the owner of Haven't Got A Clue mystery bookstore.  Yes, you got that right, it is the first murder in Stoneham in over 60 years.

Apart from the body, something is missing from The Cookery - an oblong Lucite container with a little hinged door sporting a sturdy lock and housing a rare first edition aged cookbook. 

Murdered:
Doris Gleason - owner of The Cookery bookshop.  Avoided by the rest of the shop owners on Main Street.  Not likeable.  Tried to get the other shop owners to take part in a collective bargaining to negotiate a new lease but no one is interested in her campaign.  Has a daughter called Susan who has Down syndrome.  Her body was found with a carving knife jutting out of her back behind the kitchen island in her bookshop. 

Prime suspect:
Tricia Miles - owner of Haven't Got A Clue mystery bookstore.  Sells vintage first-edition mysteries and newly minted bestsellers.  Lives with her regal, gray domestic longhair cat, Miss Marple, in the loft apartment over the bookstore.  Divorced from her stockbroker ex, Christopher.  Doesn't please easily.  Moved to Stoneham almost 6 months ago.  Has a bittersweet relationship with her older sister, Angelica, although it is only one-sided.  Loves nothing better than to sit in her most comfy chair and read after a long day at work which also means she hasn't got much of a social life.  She found the body of Doris Gleason and became Stoneham's jinx of death! 

Other characters:
Ginny Wilson - 20-something redhead and the only employee of Haven't Got A Clue.  Lifelong resident of Stoneham.  Ex-employee of The Cookery.  Going out with Brian. 

Angelica Preston - Tricia's older sister.  Confirmed chatterbox.  Excellent cook.  Recently separated from her fourth husband, Drew.  Showed up in Stoneham ostensibly to help Tricia in her bookstore but what is she actually up to? 

Bob Kelly - president of the local chamber of commerce and owner of Kelly Realty.  Shows a romantic interest in Angelica.  You either love him or hate him. 

Sheriff Wendy Adams - no-nonsense countenance.  Leads the murder investigation aided by Deputy Jim Placer.

Frannie Mae Armstrong - originally from Texas but have been living in Stoneham for more than 20 years.  Works at the local chamber of commerce at the counter as a secretary-receptionist.  Loves to read Nora Roberts but not those J D Robb ones. 

Russ Smith - middle-aged, dark-haired and good-looking editor of the Stoneham Weekly News.

Mr Everett (William) - silver-haired elderly gentleman who once owned and managed Stoneham's only grocery store.  Haven't Got A Clue's most regular patron, so much so that he bags a part-time job at the bookstore.

Mike Harris - selectman for the election.  Runs his campaign from the most narrow storefront on Main Street opposite Tricia's bookstore and intends to open shop for his insurance business after the election. 

Winnie Wentworth - village eccentric, a combination bag lady/antiques picker.  Goes to tag sales, estate sales and auctions to find books and junk to resell to the Main Street shop owners.  Her old 1993 Cadillac Seville serves as a rolling junk mobile.  She is the second murder victim - is her death accidental or connected to the missing antique cookbook?

Deborah Black - owner of Happy Domestic, a boutique specializing in new and gently used products like how-to-books, gifts and home décor.  Buys her stock from Winnie.

Bess - plump 60-something receptionist at the elegant Brookview Inn.

Grace Harris - Mike's elderly mother and widow.  Resident at St Godelive's Assisted Living Center recovering from Alzheimer's or so her son claims!

Deirdre Gleason - Doris's twin sister.  Accountant background.  Re-opens and takes over the running of The Cookery. 

Whodunnit?

This is the first book in the Booktown Mystery.  It reads like a modern Miss-Marple Hercule-Poirot Agatha-Christie mystery and provides a refreshing change from my usual fare.  I placed an order for this book right after reading the third book, Bookplate Special (read the review: 13 August 2010) because I was delighted with that book and wanted to get to know more about its quirky characters and the quaint village.  Besides, who would not love a sister-duo amateur sleuths mystery centered around bookshops accompanied by delectable recipes?  Bookmarked for Death is next on my reading list.

Rating: 3/5 (Cosy read)