Death of Mr Dodsley by John Ferguson – review

Published by The British Library

Publication date – 10 February 2023

Source – review copy

‘A bookshop is a first-rate place for unobtrusive observation,’ he continued. ‘One can remain in it an indefinite time, dipping into one book after another, all over the place.’

Mr Richard Dodsley, owner of a fine second-hand bookshop on Charing Cross Road, has been found murdered in the cold hours of the morning. Shot in his own office, few clues remain besides three cigarette ends, two spent matches and a few books on the shelves which have been rearranged.

In an investigation spanning the second-hand bookshops of London and the Houses of Parliament (since an MP’s new crime novel Death at the Desk appears to have some bearing on the case), Ferguson’s series sleuth MacNab is at hand to assist Scotland Yard in an atmospheric and ingenious fair-play bibliomystery.

Old Mr Dodsley runs a second hand bookshop in London. Early one morning he is found shot to death in his office. Disparate clues lead police and private investigator Francis McNab from the streets and shops of London to the Houses of Parliament. Which of the few people linked to the shop and its owner was responsible for the death of Mr Dodsley?

I love a book that features books or bookshops or other biblio-related themes and I love a bit of golden age crime so this perfectly marries the two.

The mystery is there. Who killed Mr Dodsley and why? Was it his nephew Dick Dodsley or is he a convenient suspect? Whilst the police think they may be on the right track, Francis McNab decides it wouldn’t hurt if he did some investigating of his own, especially as Mr Dodsley had engaged McNab to identify a thief who had been stealing books from the shop.

Soon there are a series of suspects, all of whom may or may not have had the means and opportunity to shot the bookshop owner. From confusing evidence of a cigarette case, a trapped cat and a broken hair slide, Scotland Yard have to find their way to the conclusion, though it ends up being McNab who turns the final page.

I had worked out who had pulled the trigger before McNab revealed who it was, but I enjoyed watching the clues and red herrings being laid out and discarded or followed.

A fun instalment in the series, I was transported to post war London and a shop teeming with old books. As is usually the case with books such as these, I found Death of Mr Dodsley a nice gentle read, comforting and entertaining.

You can buy a copy of the book here.

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