Seattle Mystery Bookshop

Coming Soon Sunday: Otto Penzler

If you open your dictionary, you will discover that there is no such word as “bibliomystery.”

However, most mystery readers know that the word refers to a mystery story that involves the world of books: a bookshop, a rare volume, a library, a collector, or a bookseller.

The stories in this unique collection were commissioned by the Mysterious Bookshop.

They were written by some of the mystery genre’s most distinguished authors. Tough guys like Ken Bruen, Reed Farrel Coleman, Loren D. Estleman, and Mickey Spillane and Max Allan Collins. Bestsellers like Nelson DeMille, Anne Perry, and Jeffery Deaver. Edgar winners such as C. J. Box, Thomas H. Cook, and Laura Lippman.

Here you will discover:

Sigmund Freud dealing with an unwelcome visitor

Columbo confronting a murderous bookseller

a Mexican cartel kingpin with a fatal weakness for rare books

deadly secrets deep in the London Library

books with hidden messages, beguiling booksellers, crafty collectors, and a magical library that is guaranteed to enchant you

The stories have been published in seven languages—one has sold more than 250,000 copies as an e-book (“The Book Case” by Nelson DeMille)—and another won the Edgar Allan Poe Award as the Best Short Story of the Year (“The Caxton Lending Library and Book Depository” by John Connolly).

Hammett Prize Nominees!

The Second Life of Nick Mason - Steve Hamilton (G.P. Putnam's Sons)
The Drifter - Nicholas Petrie (G.P. Putnam's Sons)
The White Devil - Domenic Stansberry (Molotov Editions)
Revolver - Duane Swierczynski (Mulholland Books)
The Big Nothing - Bob Truluck (Murmur House Press)

The organization will name the HAMMETT PRIZE winner, during the New Atlantic Independent Booksellers Association’s (NAIBA) Fall Conference, in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, October 6-8. The winner will receive a bronze trophy, designed by sculptor Peter Boiger.

Audience Participation!

While we love our new/old digs we miss one small detail….the body outline on the floor of the old shop! So in a fit of nostalgia we made a new one and stuck it up on the back door (we didn’t think the landlord would take kindly to us spray-painting the carpet. And knowing Amber and Fran’s luck they’d probably pass out from the fumes).

Then we thought it looked a bit too plain! And this is where you come in!

FB, Tweet, e-mail or come into the shop and tell us your favorite quote from a mystery you’ve read (and the book) and we will put it up in the body outline!

The book can be in or out of print – but it must be a mystery – and since short people come into the store, try to have ones without too much profanity. I know silly rules!

Let the fun and games begin!

Friday's Pastry Perk:

Shortbread Cookies!

So head on in and grab a book and this week's cookie!

Coming Soon Sunday: Block Busters...

22 of the world's most popular thriller writers in one anthology!

-Lee Coburn & Joe Pickett in Honor & … by Sandra Brown & C.J. Box

-Tony Hill & Roy Grace in Footloose by Val McDermid & Peter James

-Temperance Brennan & Jack Reacher in Faking a Murderer by Kathy Reichs & Lee Child

-Jamie Fraser & Cotton Malone in Past Prologue by Diana Gabaldon & Steve Berry

-Liz Sansborough & Rambo in Rambo on Their Minds by Gayle Lynds & David Morrell

-Jeffrey Tolliver & Joe Pritchard in Short Story by Karin Slaughter & Michael Koryta

-Harper Connelly & Ty Hauck in Dig Here by Charlaine Harris & Andrew Gross

-Regan Pescoli& Lucas Davenport in Deserves to be Dead by Lisa Jackson & John Sandford

-Lucan Thorne & Lilliane in Midnight Flame by Lara Adrian & Christopher Rice

-Bennie Rosato & John Corey in Getaway by Lisa Scottoline & Nelson DeMille

-Ali Reynolds a& Bravo Shaw in Taking the Veil by J.A. Jance & Eric Van Lustbader

Thi Friday's Cookie...

Oatmeal Raisin!

Promise they look weird, but taste great...

Just ask Fran!

Happy Valentines Day!

Don't forget our Gift Certificates come in all sizes!

Or get your sweetie a bouquet of books!

Coming Soon Sunday: Crime

Covering murder, heists and theft, cyber criminals, political crime, con artists, and more, The Crime Book is a complete compendium for crime aficionados to add to their collection.

From Jack the Ripper to Jeffrey Dahmer, The Crime Book is a complete study of international true crime history that unpacks the shocking stories through infographics and in-depth research that lays out every key fact and detail. Examine the science, psychology, and sociology of criminal behavior that drove people to commit terrible acts, and read profiles of villains, victims, and detectives. See each clue and follow the investigation from start to finish. Study police and detective work while breaking down the psychology behind violent criminals and their behavior.

Find out how pirates, the Japanese Yakuza, Chinese triads, and modern drug cartels operate around the world. Dive deep into the Black Dahlia investigation and follow other high-profile murder cases. See how the myths of vampires and witches became sensationalized stories and caused mass hysteria that led to the execution of innocent people.

Learn how media coverage changed through history, from the tragic assassination of President Abraham Lincoln to romanticizing Bonnie and Clyde’s doomed fate to the kidnapping and murder of Charles Lindbergh’s baby, which is considered the first international crime tabloid story.

This Weeks's Cookie Bribe Is...

Coffee And Spice Cookies!

So come on in and grab a book and cookie before they are all gone!

Cookies, not books...

Drum Roll Please...

We are here!

Bright eyed and bushy tailed!

(Well Amber has coffee and she can fake it, until said caffeine kicks in!)

Come on in!

January Mass Market Bestsellers

1.Leigh Hearon - Reining In Murder (Kensington)

Tied For 2.

Ben Aaronovitch - The Hanging Tree (DAW)

Gregg Hurwitz - Orphan X (ST. Martins)

Leigh Hearon - Saddle Up For Murder (Kensington)

Tied For 5.

Garth Nix - Sabriel (Harper)

Mary Daheim - Here Comes The Bribe (Morrow)

Tim Dorsey - Coconut Cowboy (Morrow)

Ben Aaronovitch - Midnight Riot (Del Ray)

Ingrid Thoft - Loyalty (Berkley)

Leslie Budewitz - Assault and Pepper (Berkley)

Chloe Neill - Some Girls Bite (ROC)

Harlan Coben - Fool Me Once (Dutton)

Jenn Mckinlay – A Likely Story (Berkley)

Snow Day!

Monday February 6^th - Closed Due to Snow

Snow Day!

Due to both of the SMB gal's being snowed in today, the shop is close! Fortunatly we aren't the only ones in the region! But unless we get even more snow or all the city plows break down - we should be in on Tuesday to help you find a great book to read or for your kids to read just in case school isn't back to nornmal tomorrow! See you all later! Keep warm and safe in all that wet stuff!

January Trade Paperback Bestsellers

1. Elizabeth Daly - Unexpected Night (F&M)

2. Gigi Pandian – The Elusive Elixir (Midnight Ink) - Signed Copies Available

3. Tracy Weber – A Fatal Twist (Midnight Ink) - Signed Copies Available

Tied For 4.

Daniel O'Malley - The Rook (Backbay)

Gigi Pandian - The Accidental Alchemist (Midnight Ink) - Signed Copies Available

Tied For 6.

Chris Holm - The Killing Kind (Mulh)

Teresa Nordheim - Murder and Mayhem In Seattle (Mdin)

Tied For 8.

Tracy Weber - Murder Strikes A Pose (Midnight Ink) - Signed Copies Available

Erle Stanley Gardner - The Knife Slipped (Hard Case Crime)

Coming Soon Sunday: Agatha Christie...Sort of...

Inspired By Christie's Real Life....

I wouldn t scream if I were you. Unless you want the whole world to learn about your husband and his mistress.

Agatha Christie, in London to visit her literary agent, is boarding a train, preoccupied with the devastating knowledge that her husband is having an affair. She feels a light touch on her back, causing her to lose her balance, then a sense of someone pulling her to safety from the rush of the incoming train. So begins a terrifying sequence of events for her rescuer is no guardian angel, rather he is a blackmailer of the most insidious, manipulative kind.

You, Mrs. Christie, are going to commit a murder. But, before then, you are going to disappear.
Writing about murder is a far cry from committing a crime, and Agatha must use every ounce of her cleverness and resourcefulness to thwart an adversary determined to exploit her expertise and knowledge about the act of murder to kill on his behalf.

In A Talent for Murder, Andrew Wilson ingeniously explores Agatha Christie's odd ten-day disappearance in 1926 and weaves an utterly compelling and convincing story around this still unsolved mystery involving the world's bestselling novelist.

Whodunit? Match wits with Agatha Christie's brilliant detective, Hercule Poirot, and see if you can figure it out!

Famed for his powers of deduction, Hercule Poirot is one of the greatest literary characters ever created. Now, with more than 100 brain-boggling puzzles to solve, fans can find out how well they stack up against Agatha Christie's beloved Belgian detective. So step inside Poirot's mind, unravel the devious and devilish clues, and see if you can crack some of the detective's most challenging cases.

January Hardcover Bestsellers

1. M.A. Lawson - K Street (Blue Rider Press)- Signed Copies Available

2. Ingrid Thoft - Duplicity (Putnam)- Signed Copies Available

3. Rennie Airth – The Death of Kings (Viking)

4. Lawrence Block, ed - In Sunlight or In Shadow (Pegasus)

Tied For 5.  

Sophie Hannah - Closed Casket (Morrow)

Joe Ide - IQ (Mulholland)

Thomas Perry – The Old Man (Mysterious Press)

Douglas Preston – The Lost City Of The Monkey God (Hachette)

Laura Joh Rowland – The Ripper’s Shadow (Crooked Lane)

Kate Kingsbury - Dead And Breakfast (Crooked Lane)

This Week's Cookie Bribe...

Crinkle Spice Cookies!

And don't forget...

Roll The Dice Discount is still going on!

You'll Always Be A Winner Here!

In Honor of Groundhog Day....

Roll The Dice Discount is back!

This Thursday, Friday & Saturday roll the dice and get 1%- 20% off your book!

While we may get six more weeks of winter - you will always win here!