Untitled: A Booklover's Mystery

The discovery of an extremely rare, 15th-century book leads to murder and international intrigue in Kaewert's (Unprintable) latest contemporary mystery featuring publisher and rare-book collector Alex Plumtree. The medieval book, which details the lives of the knights who protected King Richard the Lion-Heart and which was believed to have been destroyed by Edward IV, is immediatetly stolen after Alex finds it hidden in his family library. Meanwhile, the Foxburghe Club in Cornwall, an exclusive society of book collectors whose membership primarily consists of nobility, surprises Alex by inviting him to join. Curious, he agrees, but the honor quickly fades; Alex's initiation weekend at a medieval castle in Cornwall turns sour with the death of a club member, compounded by his mounting suspicion that one of the elite book collectors stole the ancient tome. Alex is determined to ferret out the thief (and in the process discovers that the book has a deadly secret). No one, including the prime minister and the archbishop of Canterbury, is above suspicion. Alex is an engaging and often comic hero, and he is supported by wonderful secondary characters. The plot is complicated and occasionally confusing, but in the end, the charming characters and the suspenseful race to find the book hold readers' attention. (Nov.)