The main protagonist isn't young, tough, or wisecracking. He's a mild mannered librarian with a melancholy background, entangled in a tense custody truce over his grandson with one of the boy's other grandparents. I loved that he wasn't a superhero. The characters are well written, with well plotted motivations and, in some cases, agendas. There's a lot going on: an estranged daughter from a fragile/neglect background whom he meets in the course of his job as a library curator, murder, a "lost weekend" type subplot involving a secondary character (McNulty the bartender) from the other books, a lesser known author whose papers have been donated to the library, and more. Despite so many subplots, the author handled the complex storyline well, and I never felt lost or confused. The murders are bloodless and off-scene. The denouement is tense and action filled and mostly satisfying.
One of the main characters in this book (McNulty) is also the protagonist in his own series of 3 books, making this book a tie-in/crossover. Though I haven't read the tie-in books, this book works well as a standalone. I had read the previous book in this (42nd St. Library) series, but it had been a while; so I effectively read it by itself.
The language in this book is rough (R rated), there's is potentially triggering discussion of sexual background and abuse/abandonment.
Four stars, entertaining, well written, and satisfying.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
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