The Cat of the Baskervilles

January 1, 2018
In Delany’s delightful third Sherlock Holmes Bookshop mystery (after 2017’s Body on Baker Street), British transplant Gemma Doyle, the proprietor of a bookstore specializing in Sherlockiana in West London, Mass., looks forward to doing extra business during a local theater festival’s production of The Hound of the Baskervilles starring aging actor Sir Nigel Bellingham. When Nigel pays a call at her store, his shaking hands, red nose, and whiskey-scented breath suggest to her that he has an alcohol problem. Gemma later discovers Nigel’s body after he takes a fatal fall off a seaside cliff during afternoon tea at the posh estate of the play’s producer and director. West London police officer Ryan Ashburton, Gemma’s former beau, investigates, with help from her nemesis, Det. Louise Estrada. The suspect list is long, but Gemma knows there’s only one killer cat among the pigeons. Cozy fans fond of Sherlock Holmes will have fun. Agent: Kim Lionetti, BookEnds Literary Agency.