Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore (Sullivan) - Book Reviews

Book Reviews
If you can pass up a mystery with a bookstore in the title, you have great willpower. Personally, I couldn't resist Matthew Sullivan's Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore, an appealing first novel…The oddball characters and layered plot make this puzzle mystery both charming and challenging.
Marilyn Stasio - New York Times Book Reviews


Shocking, charming and thrilling.… With compelling characters and rich descriptions, Sullivan’s writing is spot-on. Sullivan nails it, delivering a captivating conflict plus masterfully executed prose.
Associated Press


A strong debut.… [P]owerful, intricate tale of broken friendship and family loyalties.
Seattle Times


(Starred review.) Quirky characters and a keen sense of place distinguish this multigenerational tale of abandonment, desperation, and betrayal. Sullivan’s writing occasionally calls too much attention to itself and a surfeit of coincidence strains credulity, but this inventive and intricately plotted mystery still largely satisfies.
Publishers Weekly


Though darker than other beloved novels set in bookstores, this story will appeal to fans of Gabrielle Zevin’s The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry and Katarina Bivald’s The Readers of Broken Wheel. Recommended. Mystery readers will also appreciate the clever connections between the characters and the crimes.
Library Journal


This quirky debut novel will have particular appeal for puzzle solvers and booklovers.
Booklist


This quirky debut novel will have particular appeal for puzzle solvers and booklovers.
BookPage


[A] nicely paced tale about a horrifying incident with a woman at its core who must put aside her ordered life to find out what really happened all those years ago, where the truth, in the end, may be stranger than fiction. An intriguingly dark, twisty story and eccentric characters make this book a standout.
Kirkus Reviews