Review: The Widow's Son by Thomas Shawver

Published July 7, 2015 by Alibi

The Widow's Son is the 3rd book in the Rare Book Mystery Series featuring rare book dealer Michael Bevan. This time around he is making a bid to join a prestigious organization of antiquarian book dealers and delving into a mystery regarding an offshoot Mormon group that seems to be intent on murdering the last member of a family they crossed paths with generations before. 

There were some good plot surprises, but I was disappointed that the crime Michael was going to investigate didn't occur until almost 40% into the book. The set up before that was interesting, but not in the way I expected. I expected less set up and more sleuthing. 

I love books and books about books. So, I really was excited to read this one. I just didn't enjoy it as much as I anticipated. The writing is good. The characters are interesting. And once the action begins, it really gets interesting. It's just that there was such a wait before that. 

I ended up giving this book 3 stars. It was good, but not great. I loved the sense of humor and the narrator, but I disliked the long wait until the action started. I would still give this book a read if you enjoy books about books. You might like it much more than I did. And I would still give other books in this series a chance as well.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.