The armed and dangerous booksellers are back, this time in Bath- Here is my review of The Sinister Booksellers of Bath by Garth Nix.

When Merlin vanishes, Susan will battle animated statues of heraldic beasts and use magical maps to rescue him on a hunt that leads to a serial killer who must be stopped before she kills again.
There is often trouble of a mythical sort in Bath. The booksellers who police the Old World keep a careful watch there, particularly on the entity who inhabits the ancient hot spring. Yet this time it is not from Sulis Minerva that trouble starts. It comes from the discovery of a sorcerous map, leading left-handed bookseller Merlin into great danger. A desperate rescue is attempted by his sister the right-handed bookseller Vivien and their friend, art student Susan Arkshaw, who is still struggling to deal with her own recently discovered magical heritage.
The map takes the trio to a place separated from this world, maintained by deadly sorcery performed by an ancient sovereign and guarded by monstrous living statues of Portland Stone. But this is only the beginning, as the booksellers investigate centuries of disappearances and deaths and try to unravel the secrets of the murderous Lady of Stone, a serial killer of awesome powers.
If they do not stop her, she will soon kill again. And this time, her target is not an ordinary mortal.
Review
The armed and dangerous booksellers are back, this time in Bath- Here is my review of The Sinister Booksellers of Bath by Garth Nix, book two of The Left Handed Booksellers of London, a historical urban fantasy.
Read more: The Sinister Booksellers by Garth Nix- Book ReviewI received a copy of the book for a free and unbiased opinion.
Mderlin,Susan and Vivien are back but in Bath this which is the perfect location given the abundance of roman mythology and statues. Susan is struggling to come to terms with her magical heritage courtesy of her very old and absent father but still trying her best to live a normal life. She drops everything in an instant to help left-handed Bookseller Merlin when he disappears, but the danger doesn’t stop when they rescue him. Susan continues her reluctant journey and it feels realistic when she grows to like her new power a little too much for her comfort.
Merlin continues to be as quirky as ever, a gender- fluid powerhouse who can cos play Jane’s Austen characters when needed.
The authors brings the 80’s to life in all it’s vibrant technicolour glory.
I love the numerous secondary characters that fill the book from grumpy policepeople, old booksellers who love cake to annoyed ancient gods but we never get to spend much time on these fascinating people.
The pace is fast-paced with plenty of action and magic- sometimes almost too frantic and it would have been nice to have a few more slower scenes. The scene with the cake for example was a welcome breather and one of my favourites- I would love to try the double booze cake!
Unfortunately, you do need to read the Left-Handed Booksellers of London first to be able to enjoy this book.