When the first BIBLIOMYSTERIES collection of mystery stories involving books and bookstores arrived on my desk, I was excited, then somewhat disappointed because a number of the stories were concerned with books only tangentially. So I hoped for better things from the sequel, BIBLIOMYSTERIES: VOLUME TWO, a great stodge of a book at over 600 pages, containing 15 stories from some very big names indeed, and edited by the legendary Otto Penzler.

Authors include Peter Lovesey, R.L. Stine, Joyce Carol Oates, Elizabeth George, Ian Rankin and more so the marquee looks alright. And some of the individual stories shine. Let’s take a look at each of the contributors.

Lovesey has a lively little piece about thieves meeting in a bookshop that has a few nicely done bookish details. F. Paul Wilson contributes a thriller about how dangerous heretical books are to own, especially during the Inquisition. Lyndsay Faye provides a charming Victorian-styled exploration of an inherently dangerous grimoire that draws the attention of Sherlock Holmes and John Watson (for those of you who collect all Sherlockian appearances).

Bradford Morrow has a brilliantly written piece on the unwitting bond between father and son and how the world of book thievery flows between them. R.L. Stine provides a TWILIGHT ZONE-inspired story of a successful writer attempting to write a sequel but his mind is blocked. Joyce Carol Oates (of all people) shows the wrong way to attempt to build up an empire of mystery book stores. Thomas Perry shows what an enterprising thief can do when he has only one copy of a book.

Elizabeth George contributes a stunner, written in a charming fantasy style that ends up coming across as a bookish fairy tale. I have never met Ms. George, but for many years she lived on Whidbey Island where I live in the state of Washington (she may have moved since). Her story is set in Langley, Washington, which is basically where I get my mail. And I tell you this because her description of the town, of the people, of the attitudes, is so spot-on, so realistic that it is just absolutely convincing to a reader who has some knowledge whereof she writes. And the story’s a doozy too about a woman who has the gift to actually send people into their favorite books so they can experience first-hand what their favorite literary characters feel. It’s ridiculous on the face but believable because Elizabeth George has that unfailing gift of verisimilitude. You believe because she believes.

We continue with Carolyn Hart’s tale of a valuable book being stolen out of the hands of a poor person who could really use the money. Seems like it came out of EQMM. And then we hit Megan Abbott’s contribution, the first story that doesn’t really depend on the book or bookstore. It’s fine as it is, but not nearly as successful or as exciting as Stephen Hunter’s thrilling World War II espionage tale about book code ciphers which features Alan Turing and a cast of characters whom I would be very happy to read entire novels about.

This is followed by another tale where the book is practically a MacGuffin: Denise Mina’s story concerns a note hidden in a book that is misunderstood by the protagonist and it takes years for her to understand the real message. Again, the story isn’t bad by any means but to me, it misses the theme of this anthology.

James Grady picks up the pace when his now-disgraced spy Condor (yes, that Condor) is assigned to the stacks of the Library of Congress and thank God he is, because he uncovers something serious indeed. Ian Rankin contributes his usually well-written prose concerning a student investigating Robert Louis Stevenson and coming across a mysterious man who claims to own manuscripts of unpublished Stevenson works. Madness, right? Yes, indeed.

Finally, the giant tome culminates with James W. Hall’s tour de force story of a man imprisoned in an old age home who is experiencing “The Haze,” a confusion due to his age. Was he really a mob hitman, or is he just imagining it? Does he really have a girlfriend in the same home who is also a professional killer, or is she just a character in a story? Hall writes about the mental confusion very well and one is really never sure where one stands in the story, but you think about it afterwards.

So okay, over 600 pages of mysteries featuring books and/or bookstores, and I think this VOLUME 2 is worlds better than the first effort, because 13 of the 15 stories really depend on the concept of the book, or the love of books, to make the story work.

Four authors deserve special credit: Bradford Morrow, Elizabeth George, Stephen Hunter and James W. Hall all have contributed top-quality stories worth the price alone, but the kicker is that there are no clunkers in this book. If you were disappointed in the first volume, you’ll love the second. This will make a perfect holiday gift for any book-loving mystery fan. Recommended. —Mark Rose

Get it at Amazon.