Taken on its own, this book is an enjoyable page-turner. But as a follow-up to Parnassus on Wheels, it suffers by comparison. In his earlier book, Morley had created two unforgettable characters to flesh out the joy and wisdom of simple book lovers. In this sequel, Helen and Roger take supporting roles (except for Roger’s overly-long soliloquies, not as pithy as those in Parnassus). The foreground story is a secret agent crime thriller crossed with a tale of young love. Suitable for a rainy afternoon, and it made me nostalgic for the simple old used bookshops I used to haunt. ( )

I started out really liking this! The first couple of chapters were right up my alley. But as it went on, it alternated between long bouts of philosophizing and a plot that advanced glacially slowly on the theme of Germans-are-the-bad-guys, they look normal to begin with but beware the unguarded moments when an expression of utter villainy of the deepest dye will distort their visage, they will beat you up and plant an ill-defined and not very believable bomb in your bookshop... and I just didn't care.

However, in those first few chapters there were some cute moments. One is when a dinner guest notices a sign in Roger Mifflin's kitchen that says, "ALWAYS WASH DISHES
IMMEDIATELY AFTER MEALS
IT SAVES TROUBLE."
He explains that his wife always puts that up when she's going to be absent. I feel like it's probably a sign I should hang in my kitchen too.
And then there is the description of a minor character as "a quiet little man who had a habit of listening to what he heard." I think that's an awesome description.
So, promising in the beginning, but unfortunately it didn't really deliver. I recommend reading the book that comes before this, Parnassus on Wheels, for more satisfaction! ( )

This book is just lovely!
Aubrey Gilbert, an advertising copyright stumbles across the Haurnted Bookshop 'by accident' & decides to have a go at selling his services. When he learns that the daughter of his advertising firm is going to be working there he keeps going back & through a bit of detective work ends up uncovering a sinister plot involving a disappearing/reappearing book, a pharmacist & shady characters seen skulking around the bookshop in the dark of night..
I loved this book! I found the language a bit of a challenge at first (it was published in 1919!) When I got used to that though it was a very charming story about bookseller Roger Mifflin & Aubrey Gilbert's adventures in the shop. It's one of those stories that I loved so much I don't really know what to talk about first (although the fact that I was up at 4:30 this morning to attend a dawn memorial service could also have something to do with it!!) What I will say though is that I loved it & I'm definitely re-reading it :O)

3.75 stars.

This is the sequel to Parnassus On Wheels, but it felt nothing like a sequel.

The Haunted Bookshop (haunted by books and authors) was a strange tale about a bookseller and his wife doing a favor for a wealthy businessman man by hiring his daughter to teach her something about life and having a job. Then enter Aubrey, a representative from an advertising agency who wanted to represent The Haunted Bookshop. He is turned away but is so enchanted by the shop that he returns. Aubrey is instantly infatuated with the lovely Miss Tatania. After he is attacked on his way back from the bookshop, he thinks the neighborhood is much too dangerous for an unsoiled dove like Tatania. He then names himself her watcher/protector. In the end, he (stupidly) uncovers an insane plot and inadvertently foils it.

Aubrey was a most annoying character with his insane ideas and self-importance. A lot of the craziness could have been avoided if he had just gone to the police with his suspicions, which could have been proven by his attack. His ridiculousness kind of took me out of the rest of the narrative, which is why this got a much lower rating than Parnassus. Otherwise, it was a good mystery. And I always love hearing my home town (Philly) mentioned in books. ( )

I never would have read it if I hadn't have stumbled on it on Project Gutenberg, I liked it so much I've re-read it a few times and read everything by him that I could get my hands on. ( )