With many chapters set in a library where a very important book has gone missing, this mystery is perfect for people who truly care about books and looking after and preserving them. I thought it was really good to have an older woman as the protagonist of the novel too, because as a YA lover, most books I read have young people as the main character- it was different for me! Though the book is aimed at adults, it's fine for YA readers to give this a go too, and I think it will appeal to anyone who is passionate about books and feels they should be respected. However, there are some very serious themes, including a suicide, so please be aware of this when deciding whether to read.

I would say if you are going to read this, get a physical copy as I think reading a digital version can take away from the fact this book is all about books! It's the sort you definitely want to hold, I think. Happy publication day!

I adored this book! A book about books is always attractive, but this has an element of mystery as well. Rare books go missing, and so does a librarian who works there. Liesl Weiss, acting director, tries to solve the mysteries. The author has drawn some great characters and put them in an awkward situation where they all begin to suspect one another.

When the director of the rare books department of a large university has a stroke, Liesl Weiss is asked to step in to run things until he can return. The first thing on the agenda is showng the library donors a rare Plantin Bible that was just purchased. Once she finally is able to discover what the new code is to the safe, she gets the safe open, only to find it empty. Liesl tries to sound the alarm and inform the police about the missing priceless book, but is told repeatedly to keep quiet, to keep the doors open and the donors happy. But then a librarian unexpectedly stops showing up to work. Liesl must investigate both disappearances, It becomes clear that someone in the department must be responsible for the theft. What Liesl discovers about the dusty manuscripts she has worked among for so long—and about the people who care for and revere them—shakes the very foundation on which she has built her life.
I wanted to like this book. I really tried. I love books about books, and so I thought this would be the perfect book for me, but unfortunately I could never get into it. I found all of the characters unlikeable, and the story dull. I almost gave up several times, but I forced myself to keep plugging along. It had a good mystery to it. That, I can say, was it's best feature. I can't in all honesty recommend it.

Thank you so much to the publishers for my advanced copy in exchange for my honest review. Typically a book about books makes this reader very happy and this book was no exception. This book was a very cozy mystery novel that was gloriously written. This book is done in muli-povs and dual timelines but we mostly hear from Liesl who is a librarian that is trying to solve the mystery!

Super fun read!

It’s publication day for The Department of Rare Books and Special Collections by Eva Jurczyk! Liesl Weiss has been (mostly) happy working in the rare books department of a large university, managing details and working behind the scenes to make the head of the department look good. But when her boss has a stroke and she's left to run things, she discovers that the library's most prized manuscript is missing.

Thanks to @netgalley and @poisonedpenpress for the ARC of this literary mystery set in a library, featuring a career librarian! I’ll pick up anything about a library or librarian so this was a delight. For me, it was a bit harder to get into but once I was in, I was hooked. Reviews are saying this is perfect for fans of Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore and Fredrik Bachman’s Anxious People and I think that’s a an excellent comparison. I also thought a little bit about the Netflix show, The Chair.

The book’s description had every component that I am interested in: a library, librarian, mystery, missing manuscript. Except I found the plot to be dull and the narrative wasn’t keeping my interest. I was disappointed, but this book wasn’t for me.

Upward-leaning 3.5 stars for this slow-burn mystery full of deep emotions and many condescending men. This one is all about introspection and expectations, a full-on intellectual mystery.
Liesl Weiss is the woman doing all the hard, detailed work behind the man with the big title in the rare books library of a large university. She's grown used to being all but invisible when she's forced to come back early from a sabbatical because the boss has a stroke and she needs to fill in for him. This is when all the secrets hiding in the stacks among the priceless books threaten to come to light, and it's not just the disappearance of the university's newest, most expensive book that she'll have to contend with.
It's definitely an interesting mystery and Jurczuk makes you work to figure it all out with red herrings all over the place that add depth to the story and characters just as effectively as they make you doubt who the culprit is.

Many happy thanks to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the early read!

A testament to the love and respect towards libraries and librarians who are advocates in preserving information. A backdrop of a romanticized cozy library atmosphere with a twist unafraid to reveal the darker side of this institution. Liesl Weiss, a librarian lives a quiet life working behind the scenes in the rare books department at a university library. Her life is disrupted when her boss Christopher experiences a stroke and is on medical leave and temporarily takes Christopher's position until his pending return. While running the department, misfortunes occur, one of the most prized manuscripts, the Plantin Polyglot Bible goes missing. Not too long after, Miriam, one of the librarians, stops showing up to work. Liesl tries to sound the alarm, but is told to keep quiet in order to keep the major donors happy. With rousing suspicion, she investigates both mysterious disappearances that lead to a surprising result.

Eva Jurczyk adeptly explores Liesl's characterization. Straying from a traditional protagonist, she chose to create a female protagonist who was much older. Jurczyk draws a rich and complex portrait of Liesl's ongoing search for her sense of self professionally and personally. Following Liesl's journey in her growth was empowering. The author's thorough research in addition to her personal experience provides us great insight into the academia world, complex relations in funding, donors and the day to day work in a particular library. This book is definitely not a light cozy read. A thought-provoking examination on mental illness, the negative societal perception in women's aging, and sexual politics in the workforce are addressed. With perfect balance, Jurczyk also gifted us with an atmosphere of simplistic beauty such as the cozy winter imagery during Liesl's walk and their frequent dining of the enticing steaming spicy noodles that provided much warmth and a sensory footprint long after. An intriguing mystery premise, complex characterizations with a cozy bookish atmosphere that was both entertaining and thoughtful.

Thank you to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

When a valuable manuscript and a librarian both go missing, the acting head of Special Collections is left with a department in pieces. As she attempts to puzzle together what happened, she must manage unsolicited advice and condescension from male colleagues, donors and the university president. Still, she forges partnerships with an impressive female professor and a detective, and she has a couple of other tricks up her sleeve. The Department of Rare Books and Special Collections will please library and book lovers with its setting, and fans of The Thursday Murder Club may appreciate another mystery featuring an empathetic protagonist of retirement age.

Thank you to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen for the digital ARC in return for my honest review.
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Unfortunately, this book wasn’t for me. I tried. I started, put it down, continue, put it down and just nothing was clicking for me. I had high hopes because of the description, but a quarter of the way through I lost interest. The MC was not interesting. She was boring and just felt like she was more of a secondary character.

Too bad really.

I received a complimentary ARC copy of The Department of Rare Books and Special Collections by Eva Jurczyk from Net Galley and Poisoned Pen Press in order to read and give an honest review.

...I particularly love the authentic protagonist, Leisl, whom I found to be an incredibly relatable character...

When I noticed this book on Net Galley I was thrilled, a biblio-mystery set in Toronto, what could be better? Librarian Leisl Weiss, close to retirement, has been forced to step-in as interim director of the rare books department at a Toronto university when the director, and her immediate boss suffers a stroke. One of her first items on her agenda as acting director is to prep an exhibit highlighting the incredibly rare Plantin Bible set. When she begins to tackle her duties, she cannot seem to find the rare bible volumes and begins searching everywhere, attempting to determine where her boss could have put them for safe keeping. With the department on alert, they search everywhere only to realize that the volumes are nowhere to be found in the library and must have been stolen. The image conscious president of the university is relentlessly pushing Leisl to get results to appease the many donors of the library. On the one hand he emphasizes the need for the donor's confidence, and on the other, the need for discretion, forbidding her to involve the police. The staff begins to turn on each other and tensions mount as fingers are pointed and innuendos made. When a professor is working on a research project another book is found to be a fake adding to Leisl's already hectic life.  Leisl, worn down and tired, makes a decision when a co-worker and friend disappears, Leisl is forced to think the unthinkable and contact the police and the investigation takes them in an odd direction.

The author is brilliant at helping the reader is gain insight into Leisl's thoughts, in particular, about aging and feeling invisible, we see the evolution of her relationships as well as emphasis on the plight of those whose loved ones are suffering from mental illness.

I have to say debut author Eva Jurczyk doesn’t disappoint, The Department of Rare Books and Special Collections is a well-written, authentic feeling story filled with multi-faceted characters as well as an intelligent and intriguing plot. I really enjoyed the plot, the twists, the turns which surprised me at the ending. I particularly love the authentic protagonist, Leisl, whom I found to be an incredibly relatable character. I loved this book and would highly recommend it!

I love mysteries set in libraries, as well as stories about women who finally come into their own. TDORBASC has all that and more! What would you do as a diffident older librarian who, upon an unwanted promotion, learns that the rarest manuscript in the collection has gone missing? A fine read for bibliophiles of all stripes and anyone who loves grand stories.

Pub Date 25 Jan 2022

Thanks to the author, Poisoned Pen Press, and NetGalley for the ARC; opinions are mine.

Leisl has been working in the rare books department of a large university for decades. Just as she's about to retire, her boss has a stroke, and she is named as his replacement until he recovers and returns to work. One of her first official duties is to present their most recent acquisition to a gathering of library donors, but the book has gone missing. When a long-time librarian stops showing up for work, Leisl must investigate both disappearances, learning a lot about her co-workers in the process.

This is a stand alone book that is the author's first novel, and it was a good. I learned a lot about dealing with rare books, as well as the politics involved in working for a large university. I enjoyed getting to know the characters and their backstories as the book progressed, and kept a running list of potential thieves as I read. I suspected the actual thief far earlier than those investigating the theft, which rarely happens.

The way the story jumped back and forth in time was really confusing, especially since the gaps between time jumps were inconsistent – fourteen years earlier, ten years earlier, nineteen years earlier, forty years earlier, nine years earlier, twenty-one years earlier… all with current day events popping up now and then. When the whole thing was done, I can see why it was presented in this manner, but it made the storyline difficult to follow. Despite this, I will look for more books by this author in the future.

Liesl the university librarian is a character with many subtleties. For years she was content to work behind the scenes, helping the director to shine. But when the director has a stroke and Liesl assumes his role, she discovers that priceless library holdings have disappeared. She is forbidden, by the university president, from calling the police. Instead, Liesl solves the crime herself and then uses that information to leverage much needed changes at the library.

Liesl has been working at the university library for decades. Her boss suffers a stroke and she takes on the responsibility of running the library.

There are many hurdles for her to get over….the university president, the people who work in the library that are not sure that she is capable of the job and her own insecurities.

Then, very rare books are found to be missing and Liesl wants to go to the police but is told no as it will scare away the big donors to the university. A library employee is now missing and this is when Liesl does contact the police.

This book will take you thru the mysterious disappearance of the books and the employee. It is will keep you guessing until the end. Very good debut novel.

I received an early digital copy.

So first of all I have to say that I fell in love with our main character Leisl and this cast of librarians fairly quick. To have that kind of knowledge for rear and special books is so fascinating to me. The amount of research that must go into all of that is incredible to me. Overall this was a bit underwhelming. I was really excited about this book because I love anything dealing with librarian and libraries. This really needed more character development all the way around for there to be any kind of empathy or compassion for these characters. As the story unfolds we get some random and vague flashbacks to some of the other librarians, which was helpful, but I just needed more. But I did thoroughly enjoy all the behind the scenes of the book acquisitions and the mystery surrounding the missing books.

I’ll be honest, this was not a favorite. I wanted to like it but the characters were just so unlikeable to me. I felt like most of them were horrible people and the few who weren’t were treated horribly instead.

The beginning was also a drag. There were a lot of little side stories that really felt wholly unnecessary to the overall plot.

The book did start to pick up toward the end and I liked the ending, but I think part of that was the relief that the book was finally done.

The Department of Rare Books and Special Collections by Eva Jurczyk is a mystery novel.

First, let me thank NetGalley, the publisher Poisoned Pen Press and of course the author, for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.


My Synopsis:   (No major reveals, but if concerned, skip to My Opinions)
Liesl Weiss was on sabbatical from the university library to write her own book, but was called in to handle Christopher's job while he recovers from a stroke.  No one is really happy with the choice of Liesl being his replacement. Even Liesl isn't sure.  She has always worked behind the scenes to ensure Christopher looked good, but taking the reins is not very comfortable.

Everyone wants to see Christopher's new acquisition...a rare multi-volume Plantin Polyglot Bible, which was printed between 1568 and 1572.  However, the newly acquired manuscript is stuck in the safe.  Christopher, the keeper of the combination, had his stroke before telling anyone of the new combination.  When the safe is eventually opened, it is empty.  The manuscript is missing.

Liesl wants to involve the police, sure it has been stolen.  No one wants her to do this, especially the president of the university who is in the middle of a major fund-raising campaign.  It won't look good if they can't hold onto their inventory.

When an employee of the library goes missing, Liesl has her hands full.  Between trying to find the missing manuscript, the missing employee, the nit-picking of the other employees, and another department wanting to carbon-date another valuable manuscript, she is at a loss as to what to do next.


My Opinions:   
I was so excited to read the debut novel of a fellow Canadian.

First, I'm not a big fan of the cover....and the title is a little long.  Yes, I am nit-picking.

Then, I could not relate to the main character (although kudos to the author for picking one who is close to retirement age), and I didn't like any of the other characters either.  I wanted to quit 10% in.  I kept setting it down so that I could pet the dogs, or check my email, or clean.....this continued until about the 55% mark, at which point I began to be at least a little interested in the conclusion.  This is too long to be bored and disinterested in a book.

The book frequently touched on mental illness, anxiety, and women trying to assert themselves in a male dominated world (it didn't happen).  It was about secrets and lies, and judgemental people.  It is about drinking to excess, and affairs.  It also looked at being so self-centered that you don't notice the world around you.  I still didn't like the characters, and I struggled to even feel sorry for them.  It was a rather depressing read.

The premise was great, and the mystery was good.  The book went back and forth in time lines, and that was done well.  To most mystery readers, the identity of the perpetrator will be a no-brainer early on, but there were enough suspects to keep some guessing.  If only I had cared...

So yes, I was disappointed.  However, the writing was okay, and the explanations given for the uneducated in rare books (me), was well done.  I will watch this author.


For a more complete review of this book and others (including the reason I chose to read/review this book, author information and contact details, as well as a favorite quotation from the book), please visit my blog: http://katlovesbooksblog.wordpress.com/

Fun mystery set in a library that book lovers will enjoy. Fascinating look at rare book collections.

The Department of Rare Books and Special Collections comes alive when describing precious manuscripts and the donors that make their appearance on university library shelves possible. The characters, on the other hand, don't shine nearly as brightly.

Liesl Weiss has spent so many years working in the shadows behind unreliable men that she tends to be gray and lackluster-- except when she fights to protect a fellow librarian's reputation. Each time she tries to do the right thing, especially when it involves having the police brought in to find the thief and the missing book, she's slapped down. The university president would rather whitewash everything that might make the donors unhappy.

It doesn't take much to deduce who is responsible for the missing book. No, what I am taking away from Jurczyk's book is her decidedly jaundiced view of donors. Of how much time must be spent in massaging their fragile egos. Of how a university's infrastructure can be geared toward reaping donor money than it is to keep the buildings themselves standing. Of how, when one university went so far past its goals it had to tear down a perfectly good building and build a new one rather than spend the extra money on badly needed maintenance and other programs because, well, everyone knows how donors love to see their names plastered all over buildings. As you can see, my own view of rich donors tends to be a bit jaundiced, too.

As a mystery, The Department of Rare Books and Special Collections is relatively easy to solve. As a character study, it's done in varying shades of gray. But come to life it does when describing wonderful old books and what must be done in order to have them on a university's shelves. I'm glad I spent some time with Liesl Weiss. She and I see eye-to-eye on many things.