In addition to keeping Brooklyn on staff, Layla also hires her to bind books outside of BABA, so Brooklyn tries to keep her opinions to herself.  Layla has recently asked Brooklyn to bind an early copy of Oliver Twist, one Layla plans to pass off as an original first edition, something Brooklyn knows to be inaccurate. She also knows that if she wants to keep binding books in the Bay Area, she needs to keep her mouth shut. 

Someone must not be too pleased with BABA though; on the first night of classes Brooklyn finds Minka passed out with a large gash in her head. A few nights later, Brooklyn’s class hears a shot and Brooklyn finds Layla dead. Brooklyn isn’t surprised that someone hated Layla enough to want her dead, but can’t believe she has found another dead body. 

With hot PI Derek Stone in town to guard illustrator Gunther Schnaubel, Brooklyn finds herself torn between trying to find out what happened to Layla and spending time with Derek, even though she is certain he’s going to break her heart when he returns to London.  

The Lies that Bind focuses more on the technical aspects of bookbinding where the previous two novels focused more on the collecting of books and what makes one edition more valuable than others.  While some readers may prefer the less technical aspects of book collecting, others will find these techniques and glossary of bookbinding terms interesting. 

There are plenty of suspects for Layla’s murder and several different possible motives.  Brooklyn will find several surprises at the end, one involving mystery man Gabriel who always manages to save her at the last minute.  This time around, Brooklyn’s wacky commune family isn’t around as much, offering a more light-hearted view of the events and spots Brooklyn gets into.  A fun, fast-paced mystery for book lovers with a heroine so likable that readers can’t hate her penchant for attracting the most gorgeous men.                                                                          

--Jennifer Monahan Winberry