Bodies in the bookshop.

A Celebration of Crime (Fiction!) at Bodies in the Bookshop

This Saturday, one of my favourite bookshops is celebrating its first birthday. 

It is, of course, Bodies in the Bookshop — Cambridge’s very own crime fiction specialist. It’s tucked away on Botolph Lane, and just a stone’s throw from Fitzbillies. And this beautifully curated bookshop has quickly become a favourite haunt for readers who love all things mysterious, murderous, and marvellously plotted.

If you haven’t yet discovered Bodies in the Bookshop, you’re in for a treat. The shop is dedicated entirely to crime fiction, with a carefully selected mix of new releases, second-hand classics, Golden Age treasures, and contemporary must-reads. Upstairs, you’ll find shelves packed two-deep with vintage crime novels — the kind that make you lose track of time. Downstairs, there’s an excellent selection of new titles, many of them by local authors (and I’m proud to say I’m among them).

To mark their first year, the team is holding a full day of celebration on Saturday 6 July, with visiting authors, cake, conversation, and a brilliant raffle. I’ll be there from noon, signing books and there will be plenty of other authors dropping in throughout the day — do come and say hello!

They are holding a BIRTHDAY RAFFLE and every customer gets an entry!

1st Prize:** Name a character in my next Cambridge mystery 

2nd Prize:** A year's paperback crime fiction subscription 

3rd Prize:** Design a ghost for Cambridge Ghost Company (and own the first one!)

As you can see, I’ve donated a rather unusual prize: the chance to name a character in my next novel. If you’re the winner, you will choose a name (Your own? A friend’s? Or something completely made up…) and I’ll weave it into an upcoming book. Will your namesake be a perpetrator, or a witness, and is there something they’re trying to hide? You’ll have to wait and see...

Saturday’s event is the perfect opportunity to celebrate a wonderful bookshop, and to say thank you to the readers who keep independent bookshops — and crime fiction — thriving.

I hope to see some of you there!