Why I read the book: I kept seeing it pop up on recommended lists and the whole rare book aspect sounded interesting.

What the book was about: Alexander Short is a reference librarian who is compulsive about taking notes on things. He’s married to Nic, a free-wheeling French woman who doesn’t understand him. Short is contacted by Henry James Jesson III, a collector who wants his help with an investigation. Jesson has a curio box with an empty space. He wants Short to help him find out what was in the space and help him recover it.

Short investigates and discovers it was a rare pocket watch that resided for a time in a Jerusalem museum but was stolen from there and now its whereabouts are unknown. But then Short finds evidence that Jesson already knew all about the watch. He hired Short and took notes on him (Short) for a book he’s writing. Short gets ticked off and with the help of Nic and a millionaire collector named Stolz gets his revenge on Jesson by leading him on a wild goose chase for the watch. In the end, the watch is still missing, Nic and Short are happy together again, and Short and Jesson decide they have enough in common to be friends.

What I liked about the book: It had potential. The whole searching for a lost artifact in antique books was interesting, as was Short’s note-taking on everything and his relationship/fights with Nic.

What I didn’t like about the book: Bottom-line, it didn’t make sense. There’s just no way it could happen. And the writing was often obscure.

Recommendation: I wanted to, but I can’t.