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A Booklover's Mystery #6
Uncatalogued
A diary someone would kill to keep secret...
It promises to be the find of the century: documents by famed diarist Samuel Pepys rumored to be in the U.S. — which is where publisher Alex Plumtree and his fiancée, Sarah, are headed for his college reunion.
Then bizarre things start happening ... a Royal accident imperils the succession and fiery violence rocks London, mimicking Pepys’s chronicles of seventeenth-century England.
Things get even more curious when the archivist who stumbled on the uncatalogued papers vanishes. Then a centuries-old scandal surfaces that could bring down the modern monarchy.
Soon Alex begins to suspect that the diaries may not have been penned by Pepys after all — but by someone whose shocking actions may have altered the course of history....
It promises to be the find of the century: documents by famed diarist Samuel Pepys rumored to be in the U.S. — which is where publisher Alex Plumtree and his fiancée, Sarah, are headed for his college reunion.
Then bizarre things start happening ... a Royal accident imperils the succession and fiery violence rocks London, mimicking Pepys’s chronicles of seventeenth-century England.
Things get even more curious when the archivist who stumbled on the uncatalogued papers vanishes. Then a centuries-old scandal surfaces that could bring down the modern monarchy.
Soon Alex begins to suspect that the diaries may not have been penned by Pepys after all — but by someone whose shocking actions may have altered the course of history....
320 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 2, 2002
2 people are currently reading
133 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
June 15, 2009
This book might have sat on my shelf for a long time, but at the last minute I picked it up this weekend to take on the boat. I needed a book that I didn't really care what happened to it and for better or worse, this one fell in that category. It is a library discard.
Serendipity helped me make a good choice. This book was a lot of fun and kept my interest. The main characters are deeply involved in the world of books - one of my pet subjects.
Alex Plumtree is a Pepys expert, a book publisher and a Dartmouth graduate. All of these things, plus the fact that his fiancee appears to be a spy play a part in the story in Uncatalogued.
I am impressed that Kaewert could put all these factors and more in a book that did not seem implausible while I was reading it. For long periods of time, I would forget that I was on a boat in the middle of the Potomac River. I was with Alex and Sarah (his fiancee/wife) wherever their adventure took them.
I recommend this book and series to book and mystery lovers. It was a fun read.
Serendipity helped me make a good choice. This book was a lot of fun and kept my interest. The main characters are deeply involved in the world of books - one of my pet subjects.
Alex Plumtree is a Pepys expert, a book publisher and a Dartmouth graduate. All of these things, plus the fact that his fiancee appears to be a spy play a part in the story in Uncatalogued.
I am impressed that Kaewert could put all these factors and more in a book that did not seem implausible while I was reading it. For long periods of time, I would forget that I was on a boat in the middle of the Potomac River. I was with Alex and Sarah (his fiancee/wife) wherever their adventure took them.
I recommend this book and series to book and mystery lovers. It was a fun read.
September 26, 2022
I last visited this series on May 30, and at that time, I wrote that I would get to the installment I’m currently reviewing “deep in the fall.” I’ve underestimated myself a bit. It’s fall, but I wouldn’t argue it’s deep in the fall.
This is the last book in the Booklover’s mystery series, and I’ll miss these two characters so much. I hope in the ensuing years since publication that Alex and Sarah have several kids running around that amazing house and library. I’d like to imagine they had a set of twins in there somewhere, and Alex is as amazing a father as was his dad. I’d like to hope his publishing world is tamer than it was during this six-book series, but trouble and suspense seem to follow Alex. That’s true in this book.
He and Sarah are conversing by phone as the book opens, and she agrees that they should be married within days in New England. That’s around the time of a college reunion for both. So, they agree to honeymoon as part of the reunion.
But scary things are happening back home in London. Queen Elizabeth has been in a horse-riding accident and may not recover. Brits are restive and not eager to have Prince Charles take the throne. Terrorists are burning down the London Stock Exchange, and Prince Andrew wants Alex to publish a book he’s written on the history of the Duke of York.
Someone discovers a heretofore unknown diary excerpt from 17th-century writer Samuel Pepys. The tumultuous time in which he lived is like the stress and restlessness of modern-day London. There are lots of parallels.
Alex gets the nod to determine whether the newly discovered pages are real, and lots of people on both sides of the Atlantic don’t want the real answer. Both Alex and Sarah’s lives hang in the balance at different times in this book. There’s one suspense scene wherein he’s literally hanging on an outcropping of rock on New Hampshire’s famous Mount Washington. If you read this, that scene will imprint itself hard-core on your mind.
I’ve genuinely enjoyed every page of this series. I’ve learned much about the jangling and jostling of the life of independent book publishers, and I’ve enjoyed some suspense-filled mysteries in the process. This series is only six books long, and if you decide not to read it, you’ll miss out. It saddens me to close the final back cover.
This is the last book in the Booklover’s mystery series, and I’ll miss these two characters so much. I hope in the ensuing years since publication that Alex and Sarah have several kids running around that amazing house and library. I’d like to imagine they had a set of twins in there somewhere, and Alex is as amazing a father as was his dad. I’d like to hope his publishing world is tamer than it was during this six-book series, but trouble and suspense seem to follow Alex. That’s true in this book.
He and Sarah are conversing by phone as the book opens, and she agrees that they should be married within days in New England. That’s around the time of a college reunion for both. So, they agree to honeymoon as part of the reunion.
But scary things are happening back home in London. Queen Elizabeth has been in a horse-riding accident and may not recover. Brits are restive and not eager to have Prince Charles take the throne. Terrorists are burning down the London Stock Exchange, and Prince Andrew wants Alex to publish a book he’s written on the history of the Duke of York.
Someone discovers a heretofore unknown diary excerpt from 17th-century writer Samuel Pepys. The tumultuous time in which he lived is like the stress and restlessness of modern-day London. There are lots of parallels.
Alex gets the nod to determine whether the newly discovered pages are real, and lots of people on both sides of the Atlantic don’t want the real answer. Both Alex and Sarah’s lives hang in the balance at different times in this book. There’s one suspense scene wherein he’s literally hanging on an outcropping of rock on New Hampshire’s famous Mount Washington. If you read this, that scene will imprint itself hard-core on your mind.
I’ve genuinely enjoyed every page of this series. I’ve learned much about the jangling and jostling of the life of independent book publishers, and I’ve enjoyed some suspense-filled mysteries in the process. This series is only six books long, and if you decide not to read it, you’ll miss out. It saddens me to close the final back cover.
July 15, 2020
"A DIARY SOMEONE WOULD KILL TO KEEP SECRET ...
"It promises to be the find of the century: documents by famed diarist Samuel Pepys, rumoured to be in the U.S. -- which is where publisher Alex Plumtree and his fiancee, Sarah, are headed for his college reunion. Then bizarre things start happening: ... a Royal accident imperils the succession and fiery violence rocks London, mimicking Pepys's chronicles of seventeenth-century England.
"Things get even more curious when the archivist who stumbled on the uncatalogued papers vanishes. Then a centuries-old scandal surfaces that could bring down the modern monarchy. Soon Alex begins to suspect that the diaries may not have been penned by Pepys after all -- but by someone whose shocking actions may have altered the course of history ..."
~~back cover
Fraught with peril and violence, as usual, but not nearly as much so as the previous 5 books. And a nice HEA, especially now that Alex and Sarah are married. (That's not much of a spoiler, since it happens at the beginning of the book and is somewhat superfluous to the rest of the plot.)
"It promises to be the find of the century: documents by famed diarist Samuel Pepys, rumoured to be in the U.S. -- which is where publisher Alex Plumtree and his fiancee, Sarah, are headed for his college reunion. Then bizarre things start happening: ... a Royal accident imperils the succession and fiery violence rocks London, mimicking Pepys's chronicles of seventeenth-century England.
"Things get even more curious when the archivist who stumbled on the uncatalogued papers vanishes. Then a centuries-old scandal surfaces that could bring down the modern monarchy. Soon Alex begins to suspect that the diaries may not have been penned by Pepys after all -- but by someone whose shocking actions may have altered the course of history ..."
~~back cover
Fraught with peril and violence, as usual, but not nearly as much so as the previous 5 books. And a nice HEA, especially now that Alex and Sarah are married. (That's not much of a spoiler, since it happens at the beginning of the book and is somewhat superfluous to the rest of the plot.)
November 9, 2017
I love all the books in this series by Julie Kaewert! Bought the first four books many years ago, in a local bookstore, and searched out the rest of the series. Then I bought several of them a second time, after they were lost in a fire. The narrator reminds me of the best Dick Francis heroes ... he is polite, unassuming, honest, and stronger than he knows, with a great sense of humor. Alex has inherited a small publishing business in London, and he finds that the book business is more dangerous than he ever suspected. If you love books, and enjoy a good old-fashioned hero, this book is for you. I just wish there were more books in the series!
(This is a copy of my review posted on Amazon.com on March 9, 2017. I'm going to copy it into all the books of this series -- they are that good!)
(This is a copy of my review posted on Amazon.com on March 9, 2017. I'm going to copy it into all the books of this series -- they are that good!)
June 20, 2021
The discovery of lost manuscripts by Samuel Pepys should be a cause for celebration for Alex Plumtree, but instead it starts a chain of events including everything from a personal financial scandal to the threat of a national revolution. And then there’s a murder...
Alex Plumtree, exquisitely well connected and a graduate of an Ivy League college on one continent and a Cambridge college on the other, is an annoyingly boisterous hero, but the thing which makes this book laughably unprophetic is the idea that Prince Andrew would be writing a scholarly book which any publisher would jump at to save the monarchy’s reputation. I’d probably read more of his ‘biblioadventures’ though.
Alex Plumtree, exquisitely well connected and a graduate of an Ivy League college on one continent and a Cambridge college on the other, is an annoyingly boisterous hero, but the thing which makes this book laughably unprophetic is the idea that Prince Andrew would be writing a scholarly book which any publisher would jump at to save the monarchy’s reputation. I’d probably read more of his ‘biblioadventures’ though.
October 25, 2024
Found this at a second hand store in Toronto and, a few days later, I was glad to have a print book for our 4 hour plane delay!!! Besides, the series is “A Booklover’s Mystery” so who could resist??!? Now on a quest for other titles in the series.
December 29, 2022
Pretty ridiculous, but I needed a fast read to reach my annual goal 😂
April 2, 2025
I enjoyed this 6th book in the booklover's mystery series. I like Alex Plumtree as a character but think at times his decisions aren't the best. He should think a little more before jumping in!
May 13, 2009
Having read a previous book by this author that I liked, I was not disappointed by this one. In fact, I enjoyed it even more. However, I can't really say what I liked without making it a plot-spoiler. Here's the description from the back of the book:
"It promises to be the find of the century: documents by famed diarist Samuel Pepys rumoured to be in the U.S. -- which is where publisher Alex Plumtree and fiance Sarah, are headed for his college reunion. Then bizarre things started happening ... a Royal accident imperils the succession and fiery violence rocks London, mimicking Pepys' chronicles of seventeenth-century England.
"Things get even more curious when the archivist who stumbled on the uncatalogued papers vanishes. Then a centuries-old scandal surfaces that could bring down the modern monarchy. Soon Alex begins to suspect that the diaries may not have been penned by Pepys after all -- but by someone whose actions may have altered the course of history ..."
"It promises to be the find of the century: documents by famed diarist Samuel Pepys rumoured to be in the U.S. -- which is where publisher Alex Plumtree and fiance Sarah, are headed for his college reunion. Then bizarre things started happening ... a Royal accident imperils the succession and fiery violence rocks London, mimicking Pepys' chronicles of seventeenth-century England.
"Things get even more curious when the archivist who stumbled on the uncatalogued papers vanishes. Then a centuries-old scandal surfaces that could bring down the modern monarchy. Soon Alex begins to suspect that the diaries may not have been penned by Pepys after all -- but by someone whose actions may have altered the course of history ..."
November 18, 2013
I've enjoyed the other books in the series, although they are a little formulaic. It was nice to have Alex's wife, Sarah, front and center in this one. I was beginning to think she would never really appear in the books. This one differed from the others in that it is set primarily in the United States rather than London. Using Samuel Pepys's diary as the central theme was good. I have read it but I learned more abut it in this book. Some of the characters were less well-drawn than I would have liked. The conclusion was a little too pat. I don't know if there are plans for more in the series, but I'd be glad to stop with this one.
November 22, 2012
This sixth book in the Booklover's Mystery series certainly shows improvement over the first one. There is more about books and publishing. The plotting is crisper and more focussed. The protagonist is finally married, although there is still far too much about his infatuation. Overall, while I enjoyed this volume more than the first in the series, I don't really feel a need to track down the intervening titles.
November 29, 2010
Its nice and racy. however it jumps, the silent looks between the protagonists, leaves you wondering what exactly happened! so there is a lot of underlying stuff that i could not figure out, but all in all a good read and now i know what can happen when things as valuable as uncatalogued stuff surfaces! As a keeper of books, i better be careful!:-)
January 2, 2014
Very enjoyable. A little slow initially, but it got going fast after that. Plenty of unexpected twists to keep me puzzled. Oddly I found one small section with several typos... perhaps added later. Otherwise well edited as far as I could tell on a quick read. Good distraction from an upset stomach.
November 18, 2010
Not as good as the previous book in the series, but still a good read. The protagonist gets into an unreasonable number of near death situations in each book, imho. But the lore is fascinating for anyone who enjoys all things biblio.
April 26, 2014
This was the best one in the series so far in my opinion. Poor Alex Plumtree...the author beats him to a pulp in every one of her books. Too much violence...let's calm down...surely all these attacks are not necessary to the story.
March 28, 2010
This whole series was fabulous. Some of the best "bibliomysteries" that I have read.
November 10, 2010
I have enjoyed all of they Alex Plumtree series.
December 6, 2013
Absorbing, enlightening and suspenseful: a 21st-century novel built around 17th-century chronicler Samuel Pepys.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews