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Dido Hoare #1
Death's Autograph
Murder's Bold Inscription
"Whoever had broken into the shop might just have gone upstairs afterwards, might just be there still...My first reaction was anger: I wanted to roar up the stairs, only I could hear Barnabas saying, the way he used to when I was little: "Temper, Dido! Count to twenty-nine..."
Selling rare books has its moments, but few are anything close to thrilling--except when Dido Hoare's scoundrel of an ex-husband suddenly reappears and puts a pulse of excitement in the air.But events go from interesting to intense when someone ends up murdered and the culprit seems to think Dido has something worth killing for, too.
With the help of her father, Barnabas, a retired academic with a penchant for mysteries, Dido may be able to divert the killer long enough to figure out who wants her dead and why. Recovering from a heart attack, the irrepressible Barnabas is taking chances that are likely to give Dido a coronary of her own, and give the police a bad case of indigestion. But as Dido and Barnabas are about to learn, every crime has its victims and its payoffs--it's just a matter of being on the right side of the bookshelf before everything comes tumbling down.
"Whoever had broken into the shop might just have gone upstairs afterwards, might just be there still...My first reaction was anger: I wanted to roar up the stairs, only I could hear Barnabas saying, the way he used to when I was little: "Temper, Dido! Count to twenty-nine..."
Selling rare books has its moments, but few are anything close to thrilling--except when Dido Hoare's scoundrel of an ex-husband suddenly reappears and puts a pulse of excitement in the air.But events go from interesting to intense when someone ends up murdered and the culprit seems to think Dido has something worth killing for, too.
With the help of her father, Barnabas, a retired academic with a penchant for mysteries, Dido may be able to divert the killer long enough to figure out who wants her dead and why. Recovering from a heart attack, the irrepressible Barnabas is taking chances that are likely to give Dido a coronary of her own, and give the police a bad case of indigestion. But as Dido and Barnabas are about to learn, every crime has its victims and its payoffs--it's just a matter of being on the right side of the bookshelf before everything comes tumbling down.
352 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published November 21, 1996
2 people are currently reading
253 people want to read
About the author
Marianne Macdonald
19 books15 followersMARIANNE MACDONALD was born in the lumber town of Kenora, Northern Ontario, and grew up in Winnipeg and Montreal. Her first children's book was published when she was 16. She took her BA at McGill University, then went to Oxford for graduate studies in English. For thirty years she pretended to be an academic, acquiring various degrees and teaching at universities in Canada and England. She left teaching early in order to return to her writing.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews
December 1, 2018
Bücher. Dido hat ihr Leben den Büchern verschrieben. Sie lebt in einem Haus, direkt über ihren kleinen Antiquariat und führt ein bescheidenes Leben, als plötzlich ihr Exmann wieder auf der Matte steht und damit beginnen ihre Probleme erst.
Nicht nur, dass ihr Geschäft und ihre Wohnung durchsucht werden, nein plötzlich sterben auch zwei Menschen aus ihrer näheren Umgebung und Dido muss sich immer häufiger in Gefahr begeben, da sie anscheinend an all diesem Chaos nicht unschuldig ist.
Ein netter cosy Krimi, aber an manchen Stellen schon sehr unwahrscheinlich und die letztliche Auflösung war nicht nach meinem Geschmack. #dasmanuskript #netgalley
Nicht nur, dass ihr Geschäft und ihre Wohnung durchsucht werden, nein plötzlich sterben auch zwei Menschen aus ihrer näheren Umgebung und Dido muss sich immer häufiger in Gefahr begeben, da sie anscheinend an all diesem Chaos nicht unschuldig ist.
Ein netter cosy Krimi, aber an manchen Stellen schon sehr unwahrscheinlich und die letztliche Auflösung war nicht nach meinem Geschmack. #dasmanuskript #netgalley
September 25, 2019
2 1/2. I like the premise, but a little overwhelmed by the execution. Kind of wish Dido's father had been the protagonist ... I might give another book in the series a go, but probably won't rush right out to do so.
September 7, 2010
Dido is an antiquarian bookseller. When someone chases her car at night, breaks into her store, and then people start dying, she finally figures out somebody must want something she has. Problem is, she's got no idea what it could be.
Personally, I found the main character a big odd. She doesn't seem to react to the death of her ex-husband the way one would expect, especially after she's just slept with the guy. Then she almost immediately she falls into bed with the cop investigating his death. I just found her reactions weird and I had trouble relating to her reactions and behaviors.
I did like the relationship between her and her father, but the actual mystery and the personal business was just a bit too muddled and confusing.
Personally, I found the main character a big odd. She doesn't seem to react to the death of her ex-husband the way one would expect, especially after she's just slept with the guy. Then she almost immediately she falls into bed with the cop investigating his death. I just found her reactions weird and I had trouble relating to her reactions and behaviors.
I did like the relationship between her and her father, but the actual mystery and the personal business was just a bit too muddled and confusing.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 22, 2011
The story: A dyspepsic antiquarian book seller [vast mention of antacids, alka-selzer and indigestion] gets involved in crime due to her poor choice in men. Hence her involvement with the predatory and married cop who arrives to solve the crime, is not at all surprising.
But he doesn't solve the crime.
Neither does she.
This is left to her aging dad, by far the brightest and most interesting character in the book.
But he doesn't solve the crime.
Neither does she.
This is left to her aging dad, by far the brightest and most interesting character in the book.
July 26, 2025
I learned about this novel from a review of the best "books about books." While I liked it, it struck me more as commercial than literary fiction. The plot involves a divorced London bookseller, Dido, and her father, Barnabas, a retired professor with a specialty in Tudor poetry. Dido's ex, a shady dude named Davey, has come back into her life, and she can't help sleeping with him. Then he's blown up by a car bomb.
Dido and Barnabas have a complicated relationship. They get under one another's skin, and Dido calls her father by his first name, which isn't normal in British culture. It's either a sign of some disrespect or a way to keep a certain distance between them, or establish herself as a friend or peer rather than as a daughter. In fact, Dido is something of a mess herself.
Dido's American customer who is Barnabas's friend also turns up murdered on a buying trip to London. Dido and Barnabas now believe they are sitting on something rare and valuable and that Davey was involved, but they don't know what it is. Eventually, they discover it: a fragment of a Shakespeare poem in his handwriting in Thomas North's 1579 translation of Plutarch's Lives. North's translation is believed to have been the source for Shakespeare's tragedies about Roman heroes.
How valuable is a first edition of the translation? A third edition from 1603 failed to sell at a Swann Galleries book auction in 2024. It was estimated at $3,000-5000. At the same auction, a very rare 2nd folio edition of Shakespeare's plays--one of 13 copies known to exist--sold for $137,000. If you had a North's original edition of 1579 with a Shakespeare inscription that most experts believed to be genuine, I'd guess it'd be worth hundreds of thousands or perhaps in the millions.
Needless to say, powerful, rich, unscrupulous people are after the Shakespeare autograph. The police get involved, and Dido falls for the tall inspector on their case. Barnabas, meanwhile, goes rogue and tries to sell the translation to the killers so they'll leave Dido and him alone.
Things come to a head in the old university town of Oxford, and the ending is both ironic and satisfying. At one point, Dido as the narrator addresses the reader, "Oh, let's be honest: booksellers can never bear to throw anything old away." You never know what could be written on or stuck between the pages of an old book.
Dido and Barnabas have a complicated relationship. They get under one another's skin, and Dido calls her father by his first name, which isn't normal in British culture. It's either a sign of some disrespect or a way to keep a certain distance between them, or establish herself as a friend or peer rather than as a daughter. In fact, Dido is something of a mess herself.
Dido's American customer who is Barnabas's friend also turns up murdered on a buying trip to London. Dido and Barnabas now believe they are sitting on something rare and valuable and that Davey was involved, but they don't know what it is. Eventually, they discover it: a fragment of a Shakespeare poem in his handwriting in Thomas North's 1579 translation of Plutarch's Lives. North's translation is believed to have been the source for Shakespeare's tragedies about Roman heroes.
How valuable is a first edition of the translation? A third edition from 1603 failed to sell at a Swann Galleries book auction in 2024. It was estimated at $3,000-5000. At the same auction, a very rare 2nd folio edition of Shakespeare's plays--one of 13 copies known to exist--sold for $137,000. If you had a North's original edition of 1579 with a Shakespeare inscription that most experts believed to be genuine, I'd guess it'd be worth hundreds of thousands or perhaps in the millions.
Needless to say, powerful, rich, unscrupulous people are after the Shakespeare autograph. The police get involved, and Dido falls for the tall inspector on their case. Barnabas, meanwhile, goes rogue and tries to sell the translation to the killers so they'll leave Dido and him alone.
Things come to a head in the old university town of Oxford, and the ending is both ironic and satisfying. At one point, Dido as the narrator addresses the reader, "Oh, let's be honest: booksellers can never bear to throw anything old away." You never know what could be written on or stuck between the pages of an old book.
November 14, 2019
"Whoever had broken into the shop might just have gone upstairs afterwards, might just be there still ... My first reaction was anger: I wanted to roar up the stairs, only I could hear Barnabas saying, the way he used to when I was little: 'Temper, Dido! Count to twenty-nine ...'
"Selling rare books has its moments, but few are anything close to thrilling -- except when Dido Hoare's scoundrel. of an ex-husband suddenly reappears and puts a pulse of excitement in the air. But events go from interesting to intense when someone ends up murdered and the culprit seems to think Dido has something worth killing for, too.
"With the help of her feather, Barnabas, a retired academic with a penchant for mysteries, Dido may be able to divert the killer long enough to figure out who wants her dead and why. Recovering from a heart attack, the irrepressible Barnabas is taking chances that are likely to give Dido a coronary of her own, and give the police a bad case of indigestion. But as Dido and Barnabas are about to learn, every crime has its victims and its payoffs -- it's just a matter of being on the right side of the bookshelf before everything comes tumbling down."
~~back cover
A very enjoyable little mystery. Not exactly a cozy -- and the heroine is no shrinking violet, nor one to run straight into the arms of danger only to be rescued by handsome boyfriend. And Barnabas is a charming, irrepressible scamp. Nice love interest too.
"Selling rare books has its moments, but few are anything close to thrilling -- except when Dido Hoare's scoundrel. of an ex-husband suddenly reappears and puts a pulse of excitement in the air. But events go from interesting to intense when someone ends up murdered and the culprit seems to think Dido has something worth killing for, too.
"With the help of her feather, Barnabas, a retired academic with a penchant for mysteries, Dido may be able to divert the killer long enough to figure out who wants her dead and why. Recovering from a heart attack, the irrepressible Barnabas is taking chances that are likely to give Dido a coronary of her own, and give the police a bad case of indigestion. But as Dido and Barnabas are about to learn, every crime has its victims and its payoffs -- it's just a matter of being on the right side of the bookshelf before everything comes tumbling down."
~~back cover
A very enjoyable little mystery. Not exactly a cozy -- and the heroine is no shrinking violet, nor one to run straight into the arms of danger only to be rescued by handsome boyfriend. And Barnabas is a charming, irrepressible scamp. Nice love interest too.
October 21, 2018
Antiquarian book dealer, Dido Hoare is driving back to her London home the night after an estate buying venture in Banbury. It is raining heavily and it appears she is being followed.
The following morning, her retired academic & widowed father, Barnabas, calls to ask if she understands a cryptic note left at his residence. They ponder, speculate, and leave it as is, tentatively.
The next day, Dido’s ex husband appears at her shop asking for work. Savvy to his scam intents, she turns him away. A woman of her own right, she is. Untethered to any flight, nor held down by any weight.
But then she finds her book store tossed, the rare books scattered across her floor and potentially ruined. She realizes there is folly at hand and its stop must be made.
Nothing could prepare her for the 2 police at her door, solemn with the news that her ex will not be showing up for the dinner date he was already late for. That he would never show up again.
It’s a high stakes suspense read that includes a Russian monster, a shady antiquarian bookseller, another murder, lots of tea and English slang, a Shakespeare signature, and 2 million dollars.
I’m in love... mostly with Barnabas!
The following morning, her retired academic & widowed father, Barnabas, calls to ask if she understands a cryptic note left at his residence. They ponder, speculate, and leave it as is, tentatively.
The next day, Dido’s ex husband appears at her shop asking for work. Savvy to his scam intents, she turns him away. A woman of her own right, she is. Untethered to any flight, nor held down by any weight.
But then she finds her book store tossed, the rare books scattered across her floor and potentially ruined. She realizes there is folly at hand and its stop must be made.
Nothing could prepare her for the 2 police at her door, solemn with the news that her ex will not be showing up for the dinner date he was already late for. That he would never show up again.
It’s a high stakes suspense read that includes a Russian monster, a shady antiquarian bookseller, another murder, lots of tea and English slang, a Shakespeare signature, and 2 million dollars.
I’m in love... mostly with Barnabas!
May 5, 2017
Not a great plot....not a great ending...tedious action - could have done with some editing.
September 18, 2019
I love books about books. And about the book selling trade. This book is not disappoint me.
November 1, 2019
This was fun. Antiquarian Bookseller Dido Hoare, with the help of her father Barnabas and the dishy police detective Paul Grant, solves two murders. I look forward to others in this series.
December 16, 2020
2.75* rounded up to 3* - I liked the setting of an antiquarian bookshop in London, but the main character Dido just ended up annoying me.
February 13, 2022
I enjoyed the first book in the series about Dido an antique book dealer and her father Barnabas. I plan to continue reading the series.
August 25, 2022
Dorothy_L author
Shakespeare's autograph causes deaths. Good premise.
Shakespeare's autograph causes deaths. Good premise.
October 23, 2025
Found Dido, the protagonist, to be too dumb to be tasked with solving a mystery.
November 26, 2013
I wish I could give a 2.5 rating as I'm not sure if I liked the first book in the Dido Hoare series or not. I often find that first novels of a series leave me feeling this way. Usually I give the author the benefit of the doubt and lean towards both recommending them or attempting other books in the series. But for the Dido Hoare series I think it's curtains. There just wasn't enough substance to give Marianne Macdonald another shot.
Death's Autograph is a pretty straight-forward mystery. While it has some worthwhile aspects (a somewhat unique plot and decent pacing), it lacks what so many other mysteries are abundant with...charm.
The story revolves around Dido Hoare and her father Barnabus. Dido is an antiquarian book dealer who realizes her shop has been burgled after returning from a routine lunch outing.
Dido doesn't find anything of value missing after the burglary, but other strange things start happening in the coming days. Out of nowhere, her ex-husband re-emerges in her life with a bunch of cash and looking for a job. Someone tries to run her off the road as she returns to London after an estate sale. A potential client ends up dead, along with someone close to her, and Dido doesn't know where to turn.
Dido finds help in a local inspector, Paul Grant. Together (along with help from her father Barnabus), they set out to find answers to the odd events that have befallen Dido recently. The road to those answers leads them to a car bombing, a mafia boss, and a shady competitor of Dido's.
The characterizations felt flimsy and thin, the setting seemed vague at best, and the mystery itself wasn't good enough to carry the book or make it a novel I would recommend to anyone other than die-hard mystery lovers.
I doubt that I will continue with this series as there just isn't enough to sink my teeth into.
Death's Autograph is a pretty straight-forward mystery. While it has some worthwhile aspects (a somewhat unique plot and decent pacing), it lacks what so many other mysteries are abundant with...charm.
The story revolves around Dido Hoare and her father Barnabus. Dido is an antiquarian book dealer who realizes her shop has been burgled after returning from a routine lunch outing.
Dido doesn't find anything of value missing after the burglary, but other strange things start happening in the coming days. Out of nowhere, her ex-husband re-emerges in her life with a bunch of cash and looking for a job. Someone tries to run her off the road as she returns to London after an estate sale. A potential client ends up dead, along with someone close to her, and Dido doesn't know where to turn.
Dido finds help in a local inspector, Paul Grant. Together (along with help from her father Barnabus), they set out to find answers to the odd events that have befallen Dido recently. The road to those answers leads them to a car bombing, a mafia boss, and a shady competitor of Dido's.
The characterizations felt flimsy and thin, the setting seemed vague at best, and the mystery itself wasn't good enough to carry the book or make it a novel I would recommend to anyone other than die-hard mystery lovers.
I doubt that I will continue with this series as there just isn't enough to sink my teeth into.
July 20, 2013
I just found this series by Marianne MacDonald and my library system had the first book, Death’s Autograph. I really enjoyed this book and look forward to reading more in the series. The protagonist, Dido Hoare, is a book shop owner/book antiquarian, in her 30s and divorced. She is smart and independent, a really likable character still reeling somewhat over her divorce from Davey. Barnabas is Dido’s father, a retired professor, and her main support system. The love interest is a police officer who is working the case.
The main characters are interesting and fully developed, no ridiculously off beat people wandering around the story. There is a slightly more menacing tone to this than most cozies, which often displace the danger or fear in a situation with humor. That is probably a marked difference from this and many newer cozies is the darker mood that it evokes. The theme and the setting are both well done and ones that I enjoy.
The mystery has many threads that are all tied together with a common motive at the end. In the last few chapters, everything comes together neatly. This was a well constructed mystery with evidence of thought and care taken by the author. I am wondering if the series is finished, the last book was published in 2006 and the website has not been updated. Does anyone know if Marianne MacDonald is still writing?
The main characters are interesting and fully developed, no ridiculously off beat people wandering around the story. There is a slightly more menacing tone to this than most cozies, which often displace the danger or fear in a situation with humor. That is probably a marked difference from this and many newer cozies is the darker mood that it evokes. The theme and the setting are both well done and ones that I enjoy.
The mystery has many threads that are all tied together with a common motive at the end. In the last few chapters, everything comes together neatly. This was a well constructed mystery with evidence of thought and care taken by the author. I am wondering if the series is finished, the last book was published in 2006 and the website has not been updated. Does anyone know if Marianne MacDonald is still writing?
April 4, 2009
This is one of those mysteries where nothing makes sense. All of the things that take place don't seem to relate to each other. This is probably the way it seems if you are inside the events in real life, so I guess in that respect it is a well written mystery book. From a reader's point of view, I want to know more than the characters do. Yes, I am one of those people that always reads the last page first.
The ending was a little confusing. I don't know if I was too tired or it was too complex, but I didn't understand how 1) the police didn't get the bad guys if they had all of the exits surrounded; 2) the bad guys got what they wanted and were searching for and 3) how Dido and Barnabus got to keep what they received. I may have been reading the book too quickly.
One thing that bugs me about this book is Dido's name, Dido Hoare. The reasoning behind her first name is explained in t his, the first installment of the series, but it just seems too precious to me. I think the book would have been just as effective with the main character being named Jenny Smith.
The ending was a little confusing. I don't know if I was too tired or it was too complex, but I didn't understand how 1) the police didn't get the bad guys if they had all of the exits surrounded; 2) the bad guys got what they wanted and were searching for and 3) how Dido and Barnabus got to keep what they received. I may have been reading the book too quickly.
One thing that bugs me about this book is Dido's name, Dido Hoare. The reasoning behind her first name is explained in t his, the first installment of the series, but it just seems too precious to me. I think the book would have been just as effective with the main character being named Jenny Smith.
Want to read
January 8, 2019Synopsis: selling rare books has its moments, but Dido's ex-husband has suddenly reappeared and someone ends up murdered. What's going on?
July 6, 2024
Dido war eine sympathische Protagonistin und auch Barnabas ist mir ans Herz gewachsen. Für mich konnte das Buch aber nicht wirklich Spannung erzeugen, trotz sehr ernsten Themen wie zum Beispiel Mord, da das Ganze durch Barnabas ein bisschen aufgelockert wurde. Das Buch gefiel mir aber trotzdem ganz gut, da ich seine Art irgendwie auch mochte. Mal schauen, ob ich Band 2 noch lesen werde, ich kann es mir wegen Dido und Barnabas schon vorstellen, allerdings habe ich gesehen, dass die Reihe 8 Bände umfasst und irgendwann könnte es auch unrealistisch werden, dass Dido und Barnabas so oft in Gefahr geraten.
October 12, 2008
The first novel by Marianne Macdonald about the second hand bookseller Dido Hoare and her father Barnabas. It is well written and good to read. If you are interested in her books, you should read this one first because it contains a lot of information that are somehow important for her other books with Dido Hoare. Not that those information are vital for the other stories but those facts explain a lot and answer many questions that might pop up.
June 6, 2010
1st in the Dido Hoare, antiquarian bookseller, series. This was a nicely complex story line that involved old books and a bit of the bookseller’s world. Dido spent a little too much of her time worried about the men in her life and jumping into bed with them, and there were some editing errors that were annoying. Otherwise, this novel was full of action and the mystery was interesting and unpredictable without being over-the-top.
January 28, 2016
Dido Hoare runs an antiquarian bookstore in London. When her ex-husband Davey turns up suddenly and is soon murdered Dido becomes involved in the police investigation. I liked the characters of Dido and her father Barnabas, a retired Oxford professor. There's a twist at the end that makes me want to find more books in this series.
March 10, 2016
I enjoyed this very much. Macdonald writes cleverly and creates interesting characters and situations. The antiquarian bookseller angle was enough to be interesting without dragging down the story. The mystery kept me guessing and ended on a satisfying note with new entanglements introduced for the next installment. And I'll be picking that up quite soon.
August 18, 2007
The first book in the antiquarian bookshop mystery series. Dido is a fresh sleuth with a super side-kick her father, Barnabas. I love the setting, plot, abd additional book lore. I so look forward to rest of the series.
August 14, 2013
wanted to love it, but could not warm to the protagonist - watching her fall back into the orbit of her con-artist/adulterer ex-husband was painful, and she just didn't seem very fond of anything else, including the books.
April 4, 2009
This series about an antiquarian book seller in London is a favorite.
May 30, 2009
The main character and her antiquarian book business were interesting but the mystery only so-so.
March 27, 2011
I liked it enough to read the second in this series,"Ghost Walk."
August 19, 2012
A highly unusual mystery written full of suspense. Keeps you wanting to read more by leaving you at a cliff along with the people in the book.
April 12, 2016
fun English mystery, predictable ending.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews