# Bookish (2025)

> A post-war antiquarian bookseller uses his vast collection and a circle of troubled friends to unravel baffling crimes.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/166756

## Facts

- Seasons: 2
- Episodes: 12
- Episode runtime: 52 min
- Status: Returning Series
- Genres: crime, mystery, drama
- Created by: Mark Gatiss
- Network: U&Alibi
- Cast: Mark Gatiss, Polly Walker, Elliot Levey, Buket Komur, Connor Finch, Rupert Graves, Blake Harrison, Ella Bruccoleri
- TMDB rating: 6.9/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt32066226/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: measured
- Intensity: mild
- Complexity: accessible
- Violence: mild
- Tone: amused, cozy, melancholic, witty, tense

## What critics say

Audiences find Bookish a mixed, cosy-leaning whodunit whose charm and ensemble warmth are undercut by uneven mysteries and a weaker second season.

## Synopsis

Bookish (2025-present) is a British crime drama series created by Mark Gatiss for U&Alibi. Gabriel Book, played by Mark Gatiss, runs an antiquarian bookshop in a postwar English setting and relies on his enormous collection of rare volumes to unravel baffling cases. He is joined by Trottie Book (Polly Walker), Inspector Bliss (Elliot Levey), and Sergeant Morris (Blake Harrison), while Nora (Buket Komur) and Jack (Connor Finch) are among the lovable yet troubled figures he quietly protects. Each episode is a self-contained whodunit built around a puzzling death, with clues hidden in old books, reference works and the habits of the people around the shop. The engine of the show is Gabriel's sharp, literary curiosity set against a tangle of suspects, police obstruction and personal secrets. The tone is amused and cozy at its heart, with a darker postwar undercurrent that keeps the stakes real. Fans of Murder, She Wrote, Agatha Christie's Poirot and Father Brown will find resonance in its gentle puzzle solving, eccentric sleuth and warm ensemble of misfits. The series currently runs across two seasons of six episodes each, and its mix of bookish charm and crime makes it a satisfying weekly watch.

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