Tess Monaghan wants to like the Children's Bookstore. It's new, bright, friendly and packed with the kinds of books that she is dying for her daughter to fall in love with. But the owner's attitude stops her in her tracks. What kind of children's bookseller hates children?

But Octavia, the owner, has a lot on her mind. Each Saturday, someone steals a stack of her most beautiful, most expensive children's books, and the expense threatens to force her fledgling store out of business. Luckily, Tess is not only a book lover – she's also a private investigator who doesn't mind working pro bono to help an independent bookshop. Her investigation will make Octavia smile for the first time in months – and uncover a crime more suitable for the mystery aisle than the children's section.