After an 18 year run, Partners & Crime Mystery Booksellers in New York City will close its doors on September 20. “We’ve had a wonderful, wonderful ride,” says Maggie Topkis, one of the original five partners who founded the store. She doesn’t blame any one factor for the demise of a store that had been a destination for customers from around the world and for marquee authors, from James Patterson to Lee Child and Anthony Bourdain, who began his writing career in mysteries.
With the planned closing, the Cranston & Spade Theater Company, which performed vintage mystery radio serials in the store’s backroom once a month, is looking for a new home. As for the three remaining partners, they plan to stay connected to books. Topkis is publisher of Felony & Mayhem Press. Kizmin Reeves is a dealer in collectible books and restores damaged rare editions, while Maggie Griffin works with thriller writer Lee Child as chief of staff.
This marks the closing of a second mystery bookstore within a few weeks. Mysteries to Die For in Thousand Oaks, Calif., closed after 19 years at the end of July.
