“Bookish,” a new episodic British mystery series premiering Sunday on PBS, stands out as a notably enjoyable offering.Created by and starring Mark Gatiss, a prolific writer and actor known for his work in British comedy, science fiction, and mystery – including co-creating “Sherlock” with steven Moffat,where he portrayed Mycroft Holmes,and writing nine “Doctor Who” screenplays – the show is a classic British period piece. Gatiss plays Gabriel Book, an antiquarian bookseller who moonlights as a crime solver, fitting into the tradition of beloved British detectives like Miss Marple, lord Wimsey, Sherlock Holmes, and Father Brown.
Book is a soft-spoken, kind, and literary character, frequently incorporating quotations into his dialog. He’s assembled a small team around him: his wife, Trottie (Polly Walker, who also contributed to the writing), who runs a wallpaper shop next door to his bookstore on a charming London lane; a dog simply named Dog; Nora (Buket Kömür), a neighborhood girl who assists at the shop; and Jack (Connor Finch), a newly hired assistant fresh out of prison, whose arrival is shrouded in mystery. Book maintains a cordial relationship with Scotland Yard inspector Bliss (Elliot Levey) and benefits from a “letter from Churchill” granting him access to crime scenes, much to the chagrin of Sergeant Morris (Blake Harrison). The series boasts a naturalistic production style, occasionally incorporating expressionistic neo-noir elements when depicting crimes.
Like its best predecessors, “Bookish” balances humor and entertainment with moments of genuine human emotion and sadness. The season’s three stories (each told over two episodes) delve into the personal lives of the main characters, and a second series has already been commissioned, signaling its success.