No Alibis specialises in mystery and detective fiction. Bookseller David Torrans says it is essential to utilise the store as a community venue too, for literary events and concerts. “We even had Van Morrison and Jimmy Page come to a gig,” he says. “It’s hard work, but it means the bookshop is seen as more than just a bookshop.”

Top five sellers

•Thirteen Steve Cavanagh

•Don’t Skip Out on Me Willy Vlautin

•Walking Wounded Sheila Llewellyn

•Sidelines: Selected Prose 1962-2015 Michael Longley

•Female Lines: New Writing by Women from Northern Ireland ed Linda Anderson and Dawn Miranda Sherratt-Bado

Five recommendations

•Disorder Gerard Brennan
“A dark, disturbing and satiric look at the absurdity of politics, power and crime in present-day Belfast.”

•Silver’s City Maurice Leitch
“One of the most lyrical depictions of the Troubles… with a style that defies cliche.”

•Out Natsuo Kirino
“A wonderful look at the social position of women working in blue-collar factories in Japan.”

•Multitudes Lucy Caldwell
“Coming-of-age stories set in Belfast through the 80s and 90s. Vibrant, poignant and, at times, terrifying.”

•This Sweet Sickness Patricia Highsmith
“Not a Ripley novel, but equally compelling and disturbing.”

83 Botanic Ave, Belfast BT7 1JL; noalibis.com