I have loved the entire Invisible Library series. For anyone who loves books, this series is for you! It’s a world of dragons and the Fae (so I’m already hooked) all about a group of librarians who can help the forces of the world with books. You’re hooked now right? Keep reading this book review of the latest Invisible Library book!
Summary
A Librarian’s work is never done, and once Irene has a quick rest after their latest adventure, she is summoned to the Library. The world where she grew up is in danger of veering deep into chaos, and she needs to obtain a particular book to stop this from happening. No copies of the book are available in the Library, so her only choice is to contact a mysterious Fae information broker and trader of rare objects: Mr. Nemo.
Irene and Kai make their way to Mr. Nemo’s remote Caribbean island and are invited to dinner, which includes unlikely company. Mr. Nemo has an offer for everyone there: he wants them to steal a specific painting from a specific world. He swears that he will give each of them an item from his collection if they bring him the painting within the week.
Everyone takes the deal. But to get their reward, they will have to form a team, including a dragon techie, a Fae thief, a gambler, a driver, and the muscle. Their goal? The Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna, in a early twenty-first century world, where their toughest challenge might be each other.
Review
(Disclaimer: I received this book from Netgalley. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
The Invisible Library is one of those series which is so under hyped and I have no idea why! Not only does it have dangerously persuasive Fae and shape shifting dragons,but it also has books and a group of librarians. It’s been a few years since I read the last book in this series, but it’s so easy to fall back in with Kai and Irene. Now that peace has been established, even tenuous at best, even more side characters are introduced and involved.
My only exposure to the literary figure of Nemo is from “The League of Extraordinary Gentleman”, but as soon as I saw his name in the synopsis I was so excited! In The Secret Chapter the politics of the worlds develop, and also expand. Like always, we are treated to worlds we have never known before, but also with this new landscape of politics. Combine the heist story line together with this fabulous fantasy world, and readers will be hooked.
Overall,
But what kept me intrigued by The Secret Chapter were the conversations about truth and history. As Irene and Kai continue to uncover dangerous secrets, it becomes increasingly important to question our history. To realize that we can be pawns to hiding, or uncovering, the truth without knowing it. And also to recognize the importance of loyalty and those who want to affirm their power. Consider me re-hooked into this series! I am so excited for the sequel because of these destabilizing threads that Cogman wove into The Secret Chapter.
Find The Secret Chapter on Goodreads, Amazon, Indiebound, Bookshop.org & The Book Depository.