Review copy was received from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
The Lost Plot by Genevieve Cogman Series: The Invisible Library #4
Published by Ace on January 9, 2017
Genres: Fantasy
Pages: 384
Format: eARC
Source: NetGalley
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In a 1920s-esque New York, Prohibition is in force; fedoras, flapper dresses, and tommy guns are in fashion: and intrigue is afoot. Intrepid Librarians Irene and Kai find themselves caught in the middle of a dragon political contest. It seems a young Librarian has become tangled in this conflict, and if they can’t extricate him, there could be serious repercussions for the mysterious Library. And, as the balance of power across mighty factions hangs in the balance, this could even trigger war.
Irene and Kai are locked in a race against time (and dragons) to procure a rare book. They’ll face gangsters, blackmail, and the Library’s own Internal Affairs department. And if it doesn’t end well, it could have dire consequences on Irene’s job. And, incidentally, on her life.
Genevieve Cogman is very consistent for me. The story is always fun, easy and interesting to read in her The Invisible Library series. Each book has a different setting and new adventure. The world-building is important because we go to new worlds each time. The Lost Plot is in a world which leans more towards the order of the dragons. Because each story is in a new setting, they could almost be read as stand-alones. ALMOST.
Irene starts off on her own in a crisis situation. She is central to each story. I continue to love her strength and courage as she figures out and handles all sorts of situations. She continues to be smart, thoughtful, compassionate and organzied even dealing with limited information and life-and-death situations. She manages to be the kick-ass in-charge, even when she works with a team. With the constant action, we don’t learn much about Irene herself or have time for her to further develop relationships.
There is also limited interaction with the library itself. The Library, even with Irene working there for a time, is still quite the mystery. The politics and function are not clear. There are also challenges to its purpose and continuance. Has The Library, perhaps wrongly, kept information from worlds and people?
The current situation is with the dragons, so Kai is eventually with her. Irene tracks down another librarian with less experience who is having issues with the dragons. The location is United States, east coast in the early 1900s.
I hope for a more overall story arc where we learn more about Irene and the Library next time instead of only an independent case. I care about these characters. Their personal relationships were in the background here; I thought Irene was possibly going to become closer to Vale but now it looks like Kai is working his way into the picture. The writing is smart and there is humor. The next book is probably about a year away, and I can’t locate even a title. I’ll be watching and waiting for it!
About Genevieve Cogman
Genevieve Cogman got started on Tolkien and Sherlock Holmes at an early age, and has never looked back. But on a perhaps more prosaic note, she has an MSC in Statistics with Medical Applications and has wielded this in an assortment of jobs: clinical coder, data analyst and classifications specialist. Although The Invisible Library is her debut novel, she has also previously worked as a freelance roleplaying game writer. Genevieve Cogman’s hobbies include patchwork, beading, knitting and gaming, and she lives in the north of England.
I read all types of books but my favorites are urban fantasy and romantic suspense.I like some romance and some action / adventure / mystery in everything.I like sex in my books but please, only between TWO people.Intimate conversation is equally important to the sex in a book.It lets me see the characters.The other thing I enjoy is humor.
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Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
- 2018 New Release Challenge
- COYER Winter Switch
Oh wow! This sounds like a fascinating series – I’ve never heard of it and am not familiar with the author. Very intriguing.
Thanks Jen! I didn’t know her either until I got into AceRoc stars. It’s very good. I’ll be interested to see where the series goes from here.