Sci-Fi Bulletin: Exploring the Universes of SF, Fantasy, Horror and Spy-fi!

by Genevieve Cogman

Tor, January 2015 (e-book out now)

An adventure story to delight the heart.

The Invisible Library is Genevieve Cogman’s debut novel, and what an impressive debut it is.

Junior Librarian Irene, who has grown up in the service of the Library – an interdimensional repository of knowledge charged with protecting stories across realities – is tasked with a seemingly simple job, recovering a volume of Grimm’s fairytales from an alternate London. Accompanied by a trainee that has been assigned to her, Kai, Irene sets off to complete this mission – and finds so much more than she expected, not least that the book has been stolen and its owner killed; but who by?

Set in a world where magic and chaos exist alongside science, Irene must find her way through an alternate world with different rules to her own. Along the way she must figure out who she can trust and just how many agendas she’s up against in a battle to retrieve the book for the library whilst learning more about herself, her companion… and the library itself. The characters of Irene, her companion and those they encounter are vividly drawn, and the story moves along at breakneck speed to a thoroughly satisfying conclusion that sets up the intended series of books that will follow.

Verdict: An involving, thoroughly enjoyable adventure that will bring the reader back for more. 9/10

Marie O’Regan

Click here to order The Invisible Library from Amazon.co.uk