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lady_smith's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Original premise and compelling characters.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Bullying, Suicide, and Blood
All of the human characters in this book are dead. There are numerous battle/fight situations where characters are injured. Clairejessicalarson125's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Suicide
Minor: Violence, Blood, and War
paigereitz's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Wow wow wow. This book is a masterclass on the human condition and humanity's drive for storytelling and literature. It turns tropes on their heads. It's witty and laugh-out-loud funny at times. It blends heavy and light and explores big themes. I loved every second of this ride.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Grief, and Suicide attempt
just_jess02's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
What a charming, whimsical, cozy read. It held just enough adventure and magic to hold my attention, great characters, and good world building. The historical context and lore was surface level but it really didn’t need to go any deeper to tell this story well.
I really enjoyed the balance of “bookish” ideas to the characters and plot. The themes and tropes are very obvious… but it’s not so in-your-face and cheesy to take away from the story. I found the transparent nature of the themes to push the story along smoothly and easily.
I’m excited to read the rest of the series. This book felt like a rich foundation that hopefully will open up into more complex, deep plot/relationships.
While I loved this story, it wasn’t one that really meant anything to me. It was like a sweet bedtime story almost. I like a book to follow me around once I finish it. I want to reflect, to slowly untangle my mind from the stories’ grasp. This is the only reason I am not giving it five stars.
I really enjoyed the balance of “bookish” ideas to the characters and plot. The themes and tropes are very obvious… but it’s not so in-your-face and cheesy to take away from the story. I found the transparent nature of the themes to push the story along smoothly and easily.
I’m excited to read the rest of the series. This book felt like a rich foundation that hopefully will open up into more complex, deep plot/relationships.
While I loved this story, it wasn’t one that really meant anything to me. It was like a sweet bedtime story almost. I like a book to follow me around once I finish it. I want to reflect, to slowly untangle my mind from the stories’ grasp. This is the only reason I am not giving it five stars.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Violence, Grief, and Murder
Minor: Child death, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, and Abandonment
iris_lrf's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
This is probably at least the fifth time I've read this book, and every time has been a delight from start to finish. Hackwith's beautiful style and well-rounded characters create an emotional roller coaster of love, heartbreak, redemption and family. Even with only two actual humans, all of the protagonists feel uniquely human in their own distinct ways, and it's impossible not to fall in love with the cranky old librarian or her anxious upstart assistants.
Like any good story about stories, The Library of the Unwritten plays with the concept of the roles we play, both by choice and by force, and what happens when those roles no longer suit us. Villains become heroes, sidekicks become leaders, guardians become caretakers. The stories we tell change, and those we lock away are brought back into the light.
It's not without its flaws, but what book isn't? Sure, there's some plot armour moments, but surely they're counteracted by Leto literally being unmade or Hero getting frequently beaten within an inch of his life . Sure, the ending is a little lacking, but with two more books to go, it isn't really the ending, is it?
I recently got the rest of the trilogy and I'm excited to see where the story goes from here.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Gore, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Torture, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Grief, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol
Minor: Self harm, Kidnapping, and War
greatexpectations77's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
The plot of this book is really interesting, and I'm really not sure why I didn't find it engaging. I hope lots of other people like this because I think it's well done! I maybe just couldn't get into the world-building?
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Confinement, Death, Murder, Abandonment, War, and Classism
Minor: Religious bigotry
librarymouse's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I really loved this book. Parts are viscerally heart breaking, others peaceful, and others still are wonderfully human. This book has so many wonderfully integrated references to folklore, library history, and theatre.
God being a woman and making the arch angel who are working in her stead the antagonist of the novel is narratively, incredibly interesting, bringing into questions of biblical good versus moral good, and it acts as a reminder that being a hero does not necessarily imply goodness just as being a villain doesn't necessarily imply evil.
The novel's twists are artful. I had not expected Leto's suicidal ideation to have been pushed to it's breaking point by Andras, as had I not expected Claire to be a murderer, nor Leto to be Claire's grandson. Andrea's calculated betrayal was well crafted and the library's stand against him was glorious. Claire's willingness to unwrite the souls of those who are a threat to those she loves is a gorgeous character flaw. I'm glad she wasn't guilted out of it. I look forward to seeing more of Romiel in hell.
It feels like I've met a collection of pleasant new friends and I look forward to knowing them more as the series progresses.
The novel's twists are artful. I had not expected Leto's suicidal ideation to have been pushed to it's breaking point by Andras, as had I not expected Claire to be a murderer, nor Leto to be Claire's grandson. Andrea's calculated betrayal was well crafted and the library's stand against him was glorious. Claire's willingness to unwrite the souls of those who are a threat to those she loves is a gorgeous character flaw. I'm glad she wasn't guilted out of it. I look forward to seeing more of Romiel in hell.
It feels like I've met a collection of pleasant new friends and I look forward to knowing them more as the series progresses.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Religious bigotry, and Murder
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Blood
bookcaptivated's review
adventurous
dark
funny
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Gun violence, Violence, Blood, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders and Suicide
Minor: Misogyny and Sexism
hanz's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Blood, and Grief
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Suicide
booksthatburn's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I find myself feeling neutral about this book, and I'm not precisely sure why. The worldbuilding was interesting, the characters worked well, and I liked where it ended up. The audiobook narrator is excellent, they're definitely why I kept reading even though I was feeling meh about the book itself. My hesitance may be because the entire plot relies on a miscommunication early on in a way that made the rest of the story, while frequently engaging, feel a bit pointless. The conversation was artfully arranged to allow for the precise misunderstanding necessary to kick off everything else, and then the characters' stubbornness fuels the rest of the story. It's a well-constructed instance of a trope I dislike, and as much as I can tell it's done well, I still didn't like it. Since this trope is unlikely to fuel the plot twice in the series, I'll probably check out the sequel. I love Leto's story, he's definitely my favorite character, if I read more it'll be to find out what happens with him.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Grief
Moderate: Death, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicide, Blood, Murder, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Ableism and Self harm