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The Masked City The Invisible Library Novel Genevieve Cogman 9781101988664 Books

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The Masked City The Invisible Library Novel Genevieve Cogman 9781101988664 Books

I loved the first book in this series, The Invisible Library, and was incredibly excited to read this one. After devouring it in one sitting, I can safely say that the sequel does not disappoint.

The story begins with Irene and Kai going about their business as Librarian-in-Residence and her assistant when the story opens. There is a small time lapse between the end of the first book and this one, however I believe that it shows how the characters have adapted to their new situations. After a successful book retrieval mission, Kai is kidnapped and the real story begins.

As Irene is forced to negotiate with dragons and Fae alike, the reader is given an in-depth view of the world that builds upon the foundation established in the first novel. It was very interesting to see how Irene navigated the world of the Fae, using their own magic to her advantage (well, most of the time). This book takes us far outside of the sphere where Irene and Kai have made their home and it is utterly fascinating to see the contrast between the dragon and Fae controlled spheres.

Much like the first novel, Irene accomplishes her goals using mostly her intelligence with a little help from magic. I think what I enjoyed the most about this book is that the damsel in distress trope was given a role reversal. The male dragon was taken captive and was powerless to escape on his own and Irene had to undertake a quest to free him.

Overall, this was a highly enjoyable book and I would highly recommend it (although I do suggest reading the first book in the series first as it establishes the world and relationships present in this novel). As for the ending, it made waiting for the third book in the series slightly torturous.


Tags : The Masked City (The Invisible Library Novel) [Genevieve Cogman] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. <b>Librarian-spy Irene and her apprentice Kai are back in the second in this “dazzling”* book-filled fantasy series from the author of The Invisible Library.</i></b> <b>  </i></b> The written word is mightier than the sword—most of the time...</i> <b> </b> Working in an alternate version of Victorian London,Genevieve Cogman,The Masked City (The Invisible Library Novel),Ace,1101988665,Fantasy - Historical,Fantasy - Paranormal,Action and adventure fiction,Alternative histories (Fiction),FICTION Fantasy Historical.,Fantasy fiction,Librarians,Librarians;Fiction.,Secret societies,Secret societies;Fiction.,ENGLISH SCIENCE FICTION AND FANTASY,FICTION Fantasy Historical,FICTION Fantasy Paranormal,FICTION Science Fiction Time Travel,Fantasy,Fiction,Fiction - Science Fiction,Fiction-Fantasy,FictionFantasy - Paranormal,GENERAL,General Adult,Monograph Series, any,Science Fiction - Time Travel,science fiction time travel;fantasy novels;fantasy books for adults;fantasy fiction;libraries;books about books;time travel books;time travel;science fiction and fantasy;fantasy books;fantasy;genevieve cogman;the mortal word;the lost plot;the burning page;invisible library series;invisible library;the invisible library;science fiction;sci fi;science fiction books;sci-fi;paranormal romance;sci fi books;sci-fi books;historical fiction;fiction;novels;fiction books;travel gifts;sci fi book,historical fiction; science fiction; science fiction books; science fiction and fantasy; time travel; paranormal romance; fantasy books for adults; sci-fi books; fiction; fiction books; travel gifts; sci fi books; gifts for travelers; sci fi; time travel books; science fiction time travel; fantasy novels; novels; fantasy fiction; libraries; books about books; fantasy books; fantasy; genevieve cogman; the mortal word; the lost plot; the burning page; invisible library series; invisible library; the invisible library

The Masked City The Invisible Library Novel Genevieve Cogman 9781101988664 Books Reviews

“I plan for the worst,’ Silver said. ‘That way, at least I’m dressed for the occasion.”

It is nice when there is a change up to the normal damsel in distress scenario and the person who needs to be rescued is the Dragon instead. Kia has been abducted by the Fae and taken deep into a chaos world to be sold off to the highest bidder. Irene will need to ride a magical train and create a narrative of epic scale if she is going to save him.

For a series about Libraries and Librarians they sure don’t spend a lot of time with actual books. That isn’t necessarily a bad thing just an interesting one. This is a world that has Dragon’s, Fae and a multiverse all held a little bit together by a Library that has a foothold in them all.

The ‘Language’ in this sorta feels a little like a cop out to me sometimes. It is cool and I guess it is like casting a spell of sorts but it has an ordinary feel to it and isn’t my favorite magic system. I love seeing the different worlds and going to a very high chaos world in search of Kia.

The best part of this book is going to the high chaos world. The worst part is the separation of Kia and Irene for the majority of the story. I like there budding duoship and how well they work together. Vale, the Sherlock Holmes type is nice but he isn’t a Dragon so I’m hoping for something on the Irene/Kia front in the future.

The introduction of some Dragon politics and war on the horizon if Irene can’t save Kia added all the more to the drama of the story. I just want a little more emotional connection to Irene I think. She is a witty character but I haven’t really connected to her in a meaningful way yet, although it seems being a librarian does come with some pretty intense training and she is good at practically everything. I guess I just want her to be a little less perfect and have a few things she isn’t exceptional at or at least have a flaw or two beyond looking ordinary.

Still this series is entertaining and I like the mash up of various worlds, dragons, fae and other lore.
COGMAN, Genevieve. The Masked City (The Invisible Library Novel). Ace. 2016. 384p. $16 (pb).
COGMAN, Genevieve. The Burning Page (The Invisible Library Novel). Ace. 2017. 368p. $16 (pb).

Having read and enjoyed novels 1 and 4 in The Invisible Library fantasy series, I ordered numbers 2 and 3 The Masked City and The Burning Page. The Masked City is set in an alt-Venice, despotic Council of Ten and all, in a world so heavy in chaos (vs. order) that it weakens Librarian Irene's apprentice, the (order oriented) dragon man Kai and almost poisons their human associate, the Victorian era Sherlock Holmes act-alike detective Vane, who will be plagued by the chaos taint he picks up in book 2 when he gets to book 3. City is about the kidnapping of Kai by a Fae husband and wife team seeking to use the kidnapping to drag Fae and dragons into a cosmos-rending war. Irene again saves the day but has to pay a penalty (again) for rashly crossing the Library's boundaries of proper (= cautious) behavior. The Burning Page is set, for the most part, in an alt-Napoleonic era Russia. Irene has to cure Vane of his chaos-infection, which is slowly but surely driving him mad. She has again (the first time was in The Invisible Library, 1) to battle against the rogue Librarian Alberich, powerful, dangerous, and vindictive toward Irene for having been foiled by her once before, as Alberich tries to destroy the entire Library.

Again, there are Fae and dragons, vampires and werewolves, complicated doings and one after another close shave, but Irene, one of the most attractive and enjoyable heroines in modern fantasy fiction, never ever gives up. There's even romance, Irene's attempts to resist her attraction to not one but two desirable males, Kai and Vale.

The better of these two books is The Masked City. For some reason, Irene's continuing battle with Alberich wears thin on me this time around. But the other characters -Kai and Vane, the debauched Fae lord Silver and creepy, scary Alberich-are winners, as is, especially and always, Irene.
This is what I wrote in my review of the other two books in the series. It still holds true "This is one of the best -and best humored-fantasy series I have come across in seventy years of reading them. Cogman can write, she can plot, and does milieu and atmosphere exceedingly well. If she continues this way, and it's clear she intends to write more of her Irene and Kai adventures, she could well become the P. G. Wodehouse of fantasy fiction, than which I have no higher praise."
I loved the first book in this series, The Invisible Library, and was incredibly excited to read this one. After devouring it in one sitting, I can safely say that the sequel does not disappoint.

The story begins with Irene and Kai going about their business as Librarian-in-Residence and her assistant when the story opens. There is a small time lapse between the end of the first book and this one, however I believe that it shows how the characters have adapted to their new situations. After a successful book retrieval mission, Kai is kidnapped and the real story begins.

As Irene is forced to negotiate with dragons and Fae alike, the reader is given an in-depth view of the world that builds upon the foundation established in the first novel. It was very interesting to see how Irene navigated the world of the Fae, using their own magic to her advantage (well, most of the time). This book takes us far outside of the sphere where Irene and Kai have made their home and it is utterly fascinating to see the contrast between the dragon and Fae controlled spheres.

Much like the first novel, Irene accomplishes her goals using mostly her intelligence with a little help from magic. I think what I enjoyed the most about this book is that the damsel in distress trope was given a role reversal. The male dragon was taken captive and was powerless to escape on his own and Irene had to undertake a quest to free him.

Overall, this was a highly enjoyable book and I would highly recommend it (although I do suggest reading the first book in the series first as it establishes the world and relationships present in this novel). As for the ending, it made waiting for the third book in the series slightly torturous.