This series keeps getting better!!!! This was so good. I could do without the hints of romances to come, but beyond that it's just crazy book-loving non-stop action, and so much fun.

This series is getting better with each book. Hopefully it stays that way.

Not as good as The Invisible Library, better than The Masked City. Diverting and fun. I still worry about the hints of a coming romantic triangle. I would like to see more character development in the next installment; there hasn't been much growth or change for Irene, Kai, Vale, or Singh. I'm still loving the way The Language works!

[Thom Yorke voice] (I’ve been) LEEEEEEEEEEEET DOOOOOOOWN—

Where to begin…

Compared to the genre-bending, adventurous thrill-ride of the first book, The Burning Page feels incredibly watered down. If The Masked City was the (possible) result of Cogman having used up her ideas, then this was the unfortunate after-product.

The plot felt tragically weak. It fell into the tragic trap of having a villain so powerful that…the readers don’t seem to care. Yes, he’s toyed with Irene and company before with some disastrous results, but there don’t seem to be any stakes. As much as I love Marvel, Alberich feels like some of the MCU’s worse villains (ex. Dormammu above)–they’re all-powerful, but there’s hardly any stakes behind them, other than the possibility of tearing the fabric of the world(s) apart. Though Alberich did make some extended appearances in The Burning Page, he only served to make the stakes feel much lower.


Additionally, this book relied heavily on the reader’s enjoyment of the previous elements of the books. There weren’t any sort of new threats–we have the usual werewolves, fae, and dragons, but hardly anything novel (no pun intended) to grab the reader’s attention. Even The Masked City introduced the societal structure and politics of the dragons, but The Burning Page didn’t have much to offer. You’d think that with the possibility of alternate dimensions, there are INFINITE worlds and creatures that dwell in them that Cogman could have used, but sadly, it seems that she’s playing it very safe. Very safe.

But, this isn’t to say that I didn’t enjoy the book somewhat. I appreciated the extended look into the structure of the Library and some of the other librarians, so that was a good bit of world-building on Cogman’s part. And although the fact that every dimension seems to be fantasy/steampunk versions of historical places (England, Italy, France, etc.), I enjoyed the new setting of St. Petersburg and all of the details that went into it. The flying sleighs were especially entertaining, and the new setting was a nice reprieve from the dullness of the first half of the book.

Overall, a disappointing addition to the Invisible Library series, but one that at least merited a few entertaining elements. I don’t think I have the will to finish the series now, but it was fun while it lasted. 3.5 sad little stars.

One of my favorites so far as it finally engineers a showdown between Irene and the Library's arch-enemy, and still only three stars. These are fun as far as plots and world-building, but I can't work up any feeling at all for the characters.

Still enjoying Irene's adventures, though I could have wish for more of Lord Silver in this one, and Kai's possessiveness and jealousy are becoming tiresome. Zayanna is an entertaining adversary.

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Update: I couldn't remember if I had read this book, so I picked up a copy at the library and started going through it. My review here says I read it almost exactly a year ago, but it apparently left no impression on me because very little of what I (re)read so far seems familiar. Apparently it underwhelmed me the first time.