4 ⭐ CW: Descriptions of large spiders, death, substance use

The Burning Page by Genevieve Cogman is book three in The Invisible Library series. I just love how fun these books are with the over the top fantasy elements and wonderful characters, and an enigmatic villain. This series is great if you are reading to escape. 

We pick up with Irene and Kai after the events of the last book. Someone is trying to kill Irene, and she ends up trusting a fae she probably shouldnt. Just like any good villain, Alberich doesn't stay dead, and he's back at it again and has it out for the Library. Unfortunately, Vale is suffering the consequences of going to a high chaos world, and has plunged into a depression and has gone back to using drugs. 

Alberich has set his sights on destroying the Library, while trying to convince Irene to join him, saying that the Library shouldn't be a neutral force, but a uniting one. He's definitely got megalomaniac vibes. I really love all the characters we see more of in this book. The fae are so fascinating, mostly because they are archetypes, and as a reader we recognize that. We also learn that Kai's servant, Li Ming, is a trans man, and that dragons just believe people when they say what their gender is. I also love getting to travel to different alternate worlds to see how they are all different. We are starting to see more of a development of a love triangle between Irene, Kai, and Vale. Personally I'm rooting for polyamory there. 

This is just a fun read with all the elements of fantasy we all love. We also get the start of themes around questioning authority and the status quo. I'm looking forward to seeing where the story goes over the next books.