Book Review: The Librarian of Crooked Lane by C.J. Archer
The Details
Media Type: Kindle Book
Title: The Librarian of Crooked Lane
Author(s): C.J. Archer
Publisher: Self-published
Pages/Length: Kindle, 279
Release Date: September 6, 2022
Source: Library Borrow
Add it on: Goodreads | Amazon | Bookshop
A librarian with a mysterious past, a war hero with a secret, and the heist of a magic painting. THE LIBRARIAN OF CROOKED LANE is an intriguing new fantasy from C.J. Archer, the USA Today bestselling author of the Glass and Steele series.
Librarian Sylvia Ashe knows nothing about her past, having grown up without a father and a mother who refused to discuss him. When she stumbles upon a diary that suggests she’s descended from magicians, she’s skeptical. After all, magicians are special, and she’s just an ordinary girl who loves books. She seeks the truth from a member of the most prominent family of magicians, but she quickly learns that finding the truth won’t be easy, especially when he turns out to be as artless as her, and more compelling and dangerous than books.
War hero Gabe is gifted with wealth, a loving family, and an incredible amount of luck that saw him survive four harrowing years of a brutal war without injury. But not all injuries are visible. Burying himself in his work as a consultant for Scotland Yard, Gabe is going through the motions as he investigates the theft of a magician-made painting. But his life changes when he unwittingly gets Sylvia dismissed from her job and places her in danger.
After securing her new employment in a library housing the world’s greatest collection of books about magic, Gabe and Sylvia’s lives become intwined as they work together to find both the painting and the truth about Sylvia’s past before powerful people can stop them.
But sometimes the past is better left buried…
The Review
Put a book in front of me that features a library, magical or otherwise, and I’m 100% in to read it. Add in a mystery element, and I’ll sit on a library waiting list for ages just for a chance to dive in. Which is where my read of The Librarian of Crooked Lane came from. The cover caught me, the synopsis sold it, and I patiently waited for my turn to experience the story. Happily I will say, I think that I’ve found a new series to love!
Sylvia is my favorite kind of character. She’s quick-witted, strong-willed, and yet still manages to unwittingly find herself in the middle of things she wasn’t prepared for. I do indeed see myself in Sylvia! The fact that C.J. Archer set her characters in a world where women are still expected to prim and proper made this even more fun. Sylvia is not a high society lady, but she’s expected to play in that realm. Watching her deal with those we deigned to look down on her, when they definitely shouldn’t have underestimated her, made this a joy to read.
Oh, and Gabe! A dashing man. A Scotland Yard consultant. An absolutely swoon-worthy gentleman who finds himself in Sylvia’s path and sets off the whole adventure. I loved Gabe. I truly wish we could have gotten some more backstory on him, but I’m sure that’s coming. In the meantime, I loved the interactions between these two and yes, I did want them to end up together. No, I won’t spoil and tell you how that went. What made me even happier was that every character in this book just exudes personality. From the gruff by teddy bear of a man, aptly named Cyclops. To the sharp-shooting and prickly Willy. Each character shines.
Now, to the complaints. I know, I know. You’re wondering why I rated this book this three stars. Truly, it was the pacing. While the writing and the characters here are solid, The Librarian of Crooked Lane suffers greatly from how slow moving it is. There are a lot of subplots introduced at once. We’re treated to Sylvia’s potentially magical background, to Gabe’s past, to Gabe’s present (here is where I tell you the love triangle felt very forced), and then to the actual mystery the book is steeped in regarding magical artwork. This would be fine, except the story takes a very meandering road towards resolving everything. While I admit the book does fill in plot holes at the end, it felt very unsatisfying overall.
However, I will try the second book in this series! My hope is that, with the introductions and foundations out of the way, the pace and excitement will pick up. I’m a very character driven reader, and I like Sylvia too much not to follow her into whatever comes next. If that’s you too, you might enjoy this book.
