Reviews
Remember the Pagemaster? The 1994 American live-action animated film starring Macaulay Culkin where he gets transported into the realms of famous books? Well, Libriomancer plays with a similar concept: What if books were actually magic and one was able to harness their power to pull out objects to defend themselves from vampires? Okay. So its not exactly like the Pagemaster but both share the share theme: both the Pagemaster and Libriomancer are about the magic of books. Being a librarian, like the main character of Libriomancer, I loved this book. Jim Hines has created a system where the magic of books becomes real, usable, and not always safe. Isaac is a libriomancer, a member of a secret organization founded by Johannes Gutenberg to protect the world from supernatural threats. Able to magically reach into books and pull forth objects, libriomancers are the protectors of our world. When vampires leaked from the pages of our world attack Isaac, he teams up with a ass-kicking dryad named Lena to slay some vamps and to unravel the supernatural mystery lurking in the UP. This is a book written for geeks like me, who've always dreamed of holding Excalibur, a light saber, a ray gun and fighting evil. It combine witty pop culture references with urban fantasy quite nicely and is a fast-paced adventure/supernatural thriller. recommended for fans of: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, The Librarians, Terry Pratchett, and Patrick Rothfuss.
I liked the magic system and the attitudes toward relationships depicted in this book. Other than that, it was a little light. I'm not sure I buy the way the Porters were depicted, and the system of regulation on magic users. But this is the first book by Mr. Hines I've read. Perhaps the background is laid elsewhere. I listened to the book on audio. It was fine, except the narrator didn't pronounce "automaton" correctly. Ever.
Full review now posted! Is there anything that appeals to bookworms more than an ode to books themselves? Not in my experience. Does that mean that every book about books or libraries or bookshops is going to fulfill my expectations? Nope. Thankfully, this one didn’t disappoint. We all know the magic that can be found between the covers of a book. But now, imagine that said magic was literal, and that you could actually reach into a book and pluck out an object if your imagination was strong enough. That’s the kind of power that our protagonist, Isaac Vainio, has found and given up and found again. He’s a libriomancer; as long as it will fit through the page, Isaac can draw both mundane and magical objects from the books that contain them. What an amazing idea for a magic system! In Hines’ series, so much of our world has been impacted by the power of books, and yet little of the population is aware of these changes. Werewolves, vampires, and more have been shaped by the collective imagination of readers worldwide. The Porters, a guild of libriomancers and other magic wielders, are tasked with protecting the world from magical interference unleashed by this collective imagination, as well as keeping the mundane population ignorant of magic. My favorite part of this book besides the book-based magic is Isaac, our main character. At first, Isaac seems like a carbon copy of our average urban fantasy male protagonist: down on his luck, hunted, more powerful than he knows, fan of long coats with lots of pockets, in possession of a strange magical pet, and seemingly controlled by his libido. Isaac is all of these things, but he’s also joyful and transparent and emotional and has somehow maintained an innocence that is incredibly sweet. What makes Isaac so powerful in his imagination and belief, both of which are aided by that aforementioned innocence. His innocence isn’t all-encompassing, however. Isaac is joined on his adventure by Lena Greenwood, who is magical in her own right. And man, does Isaac ever have the hots for her. This causes problems that I’ll leave you to find for yourself. Lena was a fascinating character, but sadly one I can’t say much about without spoiling some of the side-plotting. What I can say is that she is fierce and loyal with a voluptuous beauty that belies how dangerous she can be. Besides Isaac and Lena, my other favorite character was Smudge, the fire-spider Isaac plucked from a book but was unable to make himself return. Smudge is one of the most adorable pets I’ve come across in urban fantasy, even if he is a spider. His mannerisms and loyalty to Isaac was just so incredibly cute! This book was a fun, quick read. The only reason it’s not a five-star read for me is the weird love-triangle aspect. Love triangles are a pet peeve of mine, so its inclusion diminished my enjoyment of the book. However, I’ll definitely be continuing with the series, and I heartily recommend it to any urban fantasy fan who loves books in and of themselves. Original review can be found at Booknest.
I have been reading a number of books about books and other bookish type things lately. And so far I have been thoroughly enjoying all of them. I especially enjoy them when I am able to get the references that the author throws out. This book had both elements I did expect and didn't expect. It was fairly reminiscent of the tv show the Librarians in my opinion, which I love. And honestly, what bibliophile would not want a magical power to be able to pull objects from books! Plenty of references to books (both real and fictional), plenty of reference to things in pop culture (especially Doctor Who and Firefly, two of my favorite things), and some good old fashion magical action. I think the main story line is really the only thing that sort of threw me off. Not that I didn't enjoy it, but I went into this book not reading too much about it, and not reading the synopsis, other than the main character Isaac is a libriomancer, a person who can pull certain objects out of books. I think I went into it thinking up a different story in my head than the one that was actually written, but that was nice because that meant it wasn't like any other books I had read and I was pleasantly surprised. I highly recommend it. Oh, and then there is Smudge. You have got to meet Smudge!
