Howdy Readers!

Hope your workweek ended up well enough. I’m still scrambling with grad school work, so I’m keeping this intro short.

Today I’m sharing my review of The Library of the Dead (Edinburgh Nights #1) by T.L. Huchu. 

I haven’t ever read anything by this author, but the paranormal theme really spoke to me so I decided to give this a chance. How’d it end up? Let’s find out!

Blurb

When a child goes missing in Edinburgh’s darkest streets, young Ropa investigates. She’ll need to call on Zimbabwean magic as well as her Scottish pragmatism to hunt down clues. But as shadows lengthen, will the hunter become the hunted?

When ghosts talk, she will listen…

Ropa dropped out of school to become a ghostalker. Now she speaks to Edinburgh’s dead, carrying messages to the living. A girl’s gotta earn a living, and it seems harmless enough. Until, that is, the dead whisper that someone’s bewitching children–leaving them husks, empty of joy and life. It’s on Ropa’s patch, so she feels honor-bound to investigate. But what she learns will change her world.

She’ll dice with death (not part of her life plan…), discovering an occult library and a taste for hidden magic. She’ll also experience dark times. For Edinburgh hides a wealth of secrets, and Ropa’s gonna hunt them all down.

GoodReads

Amazon

***Brief disclosure***

I am an Amazon affiliate and earn a tiny commission for purchases made through the Amazon links in this post at no cost to you. It’s a great way to help me keep things running on my blog if you’re already intrigued enough to make a purchase. 

The Review

Living in the slums of Edinburgh and taking care of her Gran and little sister is all Ropa knows. She makes a living ghostalking to the dead and delivering messages back and forth to their relatives, but that all changes when a spirit begs for her to help find her missing son. As Ropa delves into this mystery, she unwittingly embarks on a path towards self-discovery, magic, and the darkness that surrounds her community.

Though not without its flaws, this book was a magic-filled and entertaining adventure.

I read the audiobook version, and the narrator’s voice helped establish a clearer vision of Ropa’s voice, mindset, and her internal struggles. At the same time, some of the slang used was hard to interpret. I live in the states, and I found myself constantly pausing to look up words. That took me out of the story, and I have a feeling other readers will need to do the same. I also found the abundant use of popular landmarks in Edinburgh to draw me out of the story as well. It made sense to make note of them and lent some authenticity, but to the average American that isn’t aware of what these landmarks are it creates confusion.

Flaws aside, Ropa was a great main character. She’s headstrong, curious, and scrappy, all traits that I love in characters. I was instantly drawn to her personality. A lot of the story was made greater by her constant sarcasm and funny metaphors, and that made the darker themes of this book easier to digest. I also loved the wisdom of her Gran and annoyance of her little sister. All of these characters felt three-dimensional.

The plot moves fast in this book, so be ready to grip the edge of your seat. Once Ropa starts her journey to find the missing boy, there’s a key element of mystery that dominates her actions. These leads to many discoveries, some of magical, some horrific, and some lighthearted. This book definitely gives all the feels, and I appreciated that. These events also greatly affect Ropa and how she approaches the world, considering her no-nonsense stance at the beginning.

While not perfect, I feel any lover of fantasy, mystery, and light horror will have a great time reading this.

That’s A Wrap!

Well that’s it for this book review. I hope you enjoyed it!

Have you read this book? Are there other similar books you’ve read that you simply have to gush about? Feel free to leave a comment. I’d love to start a conversation!

Have a great day!

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