The Invisible Library cover art

The Invisible Library

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The Invisible Library

By: Genevieve Cogman
Narrated by: Kristin Atherton
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About this listen

One spy. One dangerous book. One deadly mission. Discover the first book in this gripping fantasy mystery series – The Invisible Library is the astounding debut from bestselling author Genevieve Cogman.

Perfect for fans of Mr Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan, Jasper Fforde's The Eyre Affair or Ben Aaronovitch's Rivers of London.

'I absolutely loved this' – N.K. Jemisin, author of The Fifth Season


Irene is a professional spy for the mysterious Library, whose staff are sent to different realities to harvest dangerous and mystical fiction.

Irene has been posted to an alternative steampunk London along with her enigmatic new assistant, Kai. Their mission: to retrieve a dangerous edition of Grimms' Fairy Tales. But it has already been stolen.

In London's underground, the laws of nature have been bent – supernatural creatures and unpredictable magic stalk the land. The city is home to vampires, werewolves – factions that are all prepared to fight to the death for this book.

Irene must face a web of deadly danger, deception and secret societies. Her new assistant is hiding secrets of his own. Yet failure is not an option – the nature of reality itself is at stake . . .

Continue the journey with the adventurous second title in the Invisible Library series, The Masked City.

Praise for the series:


'I absolutely loved this' – N. K. Jemisin, author of The Fifth Season

'Irene is a great heroine: fiery, resourceful and no one's fool' – The Guardian

'Cogman keeps upping the ante on this delightful series!' – Charles Stross, author of the Merchant Princes series

Action & Adventure Dragons & Mythical Creatures Fantasy Fiction Historical Science Fiction Magic Paranormal Emotionally Gripping England

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Critic reviews

I absolutely loved this ... flavored with truly unique mythology and a dash of the eldritch. Such clever, creepy, elaborate worldbuilding and snarky, sexy-smart characters (N.K. Jemisin, author of the Broken Earth series, including The Fifth Season)
A dazzling bibliophilic debut (Charles Stross, author of the Laundry Files, including The Atrocity Archives)
It's a breath of fresh air ... with a companionable heroine in Irene, and a satisfyingly complex plot, The Invisible Library - the first of a series - is a book in which to wallow
Written in a similar vein to Deborah Harkness's All Souls trilogy ... Contemporary meets fairy-take in this novel
Cogman writes with a vivacity and wittiness that breathes new life into the genre . . . Reminiscent of the works of Diana Wynne Jones and Neil Gaiman, Cogman's novel is a true treat to read
Surrender to the sheer volume of fun that appears on every page...thoroughly entertaining
Fantasy doesn't get much better ... If you're looking for a swift, clever and witty read, look no further
This witty and spirited adventure sets up a potential gold mine of lore for the writer to plunder in future sequels ... a fun and original page-turner
Highly entertaining ... It reminded me a lot of Jasper Fforde's Thursday Next series
The Invisible Library is everything I could ever want out of a book . . . a stunning work of art that has me absolutely begging for more
Hits the spot straight from the opening page ... one of the most pleasurable debuts of the year
An adventure story to delight the heart . . . The characters of Irene, her companion and those they encounter are vividly drawn, and the story moves along at breakneck speed to a thoroughly satisfying conclusion
A book that was a sheer joy to spend time with ... solid prose alongside great pace
Cogman's dialogue is clever and funny, and her characters delightfully flawed. With this book she has crafted an exciting, fast-paced introduction to a world you will yearn to revisit ... Books such as The Maze Runner and The Hunger Games series are paving the way for stories like this
A mix of Doctor Who, Fringe and The Librarians . . . Genevieve Cogman has crafted a well-paced, smart and fun novel that will certainly be a quick read for most people
The Invisible Library is currently at the top of my list of favourite books read this year . . . so much fun
Cogman's debut is a tremendously fun, rip-roaring adventure with protagonists that are easy to love and a setting that couldn't have suited my tastes better ... I can't wait for the second instalment
I've seen it compared to Doctor Who, I'm sure it'll be compared to Harry Potter, and it'll probably get compared to every Anglophile novel full of vim and fun that's ever been written. These comparisons will all be well-earned
All stars
Most relevant
I bought this book a couple of years back and couldn’t listen for more than 5minutes I ended up returning it. I noticed it had been updated with a new narrator so gave it another go…what a difference! Great book for lovers of Jodi Taylor/Jasper Fforde and the like

New Narration makes all the difference!

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Thanks God, they re-did the first audio with Kristin Atherton! It was so damn good!
I was totally immerged in the audio. The plot, the characters, the world-building. I ABSOLUTELY loved everything!

Thanks God for the new narrator

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Original plot, interesting characters but, best of all, brilliant narration. Clear and crisp. Each character was easy to identify, even when several characters were gathered together. I will look out for more books narrated by Kristin Atherton.

Original plot. Brilliant narration

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Well, the storyline is massively far fetched, but the narrator gives it amazing credulity. What a talent. Well done. I know find I must listen to all the stories ( are there any more).

Oscar worthy narration

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I liked the idea of this novel but it was rather confused and not brilliantly performed. A better editor and a better narrator and this would be a different proposition. Not to be recommended, I’m afraid.

Could be better

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