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nerdalert219's review
DNF's half way. I really tried to get into the story but I just couldn't. The few editing errors I came across did not help my reading experience. I tried the audiobook and it was ok but the narrator had a slow pace. Don't know if that was intentional or not.
I don't know if I'll officially get rid of the book because my daughter is starting to become a reader (yay!) and she may like it.
I don't know if I'll officially get rid of the book because my daughter is starting to become a reader (yay!) and she may like it.
hlflosser's review
4.0
This was a cute adventurous interesting middle grade read. I love the imagination of the writer. I plan to continue on in this series
willrefuge's review
3.0
3.5 / 5 ✪
https://arefugefromlife.wordpress.com/2019/09/05/book-review-the-forbidden-library-by-django-wexler/
The Forbidden Library serves as my intro to Django Wexler, which probably isn’t for the best. I mean, it’s an alright read—moments of excitement, entertainment and intrigue all wrapped up in an 8 hour package—but it’s nothing to distract from the ARCs spread around me. Of course, I was reading this while playing Sniper Elite, for, while the gameplay is amazing, the story is boring.
Forbidden Library is actually excellent for multitasking purposes: an easy to follow story; a nice, quick read (it followed up the Ember Blade, which went for 30+); an interesting world filled with adequate characters and a lovely adventure.
Alice is an only child. Born to a single father during the early- to mid-20th century, she begins as a child of some means—with her own servants, gas lamps, governor and tutors.And yet this life is not for Alice, as she is soon to learn. She awakens one night to her father’s voice, raised in anger, talking to a mysterious stranger. Upon descending from her room, Alice finds him in an argument with a meager opponent—a small, pointy-eared, pointy-toothed, honest to goodness fairy. They argue over the life of a girl, and something Alice cannot guess, before she is forced to withdraw to her room. But not before she hears the fairy threaten him.
The very next day, her father is called away on business. A week later he is lost for good, disappeared along with the entire crew of the Gideon, en route to Buenos Aires. And Alice is left alone.
And yet, she does not want for long. Soon enough, a car comes for her; in it, a man representing her uncle Jerry. Alice accompanies him to her uncle, where she is confronted with far more than she ever bargained for. A vast library. A world of talking cats, fairies and more. A conflicted boy. And magic—the magic of books.
It’s… yeah, it’s okay.
I’m not sure I’d recommend it at full price, but on sale or from the library it’s a deal. I’m never sure exactly how to rate YA books. I mean, if they’re too infantile, they’re barely worth reading at any age. Granted, I don’t read a whole lot of them, so. Otherwise… well, the line is blurry.
There’s a decent amount of intrigue and backstabbing in this, which surprised me. Otherwise it’s your plain, run-of-the-mill YA fantasy, complete with a budding-maybe romance, a simple mystery, a sparsely detailed world, interesting if generally shallow characters. It’s worth posting out that over the course of the next few books, several of the main characters featured in the Forbidden Library DO evolve depth—but as the focal point in the first book is adventure, that element is left behind.
I liked Alice—as a character, as a person. Comparing her to other YA stars, she’s more than competent, her emotions are more complex, she’s definitely fleshed out as to actually appear human. When comparing her to some other characters—Thomas, from the Maze Runner; Cassidy, from City of Ghosts—she’s more relatable, less juvenile, more descriptive. Basically what you’d want in a lead.
So… yeah, I’d recommend it. The story is okay, as are the plot, mystery, magic and dialogue. The development and detail are a little lacking, but the intrigue and lead character are where the book most shines. I’d read it, and plan to continue the series (just finished #2, in fact).
Audiobook note: the reader was pretty good, while not amazing. Not my favorite, but she tried. I’d try a sample at least if you’re planning on buying this, as at certain points I found her voice grating, and yet I got used to it quick enough. She’s [Cassandra Morris] better in the second book, really.
https://arefugefromlife.wordpress.com/2019/09/05/book-review-the-forbidden-library-by-django-wexler/
The Forbidden Library serves as my intro to Django Wexler, which probably isn’t for the best. I mean, it’s an alright read—moments of excitement, entertainment and intrigue all wrapped up in an 8 hour package—but it’s nothing to distract from the ARCs spread around me. Of course, I was reading this while playing Sniper Elite, for, while the gameplay is amazing, the story is boring.
Forbidden Library is actually excellent for multitasking purposes: an easy to follow story; a nice, quick read (it followed up the Ember Blade, which went for 30+); an interesting world filled with adequate characters and a lovely adventure.
Alice is an only child. Born to a single father during the early- to mid-20th century, she begins as a child of some means—with her own servants, gas lamps, governor and tutors.And yet this life is not for Alice, as she is soon to learn. She awakens one night to her father’s voice, raised in anger, talking to a mysterious stranger. Upon descending from her room, Alice finds him in an argument with a meager opponent—a small, pointy-eared, pointy-toothed, honest to goodness fairy. They argue over the life of a girl, and something Alice cannot guess, before she is forced to withdraw to her room. But not before she hears the fairy threaten him.
The very next day, her father is called away on business. A week later he is lost for good, disappeared along with the entire crew of the Gideon, en route to Buenos Aires. And Alice is left alone.
And yet, she does not want for long. Soon enough, a car comes for her; in it, a man representing her uncle Jerry. Alice accompanies him to her uncle, where she is confronted with far more than she ever bargained for. A vast library. A world of talking cats, fairies and more. A conflicted boy. And magic—the magic of books.
It’s… yeah, it’s okay.
I’m not sure I’d recommend it at full price, but on sale or from the library it’s a deal. I’m never sure exactly how to rate YA books. I mean, if they’re too infantile, they’re barely worth reading at any age. Granted, I don’t read a whole lot of them, so. Otherwise… well, the line is blurry.
There’s a decent amount of intrigue and backstabbing in this, which surprised me. Otherwise it’s your plain, run-of-the-mill YA fantasy, complete with a budding-maybe romance, a simple mystery, a sparsely detailed world, interesting if generally shallow characters. It’s worth posting out that over the course of the next few books, several of the main characters featured in the Forbidden Library DO evolve depth—but as the focal point in the first book is adventure, that element is left behind.
I liked Alice—as a character, as a person. Comparing her to other YA stars, she’s more than competent, her emotions are more complex, she’s definitely fleshed out as to actually appear human. When comparing her to some other characters—Thomas, from the Maze Runner; Cassidy, from City of Ghosts—she’s more relatable, less juvenile, more descriptive. Basically what you’d want in a lead.
So… yeah, I’d recommend it. The story is okay, as are the plot, mystery, magic and dialogue. The development and detail are a little lacking, but the intrigue and lead character are where the book most shines. I’d read it, and plan to continue the series (just finished #2, in fact).
Audiobook note: the reader was pretty good, while not amazing. Not my favorite, but she tried. I’d try a sample at least if you’re planning on buying this, as at certain points I found her voice grating, and yet I got used to it quick enough. She’s [Cassandra Morris] better in the second book, really.
annettebooksofhopeanddreams's review against another edition
4.0
Last week was a slow week at work. It was also a slow week energy wise. And therefore I ended up googling "Alice in Wonderland" retellings. I stumbled upon this middle grade. Although I'm not the target audience anymore, I do enjoy a nice middle grade once in a while. So, I decided to order the book, it helped that it was only 5 euros, and this morning I started reading.
I've been a reader since I learned how to and if I had discovered this book as a kid I would have been over the moon. I still enjoyed the story a few decades later. This is the dream of every bookworm kid. Being a special kind of reader, being able to read magical books, being able to jump into books, to fight the creatures imprisoned in the book or to travel to another world.
And although no one ever talked about Wonderland, it's clear the author did use a lot of well known Wonderland elements. The Forbidden Library was constantly changing. There were grinning cats. There was a dragon. There was a nice cottage in the wood with not so nice inhabitants. And Alice almost drowned because of a close space filling up with water.
The author however also built an entirely new and original world to explore. This book was mostly about Alice discovering her special ability, training it and exploring it. However, it's clear that there is a lot going on in this world. I can't wait to read the sequels and to see what adventures, both outside the books and inside, are waiting for us and Alice!
I've been a reader since I learned how to and if I had discovered this book as a kid I would have been over the moon. I still enjoyed the story a few decades later. This is the dream of every bookworm kid. Being a special kind of reader, being able to read magical books, being able to jump into books, to fight the creatures imprisoned in the book or to travel to another world.
And although no one ever talked about Wonderland, it's clear the author did use a lot of well known Wonderland elements. The Forbidden Library was constantly changing. There were grinning cats. There was a dragon. There was a nice cottage in the wood with not so nice inhabitants. And Alice almost drowned because of a close space filling up with water.
The author however also built an entirely new and original world to explore. This book was mostly about Alice discovering her special ability, training it and exploring it. However, it's clear that there is a lot going on in this world. I can't wait to read the sequels and to see what adventures, both outside the books and inside, are waiting for us and Alice!
izedriftwood's review
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.75
raechsreads's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
A young girl looses her father after seeing a magical creature in her house. She's sent to a distant uncle's home, where there's even more mysteries. Suddenly, she finds out there are many things that draw her curiosity. An amazing book of adventure, mystery, and magic. The characters are well written and help bring the story to life.
hedyharper's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Blood, Child abuse, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Confinement, Stalking, Violence, Animal death, and Toxic friendship
ravengrimsbane's review
3.0
Take a look, it's in a book...
sorry, couldn't resist
After losing her father, Alice is taken in by an "uncle" she never knew existed. One night, she sneaks into the library she was warned to not go into (what better way to make a child want to go somewhere, right?), and discovers she can read certain books, and literally enter a different world.
The book was ok. I think my biggest complaint is that I had no concept of how much time passed in the story, and as a result, things seemed rushed.
sorry, couldn't resist
After losing her father, Alice is taken in by an "uncle" she never knew existed. One night, she sneaks into the library she was warned to not go into (what better way to make a child want to go somewhere, right?), and discovers she can read certain books, and literally enter a different world.
The book was ok. I think my biggest complaint is that I had no concept of how much time passed in the story, and as a result, things seemed rushed.
gottimus's review
4.0
I liked this series. It's a good Young Adult book that has magic and mystery. I really enjoyed how the kids learned magic.