Reviews

The Book That Wouldn't Burn by Mark Lawrence

manonthann's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

literarydumpling's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

A high fantasy book about a library? Sign me up.

Had absolutely no idea what this book was going to hold and I was not prepared for the storylines it took me through. Incredibly well-crafted, but you need to have some more patience to get through this book if you tend to enjoy shorter chapters as lengths may vary. I found it more enjoyable when you have the time to sit down and enjoy a few chapters at once rather than bit by bit.

Once the hints started dropping, I was fully immersed and easily reading 100+ pages, if that gives any indication of how easy it is to read!

oceanatthesky's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

hoila's review against another edition

5.0

The trope of the infinite library might not be a new one, but I definitely liked the take of this one.

The world-building feels very organic and immersive, and the overall theme of the narrative is very poignant: What power does knowledge hold? Who gets to wield that power? And how can knowledge be salvation but downfall as well?
The play on perception and how what we learn (or what we are made to learn, or, actually, what knowledge is available to us to learn from) shapes our reality is extremely timely.

Beautifully written - loved the prose; there were some repetitive parts, but not to the point of getting tiresome.

This is a definite recommendation for everyone who loves fantasy and story-telling with engaging characters set in a post-(or pre-)apocalyptic world.

sberk0612's review

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.25

leastsquares's review

emotional mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

nukkoldv's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

What I liked most about this book, spoils the plot. But it's the main reason why I keep thinking about this book and why it's so fitting in this day and age. 

jessln23's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

martalisa's review against another edition

I wasn’t in the headspace to read a book that was this confusing for me. I might pick it up in the future when I can really think about it 

liannondev's review

adventurous mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75