A review by booksnorkel
The Forbidden Library by Django Wexler

3.0

Not as strong as I wanted, and there was a lot of things that needed to be explained a little better. But overall an interesting concept that if I can find the second book in this series for cheap I will read it.

Following Alice after her father's death she is shipped off to parts unknown to live with an estranged uncle who has a library so large it has it's own building. Alice soon discovers that there are books in the library that she shouldn't open. They are in fact prisons for creatures too dangerous to be let loose upon the world and they are too magical to stay in their own. They have to be contained in books and only special readers can fight and then later bring them into our world and control them. Older readers have become corrupt using their apprentices to fight and steal from each other for more powerful creatures to have control over. Alice is caught in the middle and has to not only be her uncle's apprentice, go into books to enslave the creatures contained within, but she also has to decide which side she is on in a power struggle where there seems to be no clear good guys or bad guys.

This book did have a lot of lag time. I found myself skimming parts and wishing there was a bit more trimming of the fat if you will. But the style was good though I don't think I would want to pay full price for a hardcover.

For both girls and boys, grades 5 and up who like reading, fantasy, and suspense.