The Librarian of Crooked Lane

The Glass Library, Book 1

By: C.J. Archer

Narrated by: Marian Hussey

A librarian with a mysterious past, a war hero with a secret, and the heist of a magic painting. The Librarian of Crooked Lane is an intriguing new fantasy from C.J. Archer, the USA Today best-selling author of the Glass and Steele series.

Librarian Sylvia Ashe knows nothing about her past, having grown up without a father and a mother who refused to discuss him. When she stumbles upon a diary that suggests she's descended from magicians, she's skeptical. After all, magicians are special, and she's just an ordinary woman who loves books. She seeks answers from a member of the most prominent family of magicians, but she quickly learns that finding the truth won't be easy, especially when he turns out to be as artless as her, and more compelling and dangerous than books.

War hero Gabe is gifted with wealth, a loving family, and an incredible amount of luck that saw him survive four harrowing years of a brutal war without injury. But not all injuries are visible. Burying himself in his work as a consultant for Scotland Yard, Gabe is going through the motions as he investigates the theft of a magician-made painting. But his life changes when he unwittingly gets Sylvia dismissed from her job and places her in danger.

After securing her new employment in a library housing the world's greatest collection of books about magic, Gabe and Sylvia's lives become intwined as they work together to find both the painting and the truth about Sylvia's past before powerful people can stop them.

But sometimes the past is better left buried?

©2022 C.J. Archer (P)2022 C.J. Archer

Too short! Wanted it to continue

Love this series, I wasn’t sure I would enjoy the continuation of the story with Gabe, but wow I love it! I was hoping a certain main character would show up at the end and was disappointed that didn’t happen, but it’s something to look forward to in future books! Amazing narration as always. I never write reviews, but I eagerly await next March for the next installment! Thank you for a great series!

Narrator is one of my favorites!

Marian Hussey is fantastic at different voices for each character, it keeps up the immersion.

Hope writer improves

There are a few good basics about this story line that are interesting, but this initial story fell short of being interesting. As she set the stage for more books, the plot took back seat.

The librarian

What a darling book!! I am so glad that I discovered this author, I am off to immediately begin listening to one of her other books.

New concept of magic

I enjoyed the narration and the premise. The story did lag for me at times and the ending felt rather abrupt, but overall a good read/listen.
I was disappointed, I think, because I didn’t realize it wasn’t a stand-alone. I wanted all my questions answered and they weren’t.