The Book of Secrets – Melissa McShane

Disclaimer: I requested this novel through NetGalley and was given a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

Helena Davies just wants a job that will get her out of her parents’ basement. Abernathy’s Bookstore is disorganized, out of the way, and smells funny, but it pays well and promises to at least be interesting. She has no idea how interesting her life will become. By the end of the first day, Helena has a dead boss in the basement, an unexpected promotion, and the news that she is now a part of an endless war against creatures from another reality.

As Abernathy’s newest custodian, Helena is responsible for its secrets, including the most important one: Abernathy’s isn’t just a bookstore. It’s the world’s only living oracle, producing prophecies to help fight the war against alien invaders bent on draining this world of its magic. Helena’s job is to find books to answer questions put to the oracle by the Wardens, fighters in the Long War. It seems simple enough, but Helena’s new job is anything but.

She has allies: her best friend Viv, from whom she has no secrets; Harry and Harriet Keller, elderly magi skilled at uncovering secrets; and the enigmatic Malcolm Campbell, warrior magus and one of the few who have faith in Helena’s abilities. But not everyone is thrilled that an outsider now has charge of one of the world’s most powerful magical entities. Helena must defend herself against the antagonism of Judy Rasmussen, who’d expected to be the next custodian of Abernathy’s, and her father William, powerful leader of the Wardens and someone with an agenda of his own.

Without training, without any knowledge of the magical world, and facing the hostility of those who’d wanted someone else to be Abernathy’s custodian, Helena must navigate the treacherous waters of her new world and find a place for herself within it. But there’s still a murderer on the loose, someone who intended to control Abernathy’s by killing its custodian—and Helena might be next on his list.

This cover is what initially caught my attention. A young woman clutching a book with a tentacle emerging from it. It is apparent that this book deals with magic and some type of creatures. The description was what really pulled me in. I mean, I would love to work at a bookstore…but I am unsure I would have been as strong as Helena and handled those events with such composure.

The first day of any new job can be scary, what happens on her first day is terrifying. She is thrust into being in charge of Abernathy…what is much more than your average bookstore. I remember my first day on an old job…Wal-mart electronics associate. I was left alone my first night, in charge of five departments…with no telson access. It was a nightmare, but nothing compared to Helena’s first day on the job! How crazy would it be if we discovered that something as ordinary looking as an old bookstore was one of our major defenses against creatures that desperately wanted to drain something special from all of us…killing our kind. And now you are in charge…no training or knowledge of this magical realm at all. That is truly a nightmare.

The plot in this book moves well, with turns of events right where you would expect them. I did feel that some plot points were left unfinished, but that could be intentionally done…this is the first book fo the series after all. What could have been a dramatic battle scene, ended up being anti-climatic. There was some information dumping, but it was done in a way that worked well for the story. The information was provided to us as Helena learned it herself. Overall, I really enjoyed the plot. It sets the second book up nicely.

I finished this book in two days, the pace never dull. It seemed as if there was something new happening in each chapter. A new character introduced or a new problem for Helena to deal with. I enjoyed how quickly I was able to move through this. I had to put it down the first day because I began reading at 11pm and had to get up early to prepare my kids for school. I often thought about how drastically my mundane life would be if I was a part of defending the peace between the magical realm and our world.

The characters each had an individual voice and were well written. I did feel there could have been more development. I do not feel a strong connection with any of them, but then again…this is an introduction to the story and characters. I will hopefully see more of them and develop a connection in the future. I really like Helena. She is a strong female character. Despite her life being turned upside down, and new problems being thrown her way at every turn, she never gives in. She knows she was chosen for this job…and is willing to risk her life to find out why.

In the end, this book is a great read filled with magic. There is a possabiltiy of future romance, but it was refreshing to read somthing that lacked it. I was happy to see the story focused primarly on the problems and action at hand. I look forward to seeing where the characters and story go in the second installment of this series.