Claire is the Head Librarian in charge of the Unwritten Wing. In Hell. Yes, all stories not finished by their authors are shelved in a neutral space in Hell, off-limits to the various factions always striving for dominance under "His Crankiness," as Claire calls Lucifer. The main job of the librarian is to keep the characters from manifesting as a physical presence and tracking down their authors, demanding to be completed. "There's nothing stronger than an unwritten book's fascination with its author." But Claire's latest retrieval job goes pear-shaped when a fallen angel decides that she and her companions have the Devil's Bible. Can they all survive long enough to retrieve the missing Hero, solve the mystery of this ancient volume all the demons and angels are after, and make it back to the library?

The story is intriguing and the setting puts a unique spin on what the afterlife might be like. In this world, "We all get the afterlife our soul requires." Various realms of the afterlife like Valhalla or ancient Egyptian planes all exist, along with a Heaven managed by Uriel in the Creator's name, and the darker realm of "His Grouchiness." Claire wound up in Hell, although we aren't told the reasons behind that determination. Her assistant is a former muse named Brevity, and details on her backstory are even sketchier than Claire's - which gives readers good reasons to check out the next book in the series. Other companions include the demon courier Leto, the escapee from the unwritten book, and Andras the Curator of the Arcane Wing of the Library.

Bits and pieces of each character's past are woven into their interactions with each other, building the tension as readers begin to see connections between what is happening and previous choices and actions. Scenes such as a duel between bards in Valhalla are captivating, and there are lots of juicy quotable bits such as "Only books died in Hell. Everyone else had to live with their choices." (Doesn't that need to be on a t-shirt or coffee mug?) By the end of this adventure there are alliances, betrayals (what else can you expect in Hell), and some changes within the power structure of the afterlife. And the characters are poised to begin the next book - as long as it doesn't wind up on the shelves in the Unwritten Wing.

Highly recommended for YA and adult readers who enjoy stories that deal with the power of books and words, adventures through various realms, and tough librarians. All quotes are from that ARC and may be subject to change before final publication.

So, I was pulled right in by the base premise of this one… Unwritten books have dangerous potential and power so they reside in a very unique library… in Hell. Determined and stubborn caring Librarians, escaped characters, muses, angels and demons “people” this clever series starter. I am very curious to see how this continues as a series and hope for more storytelling duels. For fans of Genevieve Cogman, Natasha Pulley, and Pratchett and Gaiman’s Good Omens.

This was a really fun representation of hell and heaven, with a lovely library thrown in. The characters were well-fleshed out and I was excited to learn what happened to all of them. I was pleased with the relative lack of romance, as the book did quite well plot wise without needing an intense love story. I LOVED all the queer representation in this book, it's always refreshing to read a story that isn't exclusively filled with heterosexuality. Overall I enjoyed this book, and I really hope we get to read more about Hell's Library!

Built on a fascinating and imaginative concept — there is a place in Hell for stories unfinished by their authors — The Library of the Unwritten by A.J. Hackwith is an entertaining read with much more going for it than a great idea. With plenty of twists and turns, complex and interesting characters, exciting action sequences and a sprinkling of humor, it is one of the best books I’ve read this year.

This review is based on an advance copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley for that purpose. The book will be available on October 1, 2019.

As an author whose writing career can be charitably described as 'less than great,' I was absolutely tickled with the idea that my unwritten stories would be resting on a dusty library shelf in Hell, patiently waiting for me to sit down and actually, uh, write them. Wait, did I say stories wait patiently for their authors? Because as we learn at the very start of The Library of the Unwritten, sometimes the stories become restless and take matters into their own hands.

As the Unwritten Wing’s Librarian, one of Claire’s jobs is to track down the characters manifested from rogue stories and get them back into their books. She’s a human with a mortal soul who works for Hell, but isn’t part of the place. As she puts it: “We all get the afterlife our soul requires … This is mine.” Assisted by a fallen Muse named Brevity, she leads a small party from Hell to locate and recover a powerful artifact, the possession of which is also sought for Heaven by a fallen Angel promised redemption if he succeeds.

To say much more about the plot would spoil the fun for future readers. The author’s prose flows smoothly across the page, leading to more than a few late nights of reading, and there is no shortage of highlight-able passages in the main story and “Librarian’s log” excerpts at the start of each chapter. The Library of the Unwritten can be read and enjoyed as a straightforward fantasy epic, filled with interesting settings, exciting action, and plenty of surprising plot twists. Also, those interested can look deeper into the story and characters to mull over concepts such as ambition, atonement, guilt, love and personal growth. It is a tremendous read.

As a librarian, hearing about a book with a librarian in hell was instantly intriguing to me. This book is very creative, the idea that unfinished books need to be stored in a library in hell because it can be dangerous if the characters get out is something very new. There were elements of this book that reminded me of the Nicolas Flamel books [book:The Alchemyst|17402605]) with the references to various mythologies and afterworlds.

I really liked the main character of Claire as well as the other supporting characters and how they were portrayed throughout the book. Where the book struggles I find in the dialogue as well as the pacing through the book as I felt like some things went very quickly while others dragged on.

This is an interesting concept, but I am not too sure how this will become a series.

The concept of this book was very intriguing. With it being the first book of the series, I had really hoped that it would have grabbed my attention harder and made me care about the main characters more. I felt like I really wanted to know more about some of auxiliary characters or even a better, more detailed description of the library in Hell. I did like the story but I wasn't in love with it. For the adventurous reader, this is one you might want to give a try.

I requested this because the synopsis kind of reminded me of the Thursday Next series by Jasper Fforde. It wasn't like it but it was thoroughly enjoyable. Some of the dialog was kind of cheesy and so were some of the characters, but it did get more than a few chuckles out of me. Only thing I am still wondering about is that goodreads indicates it is the first book in a series. I am curious as to how that will work. Guess I will just have to wait and see.

First of all, I'd like to express my gratitude to NetGalley and Ace Books, who provided an eARC in return for my honest review.

Where do all those started-but-never-finished novels go? Well, apparently, to the Library of the Unwritten, in Hell, where part of the Librarian's job is to ensure that they remain quietly sleeping on the shelves. When a character escapes the Library and Claire and her assistant must retrieve him, the situation goes seriously awry when an angel believes that Claire has possession of the Devil's Bible. What ensues is, to some extent, a classic quest/adventure story, but so much more entertaining. Apparently this is the author's first novel (unless, of course, others linger in the Library of the Unwritten!). I hope the series continues!

The most unique setting for a library - Hell. Claire is the Librarian for the unwritten books that are housed in Hell and usually, it is a fairly quiet job repairing and sorting but now one of the books has a character that has escaped and with the help of a muse (library assistant) and a demon, Claire needs to grab Hero and get him back. This chase leads to a misunderstanding between Heaven and Hell and will have angels, demons and various other sorts chasing Claire and her merry band of misfits to some unusual locations. This is a wonderfully imaginative story centered around all the things we love - books, libraries and misunderstood book characters. The first of what looks to be a thoroughly entertaining fantasy series. My thanks to the publisher for the advance copy.

Thank you, Netgalley, for this ARC. Wow. Amazing world building, amazing action, wonderfully fleshed out characters. Absolutely in love with this world, and the beautiful writing just added a cherry to an already thrilling, enjoyable read. Excited about the prospect of more stories being told about this world and these characters.

I want to say first that I did enjoy this book. I'm just not entirely sure what actually happened. I will need to reread it in the future to have a better understanding of the plot, and that's not a bad thing. Some books are great on a second or third read when the first was a bit confusing.

The premise hooked me, however the characters were a bit flat so it took longer for me to be drawn in. A good book, but I'm still mulling over the story.

This first book in a new fantasy series is an incredible ride. There is a wing in hell for unwritten books and Claire, a human soul is the current librarian. While chasing down one of the unruly books who has escaped from the library Claire and her sidekicks run into Ramiel, an angel looking for the Devil's Bible.
This has the potential to ignite a war between heaven and hell as both sides want the book, if it exists. The librarian is forced into other worlds and to call upon otherwordly creatures to help her recover the book.
I'm not much of a fantasy reader but this book captured my attention with it's world building and inclusivity. I can't wait to read the next book in the series.

This one is a very unique take on books and their authors, set in of all places Hell. Claire is the librarian of one of the most interesting and unique libraries I have come across in literature, The Library of the Unwritten. It’s a neutral place in Hell where all the characters people have ever dreamt up, both in their head and on paper but have never finished, come to live and reside. While most are kept asleep in their books, every once a while a character get’s ancey, wakes up and tries to escape Hell. It is the Claire’s job to keep this from happening. But when one of these character’s awakens and goes to earth in search of his author. What starts as a simple catch and retrieve job for Claire, turns into a big fiasco. Shortly after she arrives on earth they are assailed by angelic hosts that are convinced that she and her posy are in possession of the Devil’s bible and Heaven and the angels are bound and determined to get it no matter what the cost, even if it means a war with Hell.

While I am not finished with this one yet, I am loving so many things about this. The intriguing setting of Hell. And the author’s opinions presented on the afterlife are truly interesting to say the least. The characters inward dialogue and evolution is also something that I am really enjoying. Questions of sin, forgiveness, love, loss and identity are tackled in a thoughtful and sensitive way. IF you like Good Omens you will love this book. Put this on your TBR lists and pre order now. Out October 1!

I absolutely adored this book! It was a fun, though heartbreaking at times, romp through Hell, Heaven, Valhalla, Earth and realms in between. The librarian was a flawed but amazing hero who owned her power and didn't fall back on men to help her through her story. I'm really torn between wanting more stories about these characters and being completely satisfied with how the story ended.

LOVED IT! This is what reading is all about. Books, authors, librarians, how stories come alive, why stories come alive, angels, demons, muses, heroes, warriors! In the Library of the Unwritten characters can get restless and wander away from their books, the dutiful librarian and her plucky assistant must track them down and get them back in the pages. While on a trip "upstairs" they run into a fallen angel trying to track down a book that could unleash hell on earth and through a series of misunderstandings and adventures through various realms the story unfolds. You get a very good sense of the characters and the dynamics between the group is fun to watch grow and change as they go about trying figure it all out.
When I read it I did not know it was the beginning of a series, so I felt it was a pretty good stand alone but I am excited that we may find out more about the characters in future books. Would love some back story for all of them!

The description was promising but I did not find it a gripping read. I enjoyed it and would certainly give the sequel a chance. I just found the plot hard to follow.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Claire is the librarian of the Library of the Unwritten located in hell, she is beyond Lucifer's control even though all the demons would love unfiltered access to the unwritten books to get a better insight in human desire. Her main responsibilities are to repair books and keep them in order, but also to wrangle in characters that get loose from the book so they don't wreck havoc on the mortal world. During a hero's escape it becomes complicated when angels show up trying to get a hold of a piece of the devil's bible that is in the librarian's possession.

Now obviously I read this book because I am a librarian and it sounded awesome that there is a unwritten library filled with books no one else has seen and its in hell, because why not. The story got a little confusing at times because of everything that was going on especially in the beginning, but as I read on it became clear. I did feel at times there was unnecessary plot points that did not add much to the story (maybe later in the series) and I wish more of the text was given to character development or explaining the world because at times it was lacking. I'd say the book really picked up my interest around the halfway mark and redeemed the book.

So I may be biased but I love books about libraries. Even libraries in Hell. And when the librarian is a stubborn and deeply caring about the books, you've got me. Full of action, adventure and lots of mythology, This book is a fun roller coaster of danger. With a similar feel to Good Omens, this book is just fun to read. Claire, a human soul in charge of the library in Hell, takes her job very seriously but when a character escapes it will draw her into a potential war between Heaven and Hell as she tries to save the human world.

Thank you to NetGalley and the Berkley Publishing Group for sending me a free ARC copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Library of the Unwritten is a clever, original, and humorous story about unwritten books and the librarian currently in charge of them. It’s an entertaining tale written in the form of 4 alternating view points and I could have easily spent another 400+ pages in this world!

I absolutely loved the concept of this book. An entire library devoted to unwritten stories, some which have yet to find their authors and some which never did? Books with minds of their own and characters that can escape from their pages, impressionable to everything around them? Writer’s block appears whenever the library is closed? The world building was clever and imaginative, the characters quickly grew on me, and the story kept me entertained and wanting to read more.

There were only a couple of points in The Library of the Unwritten that fell a little short for me. For instance, sometimes the character backstory wasn’t super believable (especially when the plot hinged on something major that wasn’t even hinted at before) and for a couple chapters the author’s choice of narrator didn’t immediately seem like the natural fit for that point in the story (but it usually worked itself out by the end of the chapter). The overall ending was pretty satisfying, but there were a few loose ends I wish had been tied up better. However, I enjoyed the adventure the novel took me on enough that I was willing to trust the author would eventually explain. I’m excited to see how this series progresses!

The Library of the Unwritten releases October 1st and is available for preorder on Amazon. Thank you again to NetGalley and the Berkley Publishing Group for the privilege of reviewing an ARC.

Claire is the librarian of Hell, overseeing the books and stories that were dreamt of but never written. She’s also not the only librarian that exists in the afterlife as she embarks on a quest that involves demons, muses, angels, lost souls, and unwritten characters come to life. AJ Hackwith has crafted with love a deep and diverse fantasy world where the afterlife is anything but peaceful. The action is well-paced and there are moments of depth and tenderness (without overt romance, which was quite nice), although overall it doesn’t feel as if Claire’s character evolves that much. That could also because chapters rotate among multiple characters’ perspectives, and it is clear this is the beginning of a series. In fact, this is one of the few books which makes me more interested in follow-up stories about Claire, the angel Rami, or other afterlife libraries and artifacts. It is wholly a lot of fun to read, and I found it a bit more enjoyable than another librarian-adventurer book, The Invisible Library.

3.5 stars, really, but I rounded to 4.

*I received a copy of this book from Berkley Publishing Group via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.*