Mr Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore

LoveReading Says

A Maxim Jakubowski selected title.

I'm a sucker for novels about books, writers, publishers (I wonder why?) and this unclassifiable thriller set in San Francisco is a delightful guilty pleasure. A mysterious hole in the wall bookstore and even more enigmatic owner (with a nod to Carlos Ruiz Zafon), a series of random volumes in an undecipherable language, codes, quirky but all too human protagonists, secret societies, conspiracies galore and the all-encompassing reach of the Internet and technological developments with its attendant geeks and nerds as well as brainy beauties form an incandescent and sparkling cocktail unlike any other.

I wish I hadn't read it already so I could read it all over again and marvel at very surprising turn of the page. A winning bolt out of the blue.

Sarah Broadhurst's View :-

This is a very strange tale where the old meet the new, where ancient text which is being analysed by a mysterious group is borrowed by a young man, Clay, who takes it to Google City and solves a puzzle that others have taken centuries to unravel (and not succeeded!).  If you are into the advantages technology gives us then you will love the contrasting worlds here, for the conclusion seems to be that technology conquers all … Well … maybe.

Who is Sarah Broadhurst?

Reviewed by Maxim Jakubowski
Maxim Jakubowski is a London-based novelist and editor.
More reviews by Maxim Jakubowski

About Mr Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore

Recession has shuffled Clay Jannon out of his life as a Web-design drone and serendipity coupled with sheer curiosity has landed him a new job working the night shift at Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore. And it doesn't take long for Clay to realize that the quiet, dusty book emporium is even more curious than the name suggests.

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