• Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore

  • A Novel
  • By: Robin Sloan
  • Narrated by: Ari Fliakos
  • Length: 7 hrs and 41 mins
  • 4.2 out of 5 stars (11,012 ratings)

Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.
Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore  By  cover art

Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore

By: Robin Sloan
Narrated by: Ari Fliakos
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $14.99

Buy for $14.99

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.

Publisher's summary

A gleeful and exhilarating tale of global conspiracy, complex code-breaking, high-tech data visualization, young love, rollicking adventure, and the secret to eternal life - mostly set in a hole-in-the-wall San Francisco bookstore.

The Great Recession has shuffled Clay Jannon out of his life as a San Francisco Web-design drone - and serendipity, sheer curiosity, and the ability to climb a ladder like a monkey has landed him a new gig working the night shift at Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore. But after just a few days on the job, Clay begins to realize that this store is even more curious than the name suggests. There are only a few customers, but they come in repeatedly and never seem to actually buy anything, instead “checking out” impossibly obscure volumes from strange corners of the store, all according to some elaborate, long-standing arrangement with the gnomic Mr. Penumbra. The store must be a front for something larger, Clay concludes, and soon he’s embarked on a complex analysis of the customers’ behavior and roped his friends into helping to figure out just what’s going on. But once they bring their findings to Mr. Penumbra, it turns out the secrets extend far outside the walls of the bookstore.

With irresistible brio and dazzling intelligence, Robin Sloan has crafted a literary adventure story for the 21st century, evoking both the fairy-tale charm of Haruki Murakami and the enthusiastic novel-of-ideas wizardry of Neal Stephenson or a young Umberto Eco, but with a unique and feisty sensibility that’s rare to the world of literary fiction. Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore is exactly what it sounds like: an establishment you have to enter and will never want to leave, a modern-day cabinet of wonders ready to give a jolt of energy to every curious listener, no matter the time of day.

©2012 Robin Sloan (P)2012 Macmillan Audio

What listeners say about Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    4,970
  • 4 Stars
    3,766
  • 3 Stars
    1,693
  • 2 Stars
    410
  • 1 Stars
    173
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    6,195
  • 4 Stars
    2,736
  • 3 Stars
    826
  • 2 Stars
    140
  • 1 Stars
    72
Story
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    4,332
  • 4 Stars
    3,261
  • 3 Stars
    1,707
  • 2 Stars
    456
  • 1 Stars
    188

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

haven't had a book hook me in awhile

this was a great book had alot of fun listening to it at work

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

So glad I judged a book by the title!

This was a fun book with a fantastic narrator! I got drawn in quickly and couldn’t wait to see what was going to happen. I felt like the ultimate “answer” to the puzzle was a little rushed but I will definitely pick up other books from this author!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Honestly, I barely liked the characters

My biggest dislike of this book was I truly didn’t like nearly any of the characters. Penumbra was cool, but we barely get time with him. Also, the references to Google and “Googlers” and the way they all talked felt kind of cringey. It just felt like someone who hasn’t talked to young 20-somethings in years wrote about how they talk and think. The story isn’t bad, but I also was just never committed to their success, probably because I didn’t care about the characters. Good voice actor though!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Love love love

What lovable characters in a what a warmly woven tale. A must-listen for folks who love books, folks who love business, folks who love tech, folks who love solving problems, and folks who love laughter. It brought me so much joy.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Maybe the first time a happy ending brought a tear to my eye

A adventure and a mystery, but subtle. The good guys are good, and the bad guy is bad without killing anyone in a gruesome way. Almost a a story you could tell your kids

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A book meant to be LISTENED.

I never thought that a simple font type could be the source of mystery. Robin Sloan is a genius.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Enjoyable and different

Enjoyable and whimsical, unique writing style and fun! Will definitely check out more books from this author.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Modern adventure, somewhat philosophical and mythical.

I’m not typically a fan of fantasy adventure but I’m glad I selected this Audible book. Robin Sloan describes the settings action, and characters with such great detail that I felt I was visually watching the story unfold. The narrator, Ari Fliakos, was a perfect fit for the main character, Clay, whose perspective the story was told from. The plot is easy to follow and came together with a few more twists and connections than I expected, making it not entirely predictable.
I give it only 4 stars because even though the characters were relatable, they weren’t very well developed. I felt they lacked emotion. It would’ve really added something if the author had given a little background as to what might make them compatible since there was somewhat of a weak sidebar romance, something from their past that gave them a mutual purpose to embark on this adventure. A few parts drug, and for me it was the lack of attachment to the characters emotionally. I liked the modern technology integration throughout the story. This is not your typical “whodunit mystery“ there is no murder to solve. The mystery is the uncovering of the secrets of Mr. Penumbra’s Bookstore, the revealing of it’s real purpose.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

not bad

I liked the narrator. The story was quite interesting until about three fourths through the book, then I lost interest when the story merged with video game characters.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

For me, a hit and Amiss with Fliakos

I had already read Mr. penumbras 24 hour bookstore, but I love Ari Fliako’s voice I was kind of excited to listen to his take. He has brought so much to many books he has narrated. Unfortunately I did not care for his sort of goofy take on this one. There are certainly whimsical aspects to this book, but the main character just seemed goofy and absurd with the inflection Ari used.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!