The Absolute Book

A Novel

De: Elizabeth Knox

Narrado por: Anne-Marie Duff

A bewitching epic fantasy about a revenge killing, a mysterious scroll box that has survived centuries of fires, and the book that changed everything

"Intricately plotted and gorgeously written, The Absolute Book is a cinematic tale that is by turns dark and dreamlike, yet ultimately hopeful." --Deborah Harkness, New York Times bestselling author of A Discovery of Witches

"An instant classic . . . It is everything fantasy should be." --The Guardian

Taryn Cornick believes that the past--her sister's violent death, and her own ill-conceived revenge--is behind her, and she can get on with her life. She has written a successful book about the things that threaten libraries: insects, damp, light, fire, carelessness and uncaring . . . but not all of the attention it brings her is good.

A policeman, Jacob Berger, questions her about a cold case. Then there are questions about a fire in the library at her grandparents' house and an ancient scroll box known as the Firestarter, as well as threatening phone calls and a mysterious illness. Finally a shadowy young man named Shift appears, forcing Taryn and Jacob toward a reckoning felt in more than one world.

The Absolute Book is epic, action-packed fantasy in which hidden treasures are recovered, wicked things resurface, birds can talk, and dead sisters are a living force. It is a book of journeys and returns, from contemporary England to Auckland, New Zealand; from a magical fairyland to Purgatory. Above all, it is a declaration of love for stories and the ways in which they shape our worlds and create gods out of mortals.

I wanted to like this book so much

I tried reading it, and couldn’t follow it. So I tried the audio version. Still couldn’t follow it. I wish I could have understood and enjoyed it more.

Great idea but hard to follow

This story would benefit from a good editor. The transitions from one scene to the next were hard to follow. None of the characters really blossomed into someone you cool love, hate, etc.

I LOVE this book

I read the book over the summer and have been waiting for an audio version. This was such a delight. Narrated perfectly. The story is epic and full of interesting characters. I will definitely put this on my reread/relisten list. ❤️

Fascinating but dull

Really enjoyed the intricacy and detail but it wasn’t a story that had me coming back eagerly every day. It took me over a month to get through it.

Not exactly timeless

This story is really inconsistent in quality, and not exactly timeless. The pop culture references, long descriptions of meal preparation, and mixing of original characters with mythology really kept pulling me out of what should have been an immersive mystery.

Great storyline, engaging.

I liked the cadence of the story, the roles of the characters, and the story overall.

Interesting idea, but way too long

This book needed an editor. I really liked the idea, but I never fell in love with the chapters or understood their relationship to each other. The ending felt flat and too convenient, like it was just wrapping up the many loose ends.

A good personal adventure

I picked this up because it was compared to Jonathan Strange and Mr Norell. American Gods, set mostly in the UK with a woman's perspective is a a more unavoidable comparison for me, both in writing style and plot. If you like Gaiman, and all his quirks, you'll like this.

disjointed

The synopsis on the cover really doesn't give a good representation of the book. The main characters publishing on the dangers to libraries plays little role besides forming the chapter headings. Instead you get a weird mashup between revenge thriller, other dimensions, fae lore, Norse mythology, demon possessions and tech espionage. This might still seem appealing but the characters float aimlessly from one event to the next and the surprise ordinary people show when struck by the fact that Hell is waging war on earth and birds can talk amounts to little more than a shrug and "oh ok". Still 2 stars because the prose is nice and it can be engaging if you try hard to suspend disbelief.

I’m at a loss.

I’m going to start with what I loved - the narrator. She was brilliant. She did her absolute best with the material at hand.

The story, though? Disjointed, odd. The author had some gorgeous ideas but crammed everything in with no explanation, no exposition, and no way to wrap it up. It just fell flat with too many threads left hanging.