ARC Review – The God of Lost Words

From Goodreads:

To save the Library of the Unwritten in Hell, former librarian Claire and her allies may have to destroy it first.

Claire, rakish Hero, angel Rami, and muse-turned-librarian Brevity have accomplished the impossible by discovering the true nature of unwritten books. But now that the secret is out, in its quest for power Hell will be coming for every wing of the Library.

To protect the Unwritten Wing and stave off the insidious reach of Malphas, one of Hell’s most bloodthirsty generals, Claire and her friends will have to decide how much they’re willing to sacrifice to keep their vulnerable corner of the afterlife. Succeeding would mean rewriting the nature of the Library, but losing would mean obliteration. Their only chance at survival lies in outwitting Hell and writing a new chapter for the Library. Luckily, Claire and her friends know how the right story, told well, can start a revolution.

I have loved this series and this was such a fitting end to the trilogy. So much happens in this instalment. We get to follow the worlds cutest Thruple Clair, Rami and Hero, yes they finally got their act together on this and I am here for it, along with Brevity and the Damsels as they try to navigate the politics of the afterlife and sperate their divisions of the Library.

This really is a series for book lovers and this one in particular is so poignant in its exploration of what Libraries, Books and Stories are and the crucial role they play in Humanity. We get a whirlwind tour of the many different departments of the library and how they play a role in Story, in humanity and in the Afterlife, regardless of religion, creed or country. But we also get subtle and philosophical discussions on what makes a book. what makes a story, what drives humanity to tell stories. There are too many gorgeous quotes on the meaning, emotion and love of stories to even begin pulling them out

Throughout this series Hackwith had expertly woven a heavily character driven narrative with action and adventure. This book was the pinnacle of the three of really driving home the characters, allowing us to really spend time with them. While also providing high tension action. There were several moments in this that just caught you off guard with the emotional power behind them and just gripped you as you hoped to see a happy resolution for characters I have come to love. There were some true moments of fear for ever book collector, as well as moments of great joy as emotional damns finally burst. It had such and emotional ending that is sure to hit hard for anyone that has followed and loved this series.

The multi-perspective giving us such different insights from all the different voices we follow. I have to highlight the very last chapters in this book as we lead up to the ending and we get the short fire perspective switches as everything is pulled together. it is just beautiful. Again it really highlights the emotion between these characters and their love for all things story. As you the reader realise what must happen to save the library it just cumulates in this gorgeous stylistic piece of story telling itself which I just loved.

What makes this all the better is that this was just such a fitting ending for the characters. It was satisfying, emotional, and just the hint of bitter sweet. You know a sign of a good ending is when you close the cover with a sigh and just sit and contemplate what you have just read, where you can imagine yourself what may happen next but are still satisfied with where you have left things.