An interesting aspects of the four books in the The Cemetery of Forgotten Books series is that they can be read in any order. This one, the last, is my first. It’s hard to say whether plot points were missed or nuances lost, but I did feel I was reading a standalone book. This is a complex book, weaving many characters and times together, and though some were laboured, that could be because the importance was set in the earlier novels.
This isn’t a book for the faint-hearted – it’s colossal, with enough characters and plots to fill multiple books. I turned the last page today, and it feels like I’ve been reading this since the summer. Some parts are a slog: I found Fermin irritating (possibly an overly exuberant translator) and some of the lengthier passages could have done with a trim, but this is an excellent achievement. An intricate story, spanning genres, full of treats.
Book kindly supplied by Netgalley for an honest review.
See review on Goodreads