"The Sinister Booksellers of Bath" by Garth Nix

The Sinister Booksellers of Bath (Mar. 21, 2023) by Garth Nix.

<This is the second novel in a series.>

Mythical trouble isn’t exclusive to London. The focus now is Bath. The booksellers of the Small Bookshop (which isn’t actually small) who police the Old World there keep close watch on the entity that inhabits the Roman Baths, Sulis Minerva, though it’s not that entity that’s the source of the trouble. Right-handed bookseller Vivien finds a sorcerous map amongst the extensive book collection of a deceased bibliophile. When her brother, Merlin, touches a bee from the map, he’s transported into a pocket dimension that’s been taken out of time and must be rescued by his sister and Susan Arkshaw. Susan wants to live a “normal” life, meaning she’d rather not be involved in the Old World, the mythical. But saving Merlin is only the start of the spiral. They need to discover the entity belonging to the map, not for general knowledge, but because the entity has murdered 26 people. The last one, Travis Zelley, was different, for he was also tortured. The Ancient Sovereign of the Alphabet House and her monstrous living statues of Purbeck marble must be stopped before the murderous cycle begins again. Because it’s no secret that A starts the alphabet, and there’s a certain demi-mortal whose surname begins with A...

            While I don’t want to have to battle living statues of Purbeck marble (or any stone, honestly), it’s great to dive back into Nix’s immersive fantasy world in a slightly altered 1983 in Bath, England. This is a remarkable romp that’s intricately crafted with fast pacing, an impressive cast, a complex but wickedly wacky plot and an array of vintage clothes, weapons and vehicles that’s overlaid with suspense as well as snark and humor. This magical madcap adventure has an old-school feel (no cell phones here, folks) and is a clever, thoroughly engaging, pseudo-historical YA novel.

            Book One: The Left-Handed Booksellers of London

"The Left-Handed Booksellers of London" by Garth Nix

The Left-Handed Booksellers of London (Sept. 22, 2020) by Garth Nix.

<This is the first novel in a series.>

It is 1983 in a slightly alternate London where Susan Arkshaw has recently turned 18 and is set on finding her father. Crime boss Frank Thringley might have answers, but Susan doesn’t get to question him before she witnesses him turning to dust at the prick of a silver hatpin at the left hand of the outrageously attractive Merlin St. Jacques/Upbright (FYI: he’s attractive even whilst donning a dress). Susan’s life is changing for the weirder. She learns that Merlin, a “left-handed bookseller” who belongs to an extended family (clan) of magical fighting booksellers (the right-handed are more the intellectual ones), helps police the Old World (mythical) to protect the New World (modern). They also run several bookshops about London. Susan’s search for her father contains pieces of her mother’s memories of first names and surnames, but none which appear to match the other and may be misremembered entirely. Meanwhile, Merlin has his own self-launched quest: to find the entity who had his mother killed. Together with Vivien, his right-handed bookseller sister, the two of them traverse a path with Susan and find that their quests strangely overlap with one another’s. Now that Susan is aware, it’s as though the Old World is suddenly erupting dangerously into the New. Who is Susan’s father? And why do Old World inhabitants and New World criminals keep trying to abduct her?

            What a fantastical, otherworldly journey of imaginative, mythical proportions! My first story from Nix shot me out of a cannon, so involved in the story was I from the get-go. This YA fantasy is immersive, clever and inventive with its melded fey elements and spectacular bookshops. Susan is wonderfully unflappable, and gender-fluid Merlin is deliciously charming. This adventurous romp is diverse, its magic compelling, the world-building exquisite and the varied personalities so entertaining. I love this expansive, magical London. This tale is an experience!

            P.S. I want to be one of the even-handed.