I frickin' loved this book, and I want the next one now.
It took me a couple of tries to get into it the story – mostly because I kept starting the audiobook as I was going to bed and didn't make it very far. (I'm very familiar with the first chapter now).
Ropa is a wonderful, badass, caring main character, and I want 20 more books about her.
The magic, ghosts, and other realms were fascinating, but they weren't the book's main focus. I'm looking forward to more of the worldbuilding in the next book! It may be the librarian in me, but I was slightly disappointed that they didn't spend more time in the library...

Audiobook Review: I think listening to the audiobook made the experience of the book ten times better. Tinashe Warikandwa is absolutely perfect as Ropa. I will only listen to the audio version and its sequels; I loved it so much.

The audiobook of The Library of the Dead was a delightful listening experience. Sassy protagonist Ropa is brought to life by the talented Tinashe Warikandwa, bringing her genuine Scottish brogue and youthful energy to the role. Author T.L. Huchu's creation of a post-event world that has lost some of the modern conveniences we take for granted, but is one in which magic and spirits co-exist with science, is intriguing. An enjoyable start to the Edinburgh Nights series.

I was very intrigued by the magic - particularly where the ghosts and undead are concerned - and the greater world (since this appears to be some kind of post-apocalyptic version of Scotland). But it felt like we got only the barest hints of the larger picture. The title of the book made me think we'd be spending much more time in and around the library, but indeed we're only there a handful of times and more as a meeting space that really could have been anywhere (especially when they're in the library and Priya goes, oh we don't have this equipment here, I'll take it somewhere else; if that's the case, why bother with the library at all?)

I also felt that the MC was more reactive than proactive. Things happen to her and she reacts to them, which undermines her agency. And she's someone who has a lot of agency, self preservation, and opinions. Indeed, Ropa was my favorite part of the book - between her sass, her disdain for traditional systems (both when it comes to school and learning and the institution of the library), and her shoot first ask questions later attitude. But her being constantly roped into things she doesn't understand does her (and the reader) a disservice because it constantly undermines her agency. If she was getting herself into trouble because she weighed the risks and chose to go for it anyway, that would be one thing, but she goes into all of these situations almost completely unawares.

I also love the disability rep with having Priya in a wheelchair and showing the unique ways she uses magic to get around and be badass.

I think now that we have a set trio of main characters and a little bit of worldbuilding groundwork, the later books in this series will dig a bit deeper, but I'll admit to being underwhelmed with this one.

The summary of this book attracted me from the start. It sounded like a fascinating and exciting story. However, the author's execution leaves a lot to be desired. I felt the story to be boring, which is crazy because the protagonist sees ghosts! It might be the narrator. She had very little inflection and I found my mind wandering. I really wanted to like this book but it couldn't keep my attention.

Ropa is a ghostalker. She's able to see the dead and communicate with them to deliver messages to their loved ones. Well for a fee of course! During her work, Ropa finds out someone is bewitching children and of course Ropa has to investigate. The secrets she uncovers will turn her whole world upside down!

The Library of the Dead was a good listen, but I really wish I would have read the hard copy for this one! The narrator did a good job, but there was just too much magic and characters to keep up with while listening. When I read these type of stories, I find myself having to refer back to previous passages to follow the storyline, and that is hard to do with audio. Overall though I did enjoy the premise of this one and will most likely read a hard copy before the next installment comes out.

This was an absolutely wonderful audio book! I loved the narrator - she had a great cadence and accent and really pulled me in to the story.

It starts a bit jarring. You have to catch up to this world, where the dead walk the streets and there is a lot of money changing hands to deliver the messages of the dead (for those that can see them). Our MC is Ropa. She can both see the dead and hear their booga wooga, but once she starts playing a tune on any number of instruments, then she can find their tone and hear the dead's voice. She's clear on how she gets paid, how her business works and what she can and can't do. It's fascinating to hear her describe the world - so different from ours but so close.

And the humor! Ropa is hilarious as she juggles her full time (or over full time) job and also the ins and outs of her world. She has to dodge the rent collecting Troll, give lip to her sister and her best friend, and be sure to give enough attitude to the littles in the street to get respect. I found her to be funny and witty and I really enjoyed her as the MC. The mystery finally got going pretty late in the story so I'm glad this is a series, I look forward to continuing in this world and finding out more of what is going on. Don't worry, though. This one does have a great, solid conclusion.

<i>A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an audio-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.</i>

I listened to the audio book. I do not recommend this method at all. I was surprised to learn the narrator is a theater trained actress because her reading was so bland. She sounded like a high school kid forced to read a group report aloud to the class. Voice over work is skill, but the narrator didn't even try to give characters their own sound. It made the book all the worse for me.

It's an interesting premise, with good world building. But it took too long to get to the point of the story. I was bored for the majority of the book. I doubt I will continue with this series.

Ropa uses a combo of Zimbabwean magic and her Scottish street smarts to talk to ghosts to help communication between the living and the dead. Hey, its a way to make a living. then she hears something about how kids are being bewitched and having all of their joy stolen. She follows to the clues to figure out what is going on.

This was quite a read. I haven't read much Urban Fantasy so this was change from the norm. Ropa is a fun, young, protagonist giving a BIPOC face to the youth of Edinburgh. The book is set in a somewhat dystopian near future, where people accept the existence of ghosts. At its heart, this book is a supernatural missing persons mystery, so could have appeal to both fantasy and mystery fans.
While I didn't 100% connect with this book as much as I wanted, I would consider picking up the second book in the series.

The story is unique, its setting similar to Midnight Library although the characters and the plot are different. The main character is easy to relate to and other characters including their dialogues felt genuine and interesting. I have both an electronic copy and the audio-book though in all honesty, the audio book was hard for me to understand because of the narrator's accent.

The opening volume of a new series called Edinburgh Nights by T.L. Huchu, The Library of the Dead opens in the titular city, the home of our protagonist, 14-year-old Ropa Moyo. At a young age, she dropped out of school to look after her beloved grandmother and her sister Izwi, scraping out a living as a “ghostalker”—someone who can communicate with the dead. Mostly, this involves getting paid to help folks deliver messages to their dearly departed, but then one night, Ropa encounters a recently deceased spirit who makes her rethink everything she thought she knew.

Someone has been targeting and bewitching local children, warns the ghosts of Edinburgh, and Ropa believes this must be the work of some dark and powerful magic. Nicola is one of these ghosts who has come to our protagonist with a plea to help find her son Oliver, and at first, Ropa is reluctant to investigate until she learns of the horrible thing that happens to the missing children. Determined to find answers, she recruits the help of her friend Jomo, whose father works at the mysterious occult research institute known as the Library of the Dead. In its labyrinthine depths, Ropa gains access to a wealth of hidden magical knowledge and learns more about what it means to be a ghostalker. But as the disturbing attacks continue, will it be enough to help her uncover the truth?

The Library of the Dead was somewhat unexpected, in both good ways and bad. First, the positives: I enjoyed the mystery aspect of the plot, as well as the mix of modern real-world and paranormal elements. As well, the overall mood was delectably eerie and haunting, as befitting a ghost story. This novel was also a fabulous concoction of culture, bringing together Scottish tradition with the Zimbabwean heritage of our protagonist and her family. And speaking of Ropa, she’s a delightful teenage girl, full of charisma and courage, even if all that energy sometimes comes though as attitude and sass. That said, her voice is both a unique and refreshing addition to shake up the urban paranormal genre.

But now, for what I thought was the not-so-great—and most of these aren’t true negatives, per se, just aspects which I thought could have been improved. First and foremost, my initial draw to this novel was the promise of its eponymous library, but in practice, we don’t actually get to see much of it at all, which was slightly disappointing. I also wish we could have seen more of Edinburgh. While it’s true the author did a wonderful job creating the atmosphere, at times the plot felt too fast-paced and focused to its detriment. I would have liked to see more of the city, taken some time to indulge in the richness of its history and the beauty (and sometimes grimness) of the details, but it was unfortunately not to be.

To be fair though, Ropa was not the kind of protagonist to dally, and the snappy and single-minded way in which the story moved was admittedly in keeping with her personality. Still, it prevented me from fully connecting with her character or with the story. That’s not to say I didn’t enjoy myself because I did, but it was definitely not at the deeper level I’d hoped for. It took me a while to feel close to Ropa, or to care about what was actually happening in the plot. And at the end of the day, the story was entertaining but not anything too new or groundbreaking. More world-building (especially when it came to the library) or character relationship development might have helped to flesh things out, because despite the handful of moments showing genuine inventiveness and creativity, this still felt like a variation of something I’ve seen many times before.

All in all, The Library of the Dead was a decent solid read, though it probably could have been more. It might be worth checking out if the character of Ropa intrigues you or if you’re drawn to the setting of Edinburgh, but with the paranormal mystery plot taking center stage, just don’t expect the library to have much of a starring role. I’ll probably continue the series, but I think a lot will also depend on how much the character and world gets developed in the next book.

I received this audiobook in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to the author, publisher and Net Galley.
Library of the Dead was an interesting story with many twists and turns and action. I loved the supporting characters. I think they are diverse and interesting. The author writes vividly and it was like a movie playing as I was listening. I would like to know more about the Library of the Dead and hope it plays a bigger part in the next books.

This is a fast-paced, fun YA fantasy and mystery with ghosts and magic. My ratings 4.5 of 5.0 Overall; Content 4.5; Narration 4.5.

Ropa lives in a distressed part of a Edinburgh that includes supernatural elements. Ropa dropped out of school to earn money to take care of her grandmother and younger sister. She earns money as a ghostalker, sharing messages between the living and the dead for a fee. One ghost asks for help to find her missing son, noting that other children have disappeared too. Ropa tries to avoid the woman, who can’t pay, but other events keep bringing her back to the problem.

When Ropa begins to investigate, she finds out matters are worse that she thought. Her research leads her to an underground occult library where she is identified as having magical abilities. Ropa gets help from an old childhood friend, Jomo, and a new magical friend, Priya, as she steps into one scene of danger after another. She walks into a trap and now has to find a way out if she wants to save herself and other children.

I liked Ropa as a determined young lady and I appreciated her wise grandmother. I also really liked Priya who is wheelchair bound, a medical student and a more advanced magic trainee. Oh, I like the fox pet, River, and the surprising gift too.

The dystopian world-building is well done with two systems of magic that Ropa gets to blend. She uses music in her grandmother’s Zimbabwean magic that helps her enter the everyThere to meet with ghosts. After entering the Library of the Dead she begins to learn the more common Scottish nature of ley lines, earth elements and spells.

The story moves at a good pace as Ropa follows clues to unravel the mystery of the missing and abused children. Don’t be misled by the “horror” label. I did wonder if this might be too dark for my tastes, but not at all. It has ghosts and evil but it isn’t really horror. There is a little bit of YA recklessness, but I enjoyed the YA enthusiasm as well as the ghostly elements. I will look forward to reading more in the series and I recommend this to readers/listeners who enjoy urban fantasy.

Audio Notes: Tinashe Warikandwa is a new to me narrator and I think she did a spot-on job with this performance. I can’t say if any of the accents are accurate but they worked fine for me. Tinashe captured the youth and bravado of Ropa. I am glad that I was able to listen to this entertaining story.

Source: NetGalley 2021.

3.5 stars

This was my first ever audio book. I must admit…it was easy to get lost in this. Not just lost into a story, but get lost as to what on earth was going on! In the beginning the accent was hard to follow, but then the story picked up and I was lost in that. I will say that I never really figured out what happened at the Library though. That part I either missed in the audio, or it wasn’t ever really explained in detail. I enjoyed this books spin on ghosts and how magic is actually based on science. The story follows around a 14 year medium who is tasked with finding a missing boy. She stumbles upon a mystery, haunted house, evil, and a plot she doesn’t fully understand. It was a fun read and a different spin than anything I’ve read before.

The Library of the Dead
By T.L. Huchu
4 out of 5

Thanks to NetGalley for an advanced copy of the audiobook in exchange for an honest review!

Ropa Moya is a 14-year-old ghost talker who’s just trying to keep her little family afloat in the slums of Edinburgh. Little does she know, her “career” is about to take her into the world of practical magic and paranormal investigation.

If I’m being honest, The Library of the Dead is a bit of a misnomer, because the Library itself doesn’t play a huge part in this particular book (but I’m assuming it will for further books in the series after reading Book 1). Instead, we see Ropa being sucked into a bit of a mystery that is slowly taking over her seedy post-Catastrophic Edinburgh. The magical Library serves as a catalyst for Ropa discovering the scientific side of magic (and with a new friend/sidekick in Priya), but the real story is Ropa’s mission to save the kids of Edinburgh from an unearthly threat.

This book is sooooo different from what I normally read, and I had the pleasure of listening to the audiobook galley as well as reading along with a physical copy. The narrator had a really good feel for what a Scottish teenage girl with Zimbabwean roots would sound like (to me, anyway) - and that’s no easy feat. If anything, I almost enjoyed listening to the audiobook a bit more because even though I’d lose a bit of cultural understanding here and there (I’m not Scottish, so I didn’t get a few references), the accent and delivery really made me feel like I wasn’t missing anything contextually.

My only real drawback to reading this is that for some reason, I felt like it was going to be a bit mature sounding, especially considering that I found this book first through my Goldsboro GSFF subscription. So understandably, I was a little annoyed at how naive Ropa seems to be in her “tough girl teenager” attitude - especially with the ending - but I think that’s more because I was expecting the story as a whole to feel...older, I guess?

It was still extremely enjoyable and felt decently original (which, let’s face it, is kind of hard to do nowadays in the fantasy world) . I’m looking forward to the sequel!

I just could not get into this book. I tried several times to listen to the audiobook version, even during a road trip, but I couldn't connect with the characters and it moved so incredibly slowly.

Added to my DNF list.

A slow start but then gets fast-moving and entertaining in the tale, Beautifully written and kept me hooked the entire time. It is compelling, creepy and keeps you wanting for more.

I liked the world building and characters of this book. I thought the character development was strong and that the main character was sarcastic, funny, and tough. Having said that I did think the plot was a bit predictable, but still enjoyable.

Ropa, 14 year old main character, sees dead people. She can see and communicate with ghosts. She has dropped out of school and talks with the ghosts of Edinburgh with the help of a Mbira which is an African musical instrument. After communicating with these ghosts she passes on their messages to their living relatives, these relatives pay her for her services. We then find out that someone is kidnapping children, Ropa gets this information from the ghosts and it’s something that doesn’t sit well with her; she feels an obligation to investigate. Through her investigation she makes some interesting discoveries.

I would definitely pick up the next book in the series and recommend you give this one a try.

TW: child abuse, kidnapping, death, police brutality

I love a good ghost story, and The Library of the Dead is full of them. Meet Ropa – ghostalker. Set in a Scotland of the (not so distant?) future, Ropa’s left school and is pursing her profession. She can communicate with the dead, and takes messages from them to their families. Who are required to pay for the service, of course. Until Ropa receives a message from a spirit begging Ropa to find her missing son. And the more Ropa investigates, the bigger the mystery gets.

The Library of the Dead is a great set up to the series – Ropa’s life as a ghostalker, the Scotland of the (possibly not-too-distant) future, and that mysterious library! I’m looking forward to reading more of Ropa’s future adventures and how she fits in to the Library. Ropa’s relationship with her grandmother and her lessons in Zimbabwean magic add to the depth of the story. This book creates a dark world full of mystery with plenty of humor and heart.

I received an audio copy of The Library of the Dead, and I enjoyed the narrator immensely – Tinashe Warikandwa brings Ropa to life!

Library of the Dead audiobook is rather a slow burn that ends fast. There's so much going on and it's so easy to miss details, I probably would have preferred reading the physical book. But it's a slightly silly-fun young adult fantasy that also deals with some intense and dark drama while also mixing Zimbabwean and Scottish cultures in a magical, futuristic (I think?), sort of dystopian Edinburgh. I found the narrator hard to follow, her voice not her accent, like it's not sharp enough, too flat. It's an interesting story, but for whatever reason, it didn't strike me. It was too hard to keep up, whether due to the audio format or the level of detail I was trying to follow.

From @torbooks and @macmillan.audio and @netgalley , thanks for a review copy.

Unfortunately this just wasn’t for me. I wasn’t hooked onto the story and felt bored, which I could totally understand as fantasy isn’t my genre.

I did enjoy the narrator and and felt like the author did a great job with the story. It just wasn’t for me personally.