#a.j. hackwith

[wordswhisperinthedark]

Damn, the Hell's Library trilogy by A.J Hackwith really speaks to lovers of words; writers, readers, poets, singers; storytellers. So good💕💕

[drastrochris]

So, A.J. Hackwith's The Library of the Unwritten series.

Goncharov.

WTF happens in the library of unwritten stories when the internet steals all the stories that were never written about Goncharov and writes them all? Are entire shelves just vanishing as people shit-post the story into existence? Are entire shelves just appearing as people shit-post half-thought contradictions that will never be finished?

[booksandwords]

The Library of the Unwritten by A.J. Hackwith

Series: Hell's Library, #1 Read Time: 6 Days Rating: 5/5

The quote: Stories are, at the most basic level, how we make sense of the world. It doesn't do to forget that sometimes heroes fail you when you need them the most. Sometimes you throw your lot in with villains. — Claire Hadley

I really enjoyed The Library of the Unwritten so much more than I anticipated. With a very enjoyable plot, likeable and unique characters and alternating perspectives between several characters. This is a book that truly needs that alternating perspective to allow readers to see that not everyone is what they appear. To humanise them. To only present one perspective in The Library of the Unwritten would do the characters a disservice. Because the characters are a ragtag group (aside from Claire and Brevity) no one knows or trusts each other. That switching perspective allows the reader to see when the characters move from ragtag travellers to little found family. As the groups split up it allows for everything to be seen and if not understood at least known.

On the characters. There are six main characters. Hero a fictional character escaped from his book. Leto, a demon of Entropy, an amnesic demon. Andras Hell's Arcanist, a demon. Claire, Hell's Librarian and former human. Brevity, a failed muse, Claire's assistant and trainee librarian. Finally Ramiel, an angel looking for redemption. No two characters are the same, their motivations are different and you do get physical descriptions of them all allowing for visualisation. Claire is something of an intriguing character. She has a lot of layers, secrets and a past that comes back to haunt them. She is self sentenced to 200 years as Hell's Librarian. Bonus points for creating a soft coded demi character. Leto's whole arc broke my heart a little but I do like how twisty it is. He is so incredibly soft and sweet. Hero is the character that has the nicest development arc. He also is one of my fave types of character complicated, full of redemption and a prism. (This sort of character is why I love Sherrilyn McQueen so much).  Brevity is so, so bubbly but has her human flaws. I think her full backstory will likely come out in one of the later books. Not going to go into Rami or Andras because spoilers.

The story is one you will either enjoy or not. It asks you to follow it down the rabbit hole, check your faith and belief system at the door and believe in the world Hackwith created. If you have strong religious (and I mean any religion here really) views I would advise avoiding this series. While The Library of the Unwritten only challenges perceptions of Christianity and Catholicism (and those based thereon) it does make illusions to others. While I know some people even with strong views will be fine others will take offence. I say this but religion doesn't play a massive part, it more dictates the surrounding politics. Another warning for suicide is alluded to not shown but it is a key moment. The plot is strong enough and with enough going on that while I thought I had it figured out I didn't. Each of the characters has their own moment of strength and weakness that we as the reader see. The ending pulls together all the learnings from throughout the book into a climax that becomes somewhat bittersweet. And kinda left me think what if? The plot is just fun. It's always moving, always surprising and I'm really hoping that A.J. Hackwith can keep it up in the second book.

I want to add just briefly that the lore which I appreciated is revealed through quotes at the start of each chapter. Quotes are taken from journal entries by the various Hell's Librarians and their trainees from many, many years. This is a similar style to Neal Shusterman's Arc of the Scythe (first book Scythe). I always did like that way of revealing the lore of a series. Rather than just giving a massive just dump of lore somewhere for the reader to absorb. There is other lore given as the reader needs it but not as much as I initially expected for a book so heavily built on the other.

For a book I found Libraries -- Fiction subject and came into totally blind I'm immensely happy I read it. It's a combination of what we all want to believe in books, well-written librarians and interesting paranormal lore. There are so many fantastic quotes, mostly in the world-building about libraries, librarians and their cultural positions and importance. Disclaimer as always I am a trained librarian and have a love for my profession written well. This was both written well. It is so rare to see that practice of bookbinding done with such care though and with a solid reason for it to be done. I really do recommend this to libraries and fans of the supernatural.

[quirkycatsfatstacks]

Review: The God of Lost Words by A.J. Hackwith

Series: Hell’s Library #3Author: A.J. HackwithPublisher: AceReleased: November 2, 2021Received: NetGalley The God of Lost Words is the third, and unfortunately final, novel in A.J. Hackwith’s Hell’s Library Series. I say unfortunately here because I’m not ready to say goodbye to the series. Oh well, at least I can always reread it, right? The Library of Unwritten has not been the same since…

[desdasiwrites]

– A.J. Hackwith, The Library of the Unwritten

[sapphicreadsdb]

Hi do you by chance have any sapphic fantasy recs? preferably adult fantasy but YA is fine too

sure! tho this could will get quite long... no links, sorry!, bc it was kicking up a fuss with those for some reason

+ = ya

pennyblade by j.l. worrad

lady hotspur by tessa gratton

sofi and the bone song by adrienne tooley (+)

she who became the sun by shelley parker chan

the scapegracers by h.a. clarke (+)

the third daughter by adrienne tooley (+)

the daughters of izdihar by hadeer elsbai

the malevolent seven by sebastien de castell

blackheart knights by laure eve

the warden by daniel m. ford

the unbroken by c.l. clark

dark earth by rebecca stott

witch king by martha wells

scorpica by g.r. macallister

the mirror empire by kameron hurley

now she is witch by kirsty logan

silverglass by j.f. rivkin

the woman who loved the moon and other stories by elizabeth a. lynn

...(this answer is how i discover there's a character limit per block so. doing this in chunks.)

fire logic by laurie j. marks

a restless truth by freya marske

when angels left the old country by sacha lamb (+)

the traitor baru cormorant by seth dickinson

an archive of brightness by kelsey socha

the bladed faith by david dalglish

the winged histories by sofia samatar

dragonoak by sam farren

the forever sea by joshua phillip johnson

into the broken lands by tanya huff

the jasmine throne by tasha suri

daughter of redwinter by ed mcdonald

the last magician by lisa maxwell (+)

the fire opal mechanism by fran wilde

...

the black coast by mike brooks

high times in the low parliament by kelly robson

foundryside by robert jackson bennett

the enterprise of death by jesse bullington

mamo by sas milledge (+)

from dust, a flame by rebecca podos (+)

uncommon charm by emily bergslien & kat weaver

wild and wicked things by francesca may

the unspoken name by a.k. larkwood

brother red by adrian selby

the final strife by saara el-arifi

way of the argosi by sebastien de castell (+)

the bone shard daughter by andrea stewart

ghost wood song by erica waters (+)

into the crooked place by alexandra christo (+)

ashes of the sun by django wexler

the midnight girls by alicia jasinska (+)

the midnight lie by marie rutkoski (+)

the never tilting world by rin chupeco (+)

water horse by melissa scott

...

a master of djinn by p. djeli clark

the good luck girls by charlotte nicole davis (+)

among thieves by m.j. kuhn

black water sister by zen cho

the velocity of revolution by marshall ryan maresca

sweet & bitter magic by adrienne tooley (+)

the dark tide by alicia jasinska (+)

the library of the unwritten by a.j. hackwith

a dark and hollow star by ashley shuttleworth (+)

the chosen and the beautiful by nghi vo

the councillor by e.j. beaton

these feathered flames by alexandra overy (+)

the factory witches of lowell by c.s. malerich

fireheart tiger by aliette de bodard

...

city of lies by sam hawke

bestiary by k-ming chang

the raven and the reindeer by t. kingfisher

the winter duke by claire eliza bartlett (+)

master of poisons by andrea hairston

the empress of salt and fortune by nghi vo

night flowers shirking from the light of the sun by li xing

down comes the night by allison saft (+)

wench by maxine kaplan (+)

girls made of snow and glass by melissa bashardoust (+)

girls of paper and fire by natasha ngan (+)

the impossible contract by k.a. doore

burning roses by s.l. huang

the house of shattered wings by aliette de bodard

not for use in navigation by iona datt sharma

weak heart by ban gilmartin

girl, serpent, thorn by melissa bashardoust (+)

the devil's blade by mark alder

...

we set the dark on fire by tehlor kay mejia (+)

the true queen by zen cho

moontangled by stephanie burgis

a portable shelter by kirsty logan

sing the four quarters by tanya huff

all the bad apples by moira fowley doyle (+)

the drowning eyes by emily foster

the priory of the orange tree by samantha shannon

miranda in milan by katharine duckett

the afterward by e.k. johnston (+)

thorn by anna burke

penhallow amid passing things by iona datt sharma

in the vanishers' palace by aliette de bodard

summer of salt by katrina leno (+)

the gracekeepers by kirsty logan

out of the blue by sophie cameron (+)

black wolves by kate elliott

the circle by sara b. elfgren & mats strandberg (+)

unspoken by sarah rees brennan (+)

thistlefoot by gennarose nethercott

passing strange by ellen klages

(and breathe)

[igotsnothing]

I got tagged by @lynzishell, a sweet moot as well as a talented storyteller! Thank you, friend!

3 5 ships: Even 5 is not enough! Seriously. This list could easily have 20 entries.

Charlie and Indira by @cinamun. Let me tell you: that boy is so gorgeous and sweet- he's like a big devoted puppy. Dira doesn't want to be in a serious relationship, so I fear Charlie's days are numbered...

Atlas and Asher by @lynzishell. They're interesting and have depth. They're so good together (and hawt. Dawn and Phoenix are faves, too).

Kagame and Kise by @maxfaiden. I love this story so much- and the editing/layout/writing made me feel like I was reading an actual comic. It's lovely and the feels in it are *Mwaah!* chef's kiss.

Victor and Kian by @alinelie. These two give me all the feels. The impression I get is that Kian grounds Victor. Their pictures are always full of subtle emotion. I love them.

Mishka and Nikolai by @stargazer-sims. Sapphire is such a good writer, I bet her shopping lists are interesting. I love the development of their relationship and their dynamic. It's super sweet and tender.

Last song: Neon Blade by MoonDeity. I can't stop listening to this guy's music. And I don't even really care for phonk! "Wake Up!" and "One Chance" are pretty kickass, too.

Last film: I rewatched Constantin recently. I hear there is going to be a sequel?... I'm here for it.

Currently reading: About to start The Library of the Unwritten by A.J. Hackwith.

Currently craving: Sleep. I don't get enough of it and I have to get to bed by a reasonable time.

Fave color: Cobalt blue and crimson

Relationship status: Good!😉

Last Thing Googled: Origami. I suck at it. A flower? A frog? Doesn't matter! It all ends up in an angrily crumpled wad of paper.

Current obsession: Trying to get organized. My stories. Gideon and Sasha. Other folks' awesome simblrs.

Who am I tagging?? I liked what @lynzishell did: Creators listed above, consider yourself tagged. DID YOU GET THAT, @greighish? That means you, you, you! I'm also tagging @agena87, because this sounds like the thingie you tagged me for, but it has the relationships part! And also @simarcana, @lilamausmaus, @eljeebee, @damseljamsel, and @moonfromearth. Of course, this is all voluntary and won't go down on your permanent record. 🤖 Bleep bloop!

[rockislandadultreads]

Warm Up with a Good Book!

Need a book to spark your interest & keep you warm? Check out one of these fiery recommendations! Make sure to also log whatever you read for our upcoming "Snow Many Books" Winter Reading Challenge, which begins this Friday, January 12th!

Where There Was Fire by John Manuel Arias

Costa Rica, 1968: When a lethal fire erupts at the American Fruit Company’s most lucrative banana plantation burning all evidence of a massive cover-up, and her husband disappears, the future of Teresa’s family is changed forever.

Now, twenty-seven years later, Teresa and her daughter Lyra are picking up the pieces. Lyra wants nothing to do with Teresa, but is desperate to find out what happened to her family that fateful night. Teresa, haunted by a missing husband and the bitter ghost of her mother, Amarga, is unable to reconcile the past. What unfolds is a story of a mother and daughter trying to forgive what they do not yet understand, and the mystery at the heart of one family’s rupture.

Dance Among the Flames by Tori Eldridge

Passion. Horror. Betrayal.

Across forty years, three continents, and a past incident in 1560 France, Serafina Olegario tests the boundaries of love, power, and corruption as she fights to escape her life of poverty and abuse. Serafina's quest begins in Brazil when she's possessed by the warrior goddess Yansã, who emboldens her to fight yet threatens to consume her spirit. Fueled by power and enticed by Exú, an immortal trickster and intermediary to the gods, Serafina turns to the seductive magic of Quimbanda. It's dangerous to dance in the fire. But when you come from nothing, you have nothing to lose.

Girls Burn Brighter by Shobha Rao

Poornima and Savitha have three strikes against them: they are poor, they are ambitious, and they are girls. After her mother’s death, Poornima has very little kindness in her life. She is left to care for her siblings until her father can find her a suitable match. So when Savitha enters their household, Poornima is intrigued by the joyful, independent-minded girl. Suddenly their Indian village doesn't feel quite so claustrophobic, and Poornima begins to imagine a life beyond arranged marriage.

But when a devastating act of cruelty drives Savitha away, Poornima leaves behind everything she has ever known to find her friend. Her journey takes her into the darkest corners of India's underworld, on a harrowing cross-continental journey, and eventually to an apartment complex in Seattle.

The Archive of the Forgotten by A.J. Hackwith

The Library of the Unwritten in Hell was saved from total devastation, but hundreds of potential books were destroyed. Former librarian Claire and Brevity the muse feel the loss of those stories, and are trying to adjust to their new roles within the Arcane Wing and Library, respectively. But when the remains of those books begin to leak a strange ink, Claire realizes that the Library has kept secrets from Hell - and from its own librarians.

Claire and Brevity are immediately at odds in their approach to the ink, and the potential power that it represents has not gone unnoticed. When a representative from the Muses Corps arrives at the Library to advise Brevity, the angel Rami and the erstwhile Hero hunt for answers in other realms. The true nature of the ink could fundamentally alter the afterlife for good or ill, but it entirely depends on who is left to hold the pen.

This is the second volume of the "Hell's Library" series.

[angietherose]

Unless you're a childhood friend, you would never know this about me. Horror, suspense, thrillers, sci-fi, space operas, etc are my favorite genres to read.

This year I came across the writer @bettyfrommars

All the stories and series she weaves together are so delectable. They scratch an itch inside of my head just like T. Kingfisher, A.J. Hackwith, and Stephen King.

10/10 recommend 🫶🏽

[bi4bihankking]

Giovanni's Room Summary:

David, a young American in 1950s Paris, is waiting for his fiancée to return from vacation in Spain. But when he meets Giovanni, a handsome Italian barman, the two men are drawn into an intense affair. After three months David's fiancée returns and, denying his true nature, he rejects Giovanni for a 'safe' future as a married man. His decision eventually brings tragedy.

Hell's Library Trilogy Summary:

After someone dies their soul sorts themselves into the afterlife they think they deserve, and each afterlife has a library that needs looking after. That includes Hell, where the books that never got finished are forced to reside. And sometimes the characters in those books don’t like to stay there. After all who wants to die before they’ve had the chance to live?

[annafromuni]

A Comfy Demonic Autumn Read

I went into Library of the Unwritten purely guided by the premise of a library within Hell for books left undeveloped and a librarian tasked with keeping them together. I stayed because A.J. Hackwith is an incredible author with an uncanny ability to create something so cosy and sweet based in the depths of Hell. Those who are fans of the found-family trope will love this one. Similarly, if…

[quirkycatsfatstacks]

Review: The Archive of the Forgotten by A.J. Hackwith

Review: The Archive of the Forgotten by A.J. Hackwith

Series: Hell’s LibraryAuthor: A.J. HackwithPublisher: Ace BooksReleased: October 6, 2020Received: Library The Archive of the Forgotten is the second novel in A.J. Hackwith’s Hell’s Library Series, and the more I read, the more hooked I become. I’m fortunate to have The God of Lost Words waiting for me to jump right into. The Library of the Unwritten has a new librarian, Brevity. Meanwhile,…

[not-joan-of-arc]

The Library of the Unwritten by A.J. Hackwith (Hell's Library #1)

(finished reading February 5 2022)

link to review (no spoilers)

my annotations (spoilers ahead):

(cw for death, suicide references)

this book has a very cool concept

Chapter 9 - LETO

we love anxious human-demon Leto!!

Chapter 10 - CLAIRE

Hero is a bisexual mess, pass it on

Chapter 12 - CLAIRE

Hero is a villain, isn’t he?

Chappen 15 - RAMIEL

Andras is extremely sus

Chapter 23 - CLAIRE

Okay so Claire’s tragic backstory is not what I was expecting - did suspect it though when she was talking about Gregor previously

Chapter 25 - LETO

Claire, a badass queer icon!!

do I like Hero or find him annoying? I can’t decide

Chapter 26 - CLAIRE

called it! Hero is so obviously not a hero

Chapter 27 - CLAIRE

called this betrayal too haha

Claire is just losing friends as fast as she makes them

going off his eagerness to walk into deadly situations and his very low opinion of himself, I suspect that Leto was a teenager who committed suicide

and most likely because he treated the guy who was his friend/brother in the flashbacks badly (perhaps enough for them to kill themselves or end up in a tragic accident) and that guilt has been weighing him down since, so much so that he sent himself to Hell

Chapter 31 - RAMIEL

and now the depths of Claire’s heart is finally revealed

Chapter 34 - CLAIRE

I (platonically) ship one bisexual sarcastic book villain and one pansexual undead librarian

Chapter 36 - RAMIEL

once again, I was completely right about Leto

doesn’t mean I’m happy about it though :(

also does this mean Andras was involved in Leto’s death? was he the one who made Leto act like that to his friend or even the one who made his friend kill himself?

Chapter 37 - CLAIRE

so Walter’s death with a capital D? nice

this whole exchange is kind of hilarious despite the circumstances

Chapter 38 - RAMIEL

Leto is Claire’s grandson?? did not see that coming ngl

Chapter 41 - RAMIEL

I hope this isn’t the last we see of Leto, he’s my fave

Chapter 42 - CLAIRE

“Claire didn’t see books; she saw graves.

She saw a thousand lives on each cindered page. Here, a band of adventurers, suffocating in a forest. There, a pair of lovers, entombed in the moment before a kiss. There, torn beneath the edge of a fallen chair, the teenage outcast that never learns they are something more.”

-

after finishing:

okay I’m fairly happy with the ending and honestly, I know it’s the first book in a trilogy, but it could honestly be a stand-alone? like there’s obviously things to delve further into but there’s no big cliffhanger and nothing’s really been left unresolved

that being said, I’m going to start the next book pretty soon, if not right away

I’m surprisingly invested in these characters and this world

-

my annotation system

[paradises-library]

You have a library inside you, do you not? Stories, told and untold. That is the power of gods.

The God of Lost Words, A.J. Hackwith

[sapphicreadsdb]

Hello! Do you know of books like Song of achilles but sapphic? And books like good omens by Neil Gaiman but sapphic?

i've been thinking on this one for months but i've come up blank, sorry! possibly the library of the unwritten by a.j. hackwith for like good omens?

[someonelookingpraediti]

23 books in 2023

My goal this year is 100 books, and I'm off to a terrible start - I've only done 2 in the first 12 days!

I've got a reading list I'm doing with a friend, and a list of books I'm determined to read this year - some are new releases this year, and some have been sitting on my TBR for a while. Plus, I'm planning at least one seasonal reading list this year.

All told, it's about 45 books - not including books I want to re-read and books I'm sure I'll pick up on a whim! So, realistically, I'm not going to get through all of these. But I will try! Here are the 23 I'm most intent on reading!

The Stolen Heir - Holly Black

Hell Bent - Leigh Bardugo

Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan

The Secret History - Donna Tartt

The Mary Shelley Club - Goldy Moldavsky

The Rithmatist - Brandon Sanderson

The Night Circus - Erin Morgenstern

A Little Life - Hanya Yanagihara

Caraval - Stephanie Garber

Belladonna - Adalyn Grace

Bunny - Mona Awad

Babel - R.F. Kuang

Around the World in Eighty Days - Jules Verne

Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries - Heather Fawcett

The Tenant of Wildfell Hall - Anne Bronte

Never a Hero - Vanessa Len

Under the Whispering Door - T.J. Klune

A Deadly Education - Naomi Novak

Ballad & Dagger - Daniel Jose Older

Hotel Magnifique - Emily J. Taylor

Stalking Jack the Ripper - Kerri Maniscalco

These Violent Delights - Micah Nemerever

The Library of the Unwritten - A.J. Hackwith