I got to read this as before it was released as part of Penguin Books first to read program. It was in a galley form and a PDF, so I read it on my tablet. I tell you that last part because it was really interesting to be reading an electronic document and not a physical, paper book of this particular book given the story.
The Great Library is headquartered in Alexandria, Egypt and the rest of the world has daughter libraries. The only place where there are physical, original, ink and paper, leather covered, real, books is in The Great Library. People are not allowed to own originals. Instead there are these things that look like books called blanks. When you want to read something you use a blank to call it up and it appears in the blank, you read it and then it is gone, your book, your blank, is empty again.
In this world the biggest black market is in books, rare and ancient books, and smuggling is a dangerous occupation. There are also people called burners who think burning books is a political statement protesting against The Great Library.
And among those seeking books are creepy people called Ink Lickers who get their hands on books and then eat them. It is considered a great perversion to those who reside in this world.
In between chapters are interesting notes between the hierarchy that give glimpses into the back room secrets of society.
With this as the backdrop a young man from a smuggler family becomes a student of The Great Library with instructions to help his father use this position to help smuggle books when possible. But what young Jess finds is much more than he ever imagined, danger, murder, war, lies, secrets, and maybe even redemption.
This was a great start to a new series and I am anxiously awaiting more.
(Finished May 21, 2015)
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