Mr. Penumbra's 24 Hour Bookstore Review

*Sigh* Summer reading…

The Great Recession has shuffled Clay Jannon away from life as a San Francisco web-design drone and into the aisles of Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore. But after a few days on the job, Clay discovers that the store is more curious than either its name or its gnomic owner might suggest. The bookstore’s secrets extend far beyond its walls. -goodreads.com summery

I remember first hearing about Mr. Penumbra’s 24 Hour Bookstore from the Booktube community a few years ago, so when I found I could read it this year for summer reading, I jumped on the opportunity. I had fairly high expectations for Mr. Penumbra’s 24 Hour Bookstore and in the end, I found it a good one-time read.

The thing I like the most about Mr. Penumbra’s 24 Hour Bookstore is the idea behind the entire story. I find the setting of a bookstore clever and the element of a secret society different. Sloan uses the idea of a secret society in a way that isn’t normally done and I haven’t seen recently. But sadly, while the idea of the society is interesting and different, what is done with it leads to an unsatisfying climax. I found that there were no stakes during the book and I was never hooked or wondering how this was going to end. I wish Sloan took the secret society in a different direction and with better pacing, then I might’ve enjoyed Mr. Penumbra’s 24 Bookstore more.

With that said, I did really enjoy all of the characters in Mr. Penumbra’s 24 Hour Bookstore. I felt that throughout the book the reader learned more about them and Clay was a great main character. I just wish there were more stakes surrounding these characters adding more tension in the last act and a reason for me to side with them throughout the climax.

Overall, Mr. Penumbra’s 24 Hour Bookstore was an enjoyable one time read. I liked it and I’m glad I read it but I can’t ever see myself rereading it. If the final act had more tension, I probably would’ve enjoyed it more, but it was still pretty good. I recommend Mr. Penumbra’s 24 Hour Bookstore for anyone who found the summary interesting or wants something different.

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Elise!