Review: Ash and Quill; Smoke and Iron; Sword and Pen (The Great Library, Books #3-5)

This post will focus on the last three books of the Great Library series by Rachel Caine: Ash and Quill; Smoke and Iron; Sword and Pen.

Ash and Quill is the third novel in the Great Library series. Jess Brightwell and his band of exiles have fled London, only to find themselves imprisoned in Philadelphia, a city led by those who would rather burn books than submit. But Jess and his friends have a bargaining chip: the knowledge to build a machine that will break the Library’s rule. Their time is running out. To survive, they’ll have to choose to live or die as one, to take the fight to their enemies—and to save the very soul of the Great Library

Smoke and Iron is the fourth novel in the Great Library series. The opening moves of a deadly game have begun. Jess Brightwell has put himself in direct peril, with only his wits and skill to aid him in a game of cat and mouse with the Archivist Magister of the Great Library. With the world catching fire, and words printed on paper the spark that lights rebellion, it falls to smugglers, thieves, and scholars to save a library thousands of years in the making...if they can stay alive long enough to outwit their enemies.

Sword and Pen is the final novel in the Great Library series. The corrupt leadership of the Great Library has fallen. But with the Archivist plotting his return to power, and the Library under siege from outside empires and kingdoms, its future is uncertain. Jess Brightwell and his friends must come together as never before, to forge a new future for the Great Library . . . or see everything it stood for crumble.

I started this series because I was a fan of Rachel Caine's best-selling teen series, The Morganville Vampires. The plot takes on a dystopian perspective where the Great Library of Alexandria rules the world. In many respects, the Great Library overtakes the Roman Catholic Church as the central authority figure that nations must abide by. For what price? Access to knowledge. The Great Library of Alexandria has a presence in every major city of the world (like cathedrals). Ownership of books is expressly forbidden; anyone violating this law would be sentenced to death. Through alchemy, the Great Library can deliver any of the content in its holdings directly to anyone on a tablet.

The background has a historical vibe with references to mythological creatures from the Ancient World. Nonetheless, the story takes place in an alternate future similar to The Hunger Games series. The Great Library of Alexandria is admired and feared by its citizens. The invention of automatons (warrior robots powered by alchemy) allows the Archivist Magister to attack any dissidents around the world. As a result, this type of rule has caused the Great Library to become more overbearing, controlling, and ruthless in its thousands of years of existence.

Jess Brightwell, the protagonist, comes from a family of black market smugglers who understand how precious books can be during an era of censorship and surveillance. Growing up in London, Jess was raised to be a runner, delivering the books to those willing to pay the price and risk ownership. His father sends Jess to the Great Library of Alexandria to become a spy from the inside. Jess becomes involved in the training only to find himself mixed up in the secrets of the library. Jess and his crew of outcasts--library scholars and guards--must engage in a game of survival. They must save the Great Library of Alexandria from destroying itself. Their journeys take them across the ocean to the blockaded city of Philadelphia (Ash and Quill), manipulations and setbacks (Smoke and Iron), and the final showdown with the Archivist Magister in Alexandria (Sword and Pen).

Overall, I think this series is highly underrated in the young adult fantasy genre. According to Encyclopedia Britannica, the Library of Alexandria, Egypt was the most famous library in classical antiquity. During the height of Hellenism, the ancient library served as a resource for scholars who did research at the Alexandrian Museum. Eventually, it was abandoned as Rome became the new economic and cultural center of classical antiquity. Caine masterfully used this background to create a dark re-telling of this historical wonder had the Library of Alexandria survived to the present. The characters were pawns in a game of chess. The plot will keep you on the edge of your seat. I recommend this series.