[ARC provided by NetGalley and Hodderscape. Thank you for the opportunity to read and review Where the Library Hides.]

Rating: 4/5

Roughly one year has passed since I read What the River Knows, and my expectations for its sequel, Where the Library Hides, were sky-high. Over the past year, I have eagerly anticipated the conclusion of this duology, and I’m glad that for the most part, this book was as enjoyable as I hoped it would be. There were some plot points and reveals that I found a little jarring but ultimately, this book is the romantic and adventurous sequel that I was looking for.

Picking up right where the first book left off, the story resumes with Inez grappling with her mother’s betrayal, the tragic death of her beloved cousin, and the ultimatum from her uncle regarding her inheritance. Faced with limited choices, Inez is left with only one option to consider; marriage to Whitford Hayes. However, Whit brings his own set of complications, and their union is fraught with secrets that threaten to unravel it.

First of all, let’s discuss what I loved. This duology definitely leans more into the romance side of the story so I was happy to see more of Whit’s point-of-view throughout the narrative. There’s a considerable amount of miscommunication which I generally dislike, so having Whit’s view on certain things helped clear that up for the reader. The unfortunate downside is that it made me want to bash Whit and Inez’s heads together on multiple occasions, but thankfully they get there in the end. I also enjoyed a lot of the twists and turns that the story takes us on, and had no issues with the pacing at all considering I was able to blast through this in under 48 hours.

Unfortunately, there were some elements of the book that were just a little disappointing. First of all, Inez’s naivety became quite frustrating throughout Where the Library Hides. I could completely understand that her upbringing might lead to being more trusting of others than she should be, but considering how the last book finishes, I’d have hoped that she might have learned a lesson about trust. In fact, I found her character development as a whole to be a little lacklustre. There are times where it seems like she’s ready to come to terms with something or where she might be going through some personal growth, but then it’s thrown out the window in the next chapter. That’s not to say that she doesn’t grow at all, but I’d have hoped for a little more.

I also struggled with some of the plot twists that became a little tiring as time went on. It felt like everyone had some big secret or betrayal hiding up their sleeve, even one particular character that I wanted to love more than anyone else. And that leads me to Whit, who arguably contributes the biggest betrayal in the book - and that’s saying a lot considering what we know of Inez’s mother and another big character. Even knowing what we do of his character, I couldn’t help but feel disappointed in how he handled certain circumstances, and although he redeems himself in the end and I could almost understand his motives, I couldn’t fully justify his actions.

One other small issue I had was with the title, which alludes to a focus on a hidden library. Yes, it pops up in the story and becomes a main plot point, but I’d have expected it to be a little more present from the get go.

Of course, this is a fantasy romance, so I’m by no means here for perfection or realism. Despite the areas that I found problematic, I still had a really fun time with this sequel and I loved how the story concluded. The combination of historic events and romantic fantasy made this a thrilling read that was easy to get sucked into, and I’ll absolutely be keeping an eye out for future books from this author. In fact, there might have been something hinted at towards the end of the story, so fingers crossed for that!

What The River Knows was one of my favourite reads last year and the follow up certainly didn't disappoint. I admire the writing style of Isabel Ibanez. She just has the talent to have me sitting down and finish a book without realizing.

Inez continued on with charming and frustrating me in the same time but I kind of even grew to love being frustrated by her. I still love Whit, of course and I love these two together. The only thing what made me a bit sad was that the atmosphere wasn't as well defined as in book 1.

The story focused a bit more on the characters with less action but it pulled me in just as What The River Knows. Inez and Whit are a great pairing, love them. I can't wait to read more from Isabel.

4.5 stars
TW: murder, death, grief and trauma over death of a loved one, manipulation, theft, kidnapping, betrayal, serious injury to a main character, imprisonment and ill-treatment of supporting characters

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a digital copy to review. All thoughts are my own.

I absolutely adored What the River Knows and have hugely anticipated this sequel for the longest time. I'll admit, I was a little exasperated by the happenings for quite some time in Where the Library Hides and was worried my excitement to return to this world was going to be let down. There is more focus on the romance between Inez and Whit in this one, which makes complete sense since the only way Inez could stay in Egypt was to align herself with Whit, but with this comes a LOT of miscommunication and secrecy from Whit that had my heart dropping. I loved both characters in book one a lot, and to say I got frustrated by Whit's inaction when it counted to Inez in the first portion of the book had me ready to ditch him for good.

But I gave this book 4.5 stars and thankfully all that antagonism and building tension between the pair erupts in the most thrilling of ways. The action does take some time to mount but when it does, it's completely worth the wait. Inez faces a lot of manipulation from people who she cares about in this book, and it's emotionally tough to watch someone who is so strong and reckless face such pain, especially from Whit. Her grief over Elvira makes her a prime suspect for further deceit and I loved the unravelling of this character's placement in her world. The constant suspicion and "are they, are they not?" of multiple people around Inez was a great way to keep the reader intrigue up, especially when Whit was being so frustrating to endure.

Another thing I thoroughly enjoyed was how Ibanez incorporated my love for ancient history with more storytelling of Cleopatra and the involvement of Greco-Roman ties. Through the magical element of this tale, I appreciated the glimpses Inez got from the past, how Cleopatra guided her to the secret library and Inez uncovered not only what everyone was searching for, but also the dark revelations of her parentage. The twists and turns when it got to the latter portions where history and family collide were fantastic and I feel so rewarded by all that happened after the struggle of the earlier portions of this book. When the lore of the land and action took place, I really felt like I was completely on the adventure with Inez and Whit, and experienced a range of emotions and severe anxiety that everything would work out. This was peak writing performance for me, and I was able to forgive almost all my hang-ups from earlier segments in the novel.

I touched on the romance before, but this one is definitely steamier, which helped with the maturing of their relationship. The two intimate scenes are written well not to extend past upper YA standards, but more importantly, showcased their love story. The first was more explorative and shy, to get the ruination deed done in Inez's eyes. The second was much more rewarding, and I appreciate the author's decision to include them in this read.

Overall, I'm so sad this duology is complete now. I didn't think I'd come out the other end of this in love with the world still, considering how it began, but I should have trusted in Ibanez's stellar storytelling gift because this was such a fantastic ride. And if the epilogue hint at another Egyptian adventure comes to fruition, please sign me up immediately.

You know when you love a book so much you don't know how to praise it? This is me with this book.
So let's start simple; I loved the characters, Whit and Inez. I enjoyed their back and forth despite the changes in their relationship and I do not think I will ever get enough of these two. The fierce protectiveness these two have for one another is just so sweet!

I also thought there weren't going to be more mysteries, more backstabbing and more adventures involved, but I was bamboozled yet again. There are so many characters that one has to look out for, you as the reader don't know who to trust!

As with the first book, the setting and descriptions transported me to a world I have only seen in movies. It felt like I was there with the characters, through the hardships and the dangers.
It's safe to say that I think this book will be a great movie adaptation because Isabel Ibañez just has a way with words!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me an ARC for my honest review.

5 stars - YA historical fantasy

What the river knows was one of my favourite reads of last year so I was super excited to get back into this one after that jaw dropping cliff-hanger. Picking up where book 1 ended I had no trouble picking the story back up.

Spoilers for book 1!

Inez has to decide whether to accept Whits proposal of marriage so she can stay in Egypt and claim her inheritance. She wants to find her mom to send her to prison for Elviras death and the stolen artefacts and find out what happened to her Dad. However we know Whit is hiding / planning something with his plans to marry Inez.

I went through a rollercoaster of emotions reading this book from anxiety, anger and betrayal to hope and happiness. I absolutely loved the story arc and my jaw dropped at some of the twists and turns the author created. I also loved the drawings and little pictures through the book as they really helped me picture the characters.

I would say given the title, the library part of the book is very small - I would have loved to see more scenes within the library but overall I still enjoyed the story for what it was.

Sad the story is over but I think the author hinted at a spin off story which I hope comes out!

I felt like this book was even slower than book one, but still as gripping. However, I was pretty frustrated by the title when we're only starting to talk about the library around 70% of the book, so it takes way too long to arrive and also there's not much importance put on its discovery.

I think this 2nd book is more centered around characters' relationships than the plot on itself, as even the main goal was to find Inez's mother (even if it was related to Cleopatra). I was totally expecting all the betrayals happening here - and they were done well and on the long run, not quickly discovered or forgiven -, however I wasn't expecting the reveals about Inez's father and it was really amazing, and the whole story surrounding him was really interesting!

But as I said, I feel like the focus hasn't been enough on the plot itself, and there were very little action, except towards the end. The title really put a focus on the library but we have not enough on it and its discovery, it was done too quickly and I expected the library to have a huge focus here due to the title but alas, no. Otherwise, the story itself and how it developed was really catching, I loved that mix between actual Historical elements and liberty took from the author, especially on the magical artefacts. I'm also really satisfied by this duology's ending!

“Where the library hides” by Isabel Ibanez is the sequel to “what the river knows” which was a five stars for me last year, so you can imagine my excitement when I got approved for the arc of this.

In here we follow Inez and Whit immediately where we left them off in book one. While hunting down her mother to bring her to justice, Inez is going to have to deal with more family drama, betrayal from someone very close to her all while trying to understand what happened to her father. Whit while hiding his own past is trying to help Inez get to the bottom of things, while trying to win back her trust.

I personally loved how action packed this was, as I said it started off where we left, so there was no boring recap or stall at the beginning. I personally loved Inez and Whit even more in this since you get more in depth of their pasts. The setting is as immersive and fun as the first book.

This book is also full of plot twists, some more easy to catch than others, but it kept the pacing super interesting. Overall a great sequel, one of the few that didn’t disappoint this year!

And also even if the ending is final, I loved the little crumbs of a possible continuation with different characters. If that ends up being true, I’ll definitely continue with this series! Thank you netgalley and hodderstoughton for an e-arc copy in exchange for an honest review.

I would like to thank the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for a review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I was so excited for this sequel after reading What the River Knows. The setting: muah. The characters: muah. The story: muah. Everything about the first book screamed that I would love the second.

I wish I did.

This book fell so frigging flat for me. It felt like they were hosting a competition to find the worst person alive in Egypt. Is it Lourdes? Is it Sterling? Is it possibly Whit? Is it this other person who suddenly also has evil intentions?

Talking about Whit though, I absolutely loathe this man. I liked him in What the River Knows, but here? Despicable, I wish he didn't appear anymore in the book after. This man did not repent for his sins, in my opinion. And why did we get so many scenes from his POV? Unnecessary.

He did get one thing right though. Inez was so naive throughout the book, you'd expect her to develop some more trust issues after what she goes through. But no, every person she meets she immediately trusts.

I also didn't really connect with the story. Yeah, Lourdes is now missing and you're wanting to look for her, but the pacing just felt off? Granted, it took me almost 3 weeks to finish this book, but sometimes things were moving so slowly, and at the end it just felt like a continuous sequence of plot twists.

I did and still do love the setting. A couple hundred years back in Egypt? Hit me up.

But this book unfortunately just really wasn't it for me.

I devoured the first book in this duology, and am forever grateful for being able to read this one in advance!

This was amazing! The perfect ending to the duology. I think I liked this one even more than the first, and that rarely happens for me! Inez and Whit grew so much and I enjoyed the side characters as well! I can't wait to see what Ibanez writes next!

Inez is still reeling from the betrayals of the first book, but has to pull herself together and find a way to rally before the treasures she held discover are lost forever...

Like it's predecessor, Where The Library Hides has definite Mummy vibes and is a strong fantasy adventure. There were plenty of twists (some more believable than others) and a good helping of romance, making this an absolute triumph!

I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

4.5 rounded to 5.

While I did spend a large amount of this book being VERY annoyed at the miscommunication between Inez and Whit, the mystery plot concerning Cleopatra, Inez's parents and the villainous underground of illegal artefact trading kept me interested enough to persevere. I'm so glad I did, because it really redeemed itself from the initial irritating misunderstandings and focus on the romance plot. There was a lot of danger, action and adventure from 50% onwards, so much double-crossing and a lot of secrets revealed. If you loved The Mummy (1999) and Indiana Jones then you'll 100% enjoy this duology - and I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a spin-off with a few side characters too!

WHERE THE LIBRARY HIDES returns us to late 19th century Egypt and the very determined Inez who is on the hunt for her mother.

As the blurb suggests, Inez and Whit's relationship is a major part of this book. It's not a simple cut and dry "we're getting married and are madly in love." Whit makes a few terrible decisions and Inez is forced to ask herself how much she knows about him and whether she's trusted the wrong person. Again. There is a lot of tension between them, which is a lot of fun.

I really liked getting to spend more time with Isadora. There were so many more girls Inez's age around this book (rather than mostly just men a generation older) and so we got to delve into a variety of female relationships. Isadora was the one on page the most so the relationship the book got to explore most. She's a very complex character and she also acted as a source of tension between Whit and Inez.

Whit has longer narration points, almost full chapters of his own, this book. I really liked getting to see more of his thoughts and actions. It made it easier to understand why he betrays Inez (not that I thought it was the right decision for him to make!) and also why he didn't like Isadora (which I did agree with!)

The book ends with a montage-like epilogue, with a little bit of info about "what happens next" for various characters - both the real ones and the fictional. It was a sweet little bonus that gives readers the basic answers they want but leaves it open for more stories (hopefully!)

A lush immersive historical fantasy filled with adventure, magic and a romance like no other. Steeped in historical detail that will bring these ancient times and rituals to life. We travel alongside these characters as they uncover new mysteries, experience character growth and learn more about the world that they live in.

I was captivated by the author’s lyrical writing, the plot twists that took me by surprise and the magical system that was expanded upon in this story. This was a stunning sequel and I will continue to read anything this author publishes.

𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐨 𝐇𝐨𝐝𝐝𝐞𝐫 & 𝐒𝐭𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐨𝐧 (𝐇𝐨𝐝𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐜𝐚𝐩𝐞) 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚 𝐝𝐢𝐠𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐚𝐝𝐯𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐩𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐖𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐋𝐢𝐛𝐫𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐇𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐬 𝐛𝐲 𝐈𝐬𝐚𝐛𝐞𝐥 𝐈𝐛𝐚𝐧𝐞𝐳

This second book is far better than the first, and I can't wait for it to be released in a few days. Everyone should read it!!

3.5

Oh man, that’s a tough one.

First off, if you haven’t read “What The River Knows” yet and plan on reading the sequel, make sure you have said sequel ready to go, as “Where the Library Hides” picks up where book one left off.

This one is kinda hard for me as I really, really enjoyed “What The River Knows”. So my expectations were high, to say the least. But this one..uff. Up until like 40% the plot focused very much on Inez and Whit, which is somewhat fine with me, because I like them.
Obviously certain other things happen and are meant to build up for the main plot, but I can’t really say anything of that grabbed my attention up until the last 30% of the book, which happen to be the part of the book where *all* the plot happens.

As I mentioned, I, yet again, enjoyed Inez & Whit and their banter. Same goes for Isadora & Whit and *their* banter.
Compared to book one, Whit got more of his own pov during some of Inez’ chapters, though I think it would have made sense for him to have his own chapters at this point.

There was a rather big plot twist near the end and while I would say it was a good plot twist in terms of plot twists, I don’t think I liked it. I would have wished the author handled it differently.

The epilogue was short & sweet and I loved it.

Was this a bad book? No.
But for me, it kinda underperformed with my main critique being the plot situation. To be quite frank, if properly edited, this duology could have been a great standalone.

That was an amazing sequel, it's just as good as the first book. I couldn't put it down it was really well paced and the ending was so satisfaying

I was honestly so excited to receive this given how much I loved the first book and the author left us on such an insane plot twist. But ended up super disappointed.

Overall, I just felt that the characters had no growth in this one and actually I think they got worse?? Inez is meant to be smart, cunning, able to scheme really or at least that’s what we’re told and to some extent she was in the first book. But here, she somehow became even more naive, waaaay too trusting, dramatic and went head-first into impulsive, stupid situations. Whit stayed the same though and actually getting to see his POV in this book made me believe the romance less.

I also found the writing style in this to be very cringey especially the romance between the two characters and just got worse towards the end. The writing style also felt very very young; I felt like I was reading the book version of a disney show.

The thing that really gripped me with the first book was the adventure, history and Indiana Jones feel of it all, but we don’t have that here. A lot of the book is just conflict between the characters. We barely see any history, learn more about Cleopatra or see them try and find more archeological discoveries. Understandable given where the author took the plot but was just disappointed as that’s what drew me into the first book. The last 25% or so did start to feel like this and that’s what really made me carry on reading (and knowing there was a huge twist at the end and I wanted to know what it was).

Like I said, there’s a huge plot twist at the end (and a few small ones along the way) but honestly, I found the majority to be quite obvious and it confuses me that Inez didn’t see most of them coming.

Also, given what happened to Elvira in the last book and how close Inez and her were, she didn’t seem overly upset apart from in some random moments - it would’ve been the book feel more real if we actually got to see/feel her grief. Elvira just felt like a random, forgotten plot point.

Anyway, overall I was disappointed with this one, especially given how much I loved the first.

This writer can do no wrong for me. A lyrical novel and a great visit to Egypt. There were parts of the story, the history that I didn't know about and the whole setting up of the time and place were really wonderful to experience.

Thanks NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the chance to read this book early, all thoughts are my own!

I was soooo happy when I got approved for an eARC of this book since the first one ended on a cliffhanger and I absolutely loved it, it is one of the best books I’ve read in the past few years and its sequel did NOT disappoint. We go back to Egypt with our amazing characters, we’re traveling alongside them as they uncover new mysteries, as they go through so much, as they discover themselves and each other. I loved Inez so much more in this book, she was very easy to love and I felt for her so much during this book.
I was so captivated by the story and I just couldn’t find anything I didn’t enjoy about this book. The plot twists really surprised me and just.. wow!

“It’s a weak and unimaginative human being who resorts to violence to get what they want.”

Thank you to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for a honest review.

1885, Egypt. Inez Olivera is left reeling from her cousin Elvira’s murder, and her mother’s betrayal, and when Tío Ricardo issues an ultimatum about her inheritance, she’s left with only one option to consider. Marriage to Whitford Hayes. Former British soldier, her uncle’s aide de camp, and one time nemesis, Whit has his own mysterious reasons for staying in Egypt. With her heart on the line, Inez might have to bind her fate to the one person whose secret plans could ruin her.

Inez goes through a lot in this book but she doesn’t let anything hold her back. She’s peppered with betrayal, lies, subterfuge and a whole lot of violence, but she sticks to her guns and focuses on her goals. I wholeheartedly admire Inez’s tenacity and dedication. She’s so devoted to her craft and the belief it should be shared by many, not the few. Her passion oozes from the pages and the way she cares so deeply for so many? You cannot help but love her. She’s had a brilliant arc over the course of these two books with so much growth. Bravo Ibañez for such a strong female lead!
Oh my dear Whit. You scheming bastard. You really tested my buttons here. But I forgive you because what you did in this book? You truly redeemed yourself. His roguish and deceptive ways became more of a background characteristic whilst his attention was held elsewhere. I am all for a morally grey male lead and Whit certainly gives us that. I think his overall journey over the course of these books was a great one, demonstrating plenty of growth whilst remaining true to himself.

After the events of the first book, I was beyond desperate to know what was going to happen. So, when the chance to read the e-ARC came along, I was not going to deny myself the opportunity! The plot had me utterly engrossed from start to finish. Blessedly, it picks up immediately after the ending of the first book and allows us to see everything unfold. There is untold levels of angst and tension and mystery and frustration… I was here for every morsel I was fed. I can be iffy with stories based off of history as they can occasionally feel a little dry but this was not the case here. It is so rich with history and the mystery that accompanies it, which meant I was gobbling down each finding and trying to work things out alongside our characters. Speaking of which, Ibañez has a skill for writing characters that are more complex than meets the eye - which is something I adore! Nothing worse than a character that has no substance to them beyond face value. There are so many layers to each character that we steadily got to delve deeper into as the story progressed. No story is ever good if we don’t get this in characters, in my opinion. The romance was so full of angst for so much of the book but considering the goings on, it wasn’t at all a shock. Yet I loved every bloody moment! We get a tiny bit of spice as well which whilst lacking description (understandable for the age group!) it did not lack in emotion. It had my heart all aflutter and a giddy smile on my face. The ending was absolute perfection that had me feeling all the emotions knowing it was over. This story has been an absolute marvel to read - I hoped it would never end!

Overall, Where the Library Hides is a stunning sequel and conclusion to this magical mystery!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Thank you again to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for an advanced copy of this book. Review will be live on my blog on release day. Now available on Goodreads