The Lost Plot (Invisible Library, Band 4) - Softcover

Cogman, Genevieve

Softcover

ISBN 10: 039958742X ISBN 13: 9780399587429

Verlag: ACE, 2018

Inhaltsangabe

After being commissioned to find a rare book, Librarian Irene and her assistant, Kai, head to Prohibition-era New York and are thrust into the middle of a political fight with dragons, mobsters, and Fae in this novel in the Invisible Library series.

In a 1920s-esque New York, Prohibition is in force; fedoras, flapper dresses, and tommy guns are in fashion: and intrigue is afoot. Intrepid Librarians Irene and Kai find themselves caught in the middle of a dragon political contest. It seems a young Librarian has become tangled in this conflict, and if they can&;t extricate him, there could be serious repercussions for the mysterious Library. And, as the balance of power across mighty factions hangs in the balance, this could even trigger war.

Irene and Kai are locked in a race against time (and dragons) to procure a rare book. They&;ll face gangsters, blackmail, and the Library&;s own Internal Affairs department. And if it doesn&;t end well, it could have dire consequences on Irene&;s job. And, incidentally, on her life...

Über diesen Titel

Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Genevieve Cogman is a freelance author who has written for several role-playing game companies. She currently works for the National Health Service in England as a clinical classifications specialist. She is the author of the Invisible Library series, including The Mortal Word, The Lost Plot, The Burning Page, The Masked City, and The Invisible Library.

Auszug. © Genehmigter Nachdruck. Alle Rechte vorbehalten.

PE 1

"My dear girl," the woman sitting next to Irene sniffed, "if you haven't opened your veins before, then do let Mr. Harper do it for you. He's had a lot of experience with nervous young things like you."

Irene looked down at the scalpel lying in the saucer next to her cup of tea. She was trying to think of a way out of the situation-one that wouldn't involve her fleeing the house and slamming the door behind her. She'd visited multiple alternate worlds in order to obtain books. She was capable of dealing with different customs and knew all sorts of polite manners. But she didn't want to serve herself up as the dish of the day. "Nobody actually said there were going to be vampires attending," she said mildly. "I wasn't expecting this."

"Bah!" another of the elderly women snorted.

Irene was the youngest person in the crowded room, trapped in a nest of chairs and little tables that were encrusted with ornaments. The thick curtains were drawn tightly against the night outside. The tea was cold. The cakes were stale. The atmosphere was thick and heavy, and if it hadn't been for the fragrance of the log fire, Irene had a suspicion that it would have smelled even worse.

"I don't wish to sound harsh, but in my day a young woman knew her duty! If this Miss-Miss . . ." The woman trailed off, trying to remember Irene's name.

"Miss Winters," Mr. Harper said. His hair was a grizzled white that retreated in a pronounced widow's peak, and his eyes were black as coal, sunken deep behind half-closed eyelids. He hunched in his chair, tilting forward like a vulture scouting for prey. And whenever he spoke he bared his fangs. The one highlight of the evening so far was that he wasn't sitting next to Irene. He was apparently one of the minor vampires attached to the household; the more powerful ones hadn't risen yet that evening. Small mercies. "So nice to have some young blood present at our little soirée."

Of course, if Irene had known that it was going to be a soirée, let alone one with vampires present, she wouldn't have attended. Which was probably why they hadn't told her. She'd thought this was going to be just a straight book exchange. The negotiations had all gone through smoothly, and she'd been looking forward to collecting a new book for the Library's collection-without violence, drama, or running down corridors screaming. Apparently she'd been mistaken.

"I had absolutely no idea I'd be mixing with such important people when I called," she fluttered, putting on her best air of innocence. "I only wanted to exchange these books, as we agreed-"

"The books, yes. As we discussed." It was the first time the woman at the far end of the room had spoken. The background whispers fell silent at her voice. She touched the red leather binding of the book in her lap; her pale fingers were thin and wrinkled, given an artificial colour by the firelight. "Indeed, I think we should discuss that in private. If you will all excuse us for a moment?" She didn't bother pausing for any possible disagreement. "Miss Winters. Do take a little stroll with me."

Irene put down her cup and saucer-and the scalpel-and rose to her feet in a rustle of skirts, picking up her briefcase. She'd dressed politely and soberly in response to her invitation, in a dove-grey jacket and skirt with dark green trimmings. Given the circumstances, she was wishing she'd accessorized the outfit with garlic, silver, and running shoes. "Delighted," she murmured, and followed the other woman out of the room.

Along the corridor and up the stairs, old-style gas lamps burned, rather than the newer ether lamps. Dark portraits gazed out from gilded ornamental frames. Irene could see the family nose and brows in many of them, mirroring the haughty face of the woman ahead of her.

She really wished she hadn't come here. She'd just wanted to exchange a book, rather than stealing it, for once. Her virtue was not being rewarded. Quite the opposite.

Mrs. Walker-referred to as Lady Walker by the rest of the household, even if Irene hadn't come across any trace of a title when she was researching the family-came to a stop in front of a particularly dramatic picture. She turned to look at Irene. Her eye-patch hid her right eye, but the left eye was considering, thoughtful, evaluating. Since Irene preferred to be underestimated and ignored, this wasn't welcome.

"So, you are the notorious Irene Winters," she said. "How convenient that you've come to me, rather than my having to come to you."

"Really." Irene decided to drop the act. It seemed she'd acquired a reputation, so she might as well throw any plans to dissemble out the window. Which was where she'd like to be right now. "Might I ask your sources?"

"Family connections." Mrs. Walker shrugged. The jet ornaments on her dress shivered and danced in the gaslight. "Just because I prefer to spend my time up here rather than running off to frivol in the fleshpots of London . . . But I digress. I assure you, Miss Winters, I know more about you than you might think."

"Oh?" Irene said, in the conciliatory tone of voice she'd had the chance to practise in the past. Do tell me more, it implied. You're so clever.

"Good." Mrs. Walker looked positively approving. "Just the sort of thing I'd have said, in your place."

Damn, Irene thought. "Perhaps we should skip the preliminaries and get to the point," she suggested.

Mrs. Walker nodded. "Very well. Here it is. I know you're part of a power play by one of the other families. I want to know what is going on. I want to know who you're working for. And if you hope to leave this house alive, you will tell me."

Irene blinked. She'd been ready for various possibilities, ranging from I know you work for a secret interdimensional Library to I have evidence of your criminal acts and plan to blackmail you, but this was unexpected. "Dear me," she said. "This is so sudden."

"Your cover story was quite impressive," Mrs. Walker granted. "Claiming to be a freelance translator and book-collector, and suggesting an exchange. A copy of Marlowe's lost play The Massacre at Paris in return for our copy of John Webster's Guise. Both of us would have profited by the deal. And it seemed credible enough to be genuine. But an offer that tempting seems like a fairy story, doesn't it, Miss Winters? And we all know that fairy stories don't happen."

"They happen more than you might think," Irene said. In a high-chaos alternate world like this one, narrative tropes had an unfortunate way of coming true. Unfortunately the traditional heroine-gets-trapped-in-household-full-of-vampires story seldom had a happy ending. At least, not for the heroine. "Honestly, I don't understand why you think I'm an-er, what do you think I am?"

"A spy," Mrs. Walker said.

"A spy?" Irene said in tones of mild horror. What precisely did Mrs. Walker know? Irene was an agent of the Library, and it was her job and her duty to retrieve works of fiction from alternate worlds. Bringing them back to her interdimensional Library home created links with these places. And thus did the Library help preserve the balance between unfeeling order and uncaring chaos, across a multitude of worlds. It was a noble calling and a lifetime commitment, and it allowed her to use the Library's special...

Details zur Ausgabe

• Verlag: ACE
• Erscheinungsdatum: 2018
• Sprache: Englisch
• ISBN 10: 039958742X
• ISBN 13: 9780399587429
• Einband: Taschenbuch
• Anzahl der Seiten: 384
• Kontakt zum Hersteller: Soulfood Music Distribution GmbH; https://www.soulfood-music.de/; ; Van-der-Smissen-Str. 3; Hamburg; Hamburg; 22767; Deutschland