Merlin and Susan are Back with The Sinister Booksellers of Bath

Merlin and Susan are Back with The Sinister Booksellers of Bath

I got the ebook from my local library, imagine my surprise when I saw that there is a sequel to The Left-Handed Booksellers of London. My cover features different color and location to the one you get from Amazon.

The Amazon’s version of the The Sinister Booksellers of Bath features people in the cover, as well as some interesting hints of what is in the book. Sinister does not only mean evil or something ominous. In Latin, sinistrum is left, so it is The Left Booksellers of Bath. That was the title that sealed the deal for me, Garth Nix likes his play on words I see. Now we are at Bath, still with the same characters from the last book.

Our Favorite pair is back!

Susan Arkshaw and Merlin St. Jacques returns, and it has been only a few months after the incident at London. Garth Nix expertly weaves in some relationship trouble between the two, suggesting that they had continued to have their special friendship. Merlin is still the snarky, temperamental Left-Handed Bookseller that you will come to love. Susan on the other hand, is experiencing an existential crisis.

Really, ever since she discovered who her biological dad is, Susan has been struggling with her identity. Her dad wants her to inherit his position, while she wants to remain who she is. If you are curious, The Left-Handed Booksellers of London kindle copy before you dive into this one.

Story wise:

The story starts a few years back, and then it moved back to the currenty timeline where the Booksellers found a sorcerous map. Vivian and Merlin were transferred from London to help with the situation, leading them to a very sinister discovery. A decision made Merlin in need of a rescue, and Susan Arkshaw was called in for the task. Yes, this is not your typical damsel in distress story. Well, Merlin can dress like one if he wanted to, that’s the fun bit about him.

The Sinister Booksellers of Bath has many books, as expected if you actually are one (with a part time job of maintaining magical beings). If you are a bookworm/ book dragon, you would be jotting down notes to see which books you have read and if you can catch any references to the story. Truly skillful endevour to have magic, romance and play of words. Garth Nix delivered more than just entertainment: he’s given me a reading assignment T_T.

Verdict:

I love the books mainly because of the chemistry and how the sequence and plot flows. While the reviews are mixed online, I enjoyed the banter and the fact that it was not dumbed down to explain things. These two made my TBR list longer but not by much.

Buy Both Books Together

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