The Mortal Word

A peace summit between warring dragons and Fae in an alternate 1890s Paris is derailed when a key diplomat is stabbed, and Librarian-spy Irene is dispatched as a neutral investigator. With assistant Kai and detective friend Vale, she must navigate the seedy underworld of this Belle Epoque city, unpick a conspiracy involving the notorious Blood Countess, and prevent the collapse of negotiations that stand between the worlds and open war. Genevieve Cogman's fifth Invisible Library novel is the series at its most elaborate.

Kristin Atherton has narrated every volume in the series and her authority over this world is palpable by this fifth entry, handling the dense political machinery of dragons and Fae with the ease of a narrator fully at home in the material. The Paris setting gives the audiobook a particular atmosphere, and Atherton's rendering of Vale's Holmesian precision alongside Irene's more flexible intelligence is a pleasure. Listeners who enjoy literary adventure with wit and genuine stakes will find the series rewarding throughout.