Book of the Week: Library of the Dead

An ancient knowledge. A conspiracy of silence. A secret to kill for. On the seventh day of the seventh month, the seventh son of a seventh son is born to ominous prophecy on the Isle of Wight. Centuries later, in 1947, Winston Churchill is called out of retirement to deal with an unprecedented archaeological discovery that threatens to derail postwar reconstruction. Soon afterwards, in Roswell, New Mexico, an alleged UFO sighting heralds the establishment of a secret military complex in Nevada—a base that comes to be known as Area 51.

It is this history that prefaces Glenn Cooper's novel Library of the Dead, which is set in present day New York City where a serial murder is on the loose. The murders have no discernible pattern and the victims nothing in common except that they all received a postcard featuring a coffin predicting their date of death. FBI agent Will Piper is difficult and a drinker and is just passing the days until his retirement when he is called in to work the Doomsday Case, much to his chagrin. Partnered with the idealistic and ambitious Nancy, Piper soon finds himself engrossed in a case with few leads. When Piper does begin to make some tentative progress he finds himself abruptly taken off the case. More determined than ever to solve the crimes Piper goes it alone, facing off not only against the Doomsday Killer, but also shady government operatives who are hiding a secret bigger than the agent could have ever imagined.

The book's narration moves between Piper's modern day investigation and the past events connected to the medieval monastery, slowly unravelling the secret at the heart of the novel. I liked this one because it took awhile to piece together how past events were connected to the modern day killer. The book also raises some interesting questions about fate and free will and Piper, for all his flaws, is a likable protagonist. I'm now looking forward to reading the next installment in the series, Book of Souls, soon.


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Thank you to HarperCollins Canada for the review copy.