Book Review: Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore

Ah, that was nice. Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore is a tidy literary thriller with a secret society and encoded messages but with complete avoidance of the worst inclinations of Dan Brown and reasonable inclusion of new technology, and even some touching character moments, and an underlying love of books (and even the oft-maligned genre of fantasy) running as a thread through it all ... this is what summer reading is about. Actually, summer listening to the audiobook, and I recommend it for a scene involving an audiobook near the end, but this is an entertaining tale however you cut it. Perhaps a little light and underwhelming, but after some of the previous books I read, I needed something light yet brain-tickling. Better in terms of length, story, characters, and innovation than REAMDE, but in many ways the stories are similar, and I did enjoy both. Just this one more. Recommended.