About the characters By: Eugenio Montero

    To start off, I think the library has well drawn and memorable characters. Vale, the Holmes detective and Kai, Irene's assistant, trainee and secret dragon in human form, are compelling characters. All the more so for having the ability to act against Irene's and each other's interests when appropriate. Much of the philosophical weight of the book comes from Irene's attempts to keep Vale on her side. Vale is a rational and caring person who believes that the Library should use its powers to help people rather than just preserving books. 

The Librarians can speak the Language and force the physical components of reality around them to do their bidding, which links thematically back to Borges. Cogman makes good use of the concept, exploring both the limitations of the technique. Although most of the characters seem nice, some of the Librarians will use any means necessary to acquire the books they are after, no matter how damaging the consequences to bystanders. We see this personified in the most interesting relationship in the book, between Irene and her ex-mentor Bradamant. Bradamant cares about completing her mission at any cost, and has thrown Irene under the train in the past to achieve this; as a result, Irene is especially conscious of how her actions affect other people, and wants to do her job without causing harm and to help people on the way if she can. Irene has to prove that she can get results while showing Vale that she is ultimately a moral person, unlike Bradamant. 

Cogman handles Bradamant and Irene's relationship very well; there's no denying that Bradamant is incredibly selfish, manipulative and unpleasant. She even goes so far as to drug Irene at the climax so that she can finish the job her way without Irene's interference. Despite the things she has done, she isn't the main villain, and by the end of the book there's a sense that she has learned to respect Irene. By showing that she is both moral and competent she is able to leave behind her hangups about being in Bradamant's shadow. 

The Invisible Library Summary

Irene is a librarian, she works for the mysterious Library, an organization that collects different revisions of books from different realities. After she finishes one mission, she thinks that she is getting a small break, but she is told to go get a book from London. For this mission she has to bring someone along she chooses Kai a guy who seems to have a lot of secrets making him seem mysterious. They arrive in London to find that the book that they are looking for has been stolen. So they begin to find the book, but they are not the only ones after it. The notorious Alberich, a librarian who has been at large for a while. Cogman has come up with a reasonable concept here, taking a science fiction concept of alternative worlds that people can slip between and mixing it with magical elements, dragon shifters, fae, and supernatural creatures all set in a Steampunk London, with the Library wanting to source the alternative version of the books that they hold. Soon, she's in a mix of danger, clues and secret societies. Yet failure is not an option the nature of reality itself is at stake.

Character Summary

By: Dayana Jardines

Throughout the book we learn about the protagonist and her passion for the library and how far she will go to complete her mission, her name is Irene. She is brave and always takes orders from Coppelia. Irene is a spy and was born in the library from two parents who were also librarians. When they introduce Kai as Irene's assistant, they had conflicting personalities so they didn't get a long very well but little by little they found themselves getting along. He was viewed as an outsider so they had different perspectives and Kai has a deep secret of his own, he is a dragon shifter.

Later on in the novel, they meet a greatly known detective who's name is Sir Vale. His full name is Peregrine Vale and he is known as the fifteenth Earl Of Leeds. They relate his personality to Sherlock Holmes. He thinks that the library should use its power to help people rather than preserve its books. And I agree with Sir Vale, the Invisible Library has a lot of power and it has the chance to help those who need to be helped.

The last character I'll be talking about is the villain of this novel. He is known as Alberich, the one and only librarian who betrayed the library and actually got away with it. No one knows where to find him and his records holding his name has been lost. He turned to the side of chaos just to sustain his immortality. But most importantly, Alberich is a shapeshifter.

                                                                     By: Breanna Cajas
                                       
                                                                      Irene and Kai
 
               Irene is the protagonist in the book called ''The Invisible Library". Irene is a professional spy for the mysterious Library. She was the main librarian. Both her parents were librarians as well. Irene was born into the library. The library was full of mysteries and left people all in the loop sometimes. Irene finds herself in many different dimensions retrieving books. When Kai and Irene first met, they did not like each other. They would always bump heads.

          

            I sometimes felt like since Irene was the mentor to Kai, she felt more powerful over him.She had a bold and forthright attitude. What also made Irene more powerful than Kai was that she possesses immortality. Kai was one who left people wanting to know more. He was very secretive. Even though him and Irene had conflicting personalities, they yet found themselves prevailing regardless of any situation.
         

           Before he became Irene's assistant, he studied in the library before getting assigned, for five years. As readers would see Kai as the one that looks or at least sounds, ridiculously charming, his personality was the same. Not many people understood Kai. He was more of an outsider. Next to Irene, Kai was more cool and reserved. Irene acts more impulsive towards situations.

Character Roles 

By: Ann Timpone

       Throughout the course of the journey in which this novel takes us upon, we find that each and every individual character who is introduced to us plays a varying role.  The character's don't only bring this fictional story to life but they contribute to major turning points in the novel, such as the development of our plot, the climax, and our final resolution. Without main characters, any book would seem virtually lifeless. As readers, we need to see those character developments, the connections and relationships between one another, the character descriptions that allow us to ascribe faces to each pertinent scene and moment in the novel. The characters truly carry our imaginations across the story and entertain our minds, and as we approach the end of this novel, we find ourselves almost emotionally attached to our fictional characters, as though we traveled these various worlds with them. 

       The novel begins with our main character and protagonist, Irene. Irene is a timid and outgoing Librarian living out her days taking on missions to acquire extraordinary works of literature. Although some missions are a breeze, some require spy work and dangerous performances on her part. Needless to say, getting her hands on necessary literature isn't always the easiest of things. These so called missions are assigned by Irene's direct supervisor, Coppelia, an elder librarian. Irene was born into the world of the Invisible Library by two caring yet distant parents whom are also distinguished librarians. When Irene first introduces the concept of her mother and father, she lets us readers know they are somewhat estranged. 

       Next, we are familiarized with a young fellow by the name of Kai. This character is initially mentioned in an email to Irene via Coppelia stating that Kai is being sent to train alongside Irene and gain experience in the Library. Upon Kai and Irene's first encounter, Kai explains his five year study in the Library before being sent out to train with her. He is a very subtle and somewhat mysterious character and for quite some time in the novel and Irene expresses her skepticism of him. Later in the novel, a very interesting and unexpected fact is revealed about Kai, he is a dragon shifter. Throughout the course of the novel, we find that both Irene and Kai have conflicting personalities yet use it to their advantage and prevail regardless throughout the story.

       During one point in the story, we find ourseleves getting to know one of Irene's ex-colleagues, Bradamant. "EX" being the key word here, as Bradamant is a highly scheming woman who will break any barrier just to complete a mission. Bradamant can be suspected as the antagonist at times, as she does things to set Irene back and to help herself get ahead. Seen as Irene's nemesis throughout the novel, Bradamant possesses an incredibly selfish, manipulative, nosy and unpleasant personality. 

 Along one of Irene and Kai's travels to acquire a much needed book, they stumble upon a man by the name Sir Vale. Sir Vale is a well aclaimed and quite dignified detective and is described to have a somewhat Holmes-esque flare to him. 

 

     Lastly, we meet our antagonist. Our interest peaking villian! Alberich, a spine-chilling, blood-curdling and mysterious being. While Irene and Kai are on a serious mission, they find themeselves in confrontation with Alberich. He is infamously known in the Library as the one ex-librarian who betrayed the library and was able to get away with it. He is also known to possess high amounts of menacing powers that can vary in capability, such as shape shifting. Prior to being confronted directly by him, Alberich creates hair-raising hints that he is on their trail and after the same literature. This adds a sense of danger to this mission among other things. His specific location is unknown by anyone in addition to the records containing his true name. Alberich, is his chosen librarian name. Unlike the other characters we've gotten to know who heir on the side of Order, Alberich heirs on the side of Chaos, only to sustain his own immortality. 

       As we can see, this fictional journey would be deserted without our characters. Each one of our characters supplies us with something that adds to a turning point in the novel, such as our antagonist creating that plot. We see strong connections made, relationships between characters like Irene and Kai become a tight bond and we can almost visually see each character as we read on. In a personal sense, I found myself hanging on the thought of Kai and Irene as a couple and sad as we neared the end of the novel and parted with our characters. On a high note, Miss Cogman has set us up for a hopeful sequel.

FIN