The Book That Wouldn’t Burn by Mark Lawrence – Review

A boy has lived his whole life trapped within a vast library, older than empires and larger than cities.

A girl has spent hers in a tiny settlement out on the Dust where nightmares stalk and no one goes.

The world has never even noticed them. That’s about to change.

Their stories spiral around each other, across worlds and time. This is a tale of truth and lies and hearts, and the blurring of one into another. A journey on which knowledge erodes certainty, and on which, though the pen may be mightier than the sword, blood will be spilled and cities burned.

The Book That Wouldn’t Burn by Mark Lawrence (The Library Trilogy #1)
Narrator: Jessica Whitaker
My Rating: 4.55/5
Goodreads Rating: 4.05
Storygraph Rating: 3.86

Length: 22hrs 29mins / 559pgs
Genre: Fiction | High Fantasy | Books about Books | Time Travel | Romance Subplot
Pacing: Medium-Fast
Spice: Very Low
Gore: Low

Ahh Mark you’ve got me again! 

This was such a joy to read. It ticked so many of the boxes I love in fantasy—dark academia, found family, intelligent and tenacious but not obnoxious female lead, layered and complex storytelling. There were also some lovely little side characters that gave the story and the main characters so much depth and I was stoked to find some animal guides sprinkled along the way (because who isn’t). 

The story has so many layers that loop back onto each other with little clues along the way. Towards the end you really feel it coming together and when it does it was so clean and clever and superbly done. Absolutely the best bait to get me onto the next book very soon because I’m notorious for not completing series unless I’m extremely invested.

I’m always really impressed with how different all of Lawrence’s trilogies are. They all have such different feelings and atmospheres, the main characters are so different from each other and its so fun delving into something new from him. 

I know I’m late to the party with this one as I’ve seen it has such a huge following, and I can say I’m now part of that group. A 4.5/5 star read for me. There’s not much more to say other than—highly recommend you give this one a try. 

PSA: Mark has a new novel coming out in 2026 called Daughter of Crows. Check out the blurb on Goodreads (or wherever you get your book info) and add it to your calendar to keep an eye out for.

HOORAY FOR MORE LAWRENCE TRILOGIES

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