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The Left-Handed Booksellers of London Hardcover – September 22, 2020
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A girl’s quest to find her father leads her to an extended family of magical fighting booksellers who police the mythical Old World of England when it intrudes on the modern world. From the bestselling master of teen fantasy, Garth Nix.
In a slightly alternate London in 1983, Susan Arkshaw is looking for her father, a man she has never met. Crime boss Frank Thringley might be able to help her, but Susan doesn’t get time to ask Frank any questions before he is turned to dust by the prick of a silver hatpin in the hands of the outrageously attractive Merlin.
Merlin is a young left-handed bookseller (one of the fighting ones), who with the right-handed booksellers (the intellectual ones), are an extended family of magical beings who police the mythic and legendary Old World when it intrudes on the modern world, in addition to running several bookshops.
Susan’s search for her father begins with her mother’s possibly misremembered or misspelt surnames, a reading room ticket, and a silver cigarette case engraved with something that might be a coat of arms.
Merlin has a quest of his own, to find the Old World entity who used ordinary criminals to kill his mother. As he and his sister, the right-handed bookseller Vivien, tread in the path of a botched or covered-up police investigation from years past, they find this quest strangely overlaps with Susan’s. Who or what was her father? Susan, Merlin, and Vivien must find out, as the Old World erupts dangerously into the New.
- Print length416 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherKatherine Tegen Books
- Publication dateSeptember 22, 2020
- Grade level9 - 12
- Reading age14 - 17 years
- Dimensions5.5 x 1.29 x 8.25 inches
- ISBN-10006268325X
- ISBN-13978-0062683250
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Editorial Reviews
From School Library Journal
Review
"The worldbuilding is exquisite—the broad, immersive world and the specific rules for types of booksellers maintain a sense of discovery, and Susan and Merlin, the heroic protagonists, have vibrant, entertaining personalities (and a realistic romantic storyline). Readers will beg for more adventures in this London."
— Kirkus Reviews
"[An] immersive fantasy. Nix builds meta mentions [and] marries fey elements and spectacular bookshops with booksellers who wield mystical artifacts, cold steel, and magic. Unflappable Susan and wonderfully costumed, magically gender-fluid Merlin make for a fantasy that genre fans, teen or adult, won’t want to miss." — Publishers Weekly
"Nix wastes no time getting to the action, throwing readers headlong into the splendid new world alongside the bewildered but determined heroine. It’s an incredibly diverse, detailed, and . . . Nix puts in enough twists to make it his own. A remarkable romp through a fantastical new world." — Booklist
"Nix’s latest offers a thrill-packed fantasy adventure. Strong world building is clearly informed by a deep knowledge of local mythologies, and the allusions, literary shoutouts, and pseudo-historical references become a game for the clued-in reader. Overall, this is a fresh, engaging fantasy with an old-school, nostalgic vibe." — Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
"As in his high-fantasy novels, Nix puts a strong, capable, and resourceful young woman front and center within a diverse cast [with] tropes from British spy stories. A thrilling, suspenseful romp with lots of humor and romantic tension; we haven’t seen the last of Susan and Merlin." — The Horn Book
A fantastic journey. Fans of Garth Nix's works should enjoy this exhilarating volume. Action, light romance and otherworldly machinations keep the tension flowing as Nix reveals a warm-hearted and clever fantasy. Readers will almost certainly leave this magical London searching for hints of the Old World peeking through our own. — Shelf Awareness
"A warm, whimsical delight—The Left-Handed Booksellers of London is a witty, clever adventure in an exquisitely detailed world you will love escaping into." — Veronica Roth, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Divergent series, Carve the Mark series, The End and Other Beginnings, and Chosen Ones
“This is my favorite kind of tale, one where the magic and the real nest together like pages in a book. A delightful read.” — V.E. Schwab, #1 New York Times Bestselling author of the Shades of Magic series and the Monsters of Verity series
"A compelling magical romp, both familiar and inventive. These bookshops would be worth visiting at any time—but they feel like a special treat while I can’t set foot in a real one." — Molly Templeton, Tor.com
Praise for ANGEL MAGE: “A unique magical system based on angel summoning and icons, deft characterization—including male and female protagonists and LGBTQ representation—and an affectionate rendering of Dumas’s style will delight teen and adult fans of swashbuckling romance.”
— Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“Nix’s complex system of angelic magic, and the toll it takes, is fascinating, and he weaves an exciting adventure full of intrigue and action while portraying women in power in a refreshingly casual way. An original and gripping adventure.” — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“The vivid characters . . . jump off the pages. Their growing relationships steal the show. But there are plenty of embellishments that enhance the more personal aspects of the story. And kudos to fantasy stalwart Nix for a story with gender and racial equality.” — Booklist (starred review)
"A character-driven fantasy that still stays true its adventure roots [with] thoughtful, complex world building. Well-wrought differences in the character and voice of those teens . . . add nuance and depth to their racial diversity . . . [and] play on gendered expectations. Overall, this is a captivating and memorable tale that will please longstanding Nix fans and other lovers of intelligently written fantasy." — Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
"With their complementary personalities and easy affection, the four friends are an endearing, sibling-like group; Liliath makes a fascinating antagonist. In addition to its fantastical elements, Nix’s setting is characterized by welcome gender equality, orientation inclusivity, and racial diversity." — Horn Book Magazine
Praise for Goldenhand: “A masterfully spun tale well worth the years long wait.” — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“Fans will cheer this latest volumetightly paced with a satisfying resolution, capable and relatable female characters, plenty of action, and reappearances by beloved characters-and fervently hope for more to come.” — Horn Book Magazine
“Nix has included strong female characters and a no-nonsense approach to sexuality. Recommended for high school libraries and for readers looking for fantasy with a historical literary flair.” — School Library Journal
“There is no joy like returning to the Old Kingdom. Once again, Nix sets the standard for fantasy, bringing us a tale full of old friends and new enemies, gruesome monsters, and heroines of wit, will, and imagination.” — Leigh Bardugo, New York Times bestselling author of Six of Crows and The Grisha Trilogy
“Goldenhand reaffirms why Nix is a master of the genre: his exquisitely detailed world-building is unparalleled, and his characters are so tremendously alive and compelling that.” — Sarah J. Maas, author of the best-selling Throne of Glass series
“Garth Nix is one of the best worldbuilders in fantasy, and this book is merely further proof. I love the Old Kingdom series, and Goldenhand is an excellent continuation, packed with the excitement and passion of a storytelling virtuoso at the height of his abilities.” — Brandon Sanderson, New York Times bestselling author of the Mistborn trilogy, Warbreaker, The Alloy of Law, The Way of Kings, Rithmatist, and Steelheart.
Praise for CLARIEL:
“Between striking characters-from the heroic if not entirely competent young Abhorsen-in-Waiting, Belatiel, to the enigmatic, catlike Mogget-and Nix’s brilliantly complex magic system, this superb tale is exactly the book fans of the series have been awaiting.” — Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“Themes of freedom and destiny underpin Clariel’s harrowing, bittersweet story, and readers will delight in the telling (and in fan favorite Mogget’s return).” — Booklist (starred review)
“Clariel is a deeply sympathetic character faced with complicated choices, the consequences of which are frighteningly uncertain as she is pulled between the wild Free Magic and the disciplined Charter.” — School Library Journal (starred review)
“Nix’s tale provides a complete experience unto itself. But his focus on this strong character whose overriding passion is to go her own way provides a hugely satisfying background to the other Abhorsen books. A suspenseful prequel to the much-loved Abhorsen books, showcasing the independent Clariel.” — Shelf Awareness (starred review)
Praise for SABRIEL: “Sabriel is a winner, a fantasy that reads like realism. Here is a world with the same solidity and four dimensional authority as our own, created with invention, clarity, and intelligence. I congratulate Garth Nix. And I look forward to reading his next piece of work.” — Philip Pullman, author of His Dark Materials trilogy
Praise for LIRAEL: “What makes Lirael a delight is the magic that Nix brings to his story and to his characters.” — Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“Riveting.” — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
Praise for ABHORSEN: “Breathtaking, bittersweet, and utterly unforgettable.” — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“At once an allegory regarding war and peace and a testament to friendship, this is thought-provoking fantasy.” — Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“A swashbuckling adventure with lashings of swordplay, dastardly intrigue, and the most original magic I’ve seen in years.” — Joe Abercrombie, bestselling author of the First Law Trilogy
About the Author
Garth Nix is a New York Times bestselling novelist and has been a full-time writer since 2001, but has also worked as a literary agent, marketing consultant, book editor, book publicist, book sales representative, bookseller, and as a part-time soldier in the Australian Army Reserve.
Garth’s many books include the Old Kingdom fantasy series, beginning with Sabriel and continuing to Goldenhand; the sci-fi novels Shade’s Children and A Confusion of Princes; the Regency romance with magic Newt’s Emerald; and novels for children including The Ragwitch, the Seventh Tower series, the Keys to the Kingdom series, and Frogkisser!,which is now in development as a feature film with Fox Animation/Blue Sky Studios. Garth has written numerous short stories, some of which are collected in Across the Wall and To Hold the Bridge. He has also cowritten several children’s book series with Sean Williams, including TroubleTwisters and Have Sword, Will Travel.
More than six million copies of his books have been sold around the world and his work has been translated into forty-two languages. You can find him online at www.garthnix.com.
Product details
- Publisher : Katherine Tegen Books (September 22, 2020)
- Language : English
- Hardcover : 416 pages
- ISBN-10 : 006268325X
- ISBN-13 : 978-0062683250
- Reading age : 14 - 17 years
- Grade level : 9 - 12
- Item Weight : 1.05 pounds
- Dimensions : 5.5 x 1.29 x 8.25 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #60,626 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- Customer Reviews:
About the author

Garth Nix has worked as a bookseller, book sales representative, publicist, editor, marketing consultant and literary agent. He also spent five years as a part-time soldier in the Australian Army Reserve. A full-time writer since 2001, more than five million copies of his books have been sold around the world and his work has been translated into 40 languages. Garth's books have appeared on the bestseller lists of The New York Times, Publishers Weekly (US), The Bookseller(UK), The Australian and The Sunday Times (UK). He lives in Sydney, Australia, with his wife and two children.
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The booksellers are a different breed than you are probably used to. Yes they run bookstores, collect rare finds and most of the times that is about it. But sometimes, the old gods or their acolytes stir up trouble in the main world and that is when the booksellers are called out to keep things under control. Merlin and Vivien are twins and both booksellers, Merlin left (the fighting kind) and Vivien Right (the thinking magic kind). Together they have been pulled into a weird situation when it seems like most of the old world is after one human girl and no one can quite find out why.
Susan thought she was just a regular girl getting ready to go off to a school for the arts. She is hoping to figure out who her dad is from some of the clues her mom has dropped throughout the years. But London is dangerous for her as all the magical beings seem drawn to her and are trying to kidnap Susan. The booksellers are her only hope to find out who/what her dad really is and keep her safe from whatever is trying to make sure Susan doesn’t realize who or what she really is.
The is such an interesting world. I really liked how the realms of the different gods and magical creatures or everything old world was just a smidge away from the normal world and could bleed over into our world. You are pretty safe unless you know it is there, but once you do you can’t really go back.
There was plenty of adventure and a bit of mystery to figure out Susan’s heritage and who might want her dead or kidnapped for unknown nefariousness. I enjoyed the conclusion of the story and really liked our main cast. Merlin was a little over the top for me in some regards, so not my favorite in the cast, but Vivien and Susan are wonderful strong female characters.
The worldbuilding was really well done making this a very believable alternate version of London. I really like when the rules of the magic system make sense, are laid out through storytelling and build a world that seems like it could be alive and well today.
Narration:
Marisa Calin is a new to me narrator. She did a good job representing the voices in the story and seemed to capture the feel of the time and place. I enjoyed her performance and delivery. I listen at my usual 1.5x speed.
Sadly, and what stopped me giving it five stars, I least connected to the main characters.
Susan seemed rather bland and blase and I did not see a true connection between her and Merlin besides the familiarity of proximity.
One last comment, I'm a writer and have a large vocabulary and yet I still found myself reaching for a dictionary many times during this book. If this book is directed at young adults the inclusion of obscure words was too frequent. Either the author is trying to show off his vocabulary or is on some kind of "word of the day" spree. Unnecessary.
Before I talk about my issues with the book, I want to mention that I think the cover art and title are fantastic! I mean we are all here because we like to read so to have a book declaring right above the title that the booksellers are ‘Authorised to kill… and sell books’ is extremely intriguing.
The book is set in a slightly alternative 1983 London. Our main narrator is Susan Arkshaw, an 18 year old who is moving to London to study art and also look for her absentee father who left before she was born. On her first night in London, she meets Merlin right after he kills her ‘Uncle’ Frank, one of the titular left-handed booksellers. Mind you, this is an uncle that Susan has never met but sent her Christmas presents every year. I still don’t understand the point of introducing us to Uncle Frank as Susan didn’t really care about his death and therefore it lacked any significance to the story.
Susan, in general, seems to take everything in her stride. She is indifferent to learning about the booksellers and the greater supernatural community plus the shenanigans that occur through the book. Whether its an introduction to ghosts, goblins, vampires (called sippers), giant bugs and ancient malevolent beings it doesn’t really matter. Susan is unperturbed. Because Susan doesn’t become excited about what’s happening, me as the reader struggled to get excited about what was happening as well. I don’t mean I needed her screeching and fainting at every new development, but some enthusiasm about what was happening would have helped to engage me in the story.
The other main character is Merlin. He is young, mysterious, vain, eccentric and used to his looks and charms helping him glide through life unhindered. He is a left-handed bookseller with his sister Vivien a right-handed bookseller. I was a little baffled by Merlin at times as I didn’t always understand his motivations. I liked his sister, Vivien, a little more as she seemed more competent and adept at getting them out of the different problems encountered.
Throughout the book I found there was no real depth to any of the characters which meant I didn’t invest in them. What you learn of them in the first few chapters feels like all you end up knowing them at the end of the book. I had no real sense of who they were and what really motivated them. It all felt a little disconnected. Like someone telling you a story whilst you’re facing a different direction. You hear the person speaking but can’t see the body language or gesticulations for the story to be more than just the words.
I also found the pacing of the book to be all over the place. At times, it felt like things were moving along nicely and then they would stop to deliver huge chunks of exposition. Rather than entwining the lore and the story together, you would be jolted out of the adventure to be lectured at about the booksellers and supernatural community. The narration also occasionally jumped from Susan’s POV to someone else without any real break in the sentence structure. This may have been a formatting issue but in any case, it again took me out of the story as I tried to figure out whose POV I was now reading.
Overall, the story was ok but nothing special. It read’s as a very young adult fantasy book. I do wish I liked it more, but this will be added to my one and done pile.
3.5 stars out of 5 stars! Rounded to 4 stars.
Top reviews from other countries


A splendidly original example of fantasy with a contemporary setting—yes, the protagonists are battling goblins, zombies, and age-old elementals, but in a richly described and very believable modern London. And how wonderful that the warriors and magic-wielders are all booksellers—exactly the sort of people one can trust with such dangerous knowledge. So many moments of deep, spine-shivering wonder...
Really marvellous—a good choice for SFF lovers from age 12 to adult.

The main characters have sufficient individuality to work well, whilst also being recognisable archetypes. At base, this is a journey quest, that put me in mind, at times, of Susan Cooper's The Dark is Rising sequence, and I mean that as praise. In this book, there is enough that is familiar to feel comfortable, and enough that is original to feel interesting. I highly recommend it.

This book was So hard to read. Like it took me a while week to get through half. The writing is kind of nice I geuss but it was sort of like you look up fancy synonyms for random adjectives and was kinda the only thing that saves this book. Oh and the world building is there just enough that your waiting for something more interesting than knowing bout stuff, dealing with books and having absolutely no free will on your interests/ path through life because you have to either be a left or right handed bookseller (which the book really just does the most to repeat how amazing this is but the only importance of this is you wear a glove on one but it's not like that's compulsory cause you could just wear gloves on both hands but they don't cause that would just be seen as weird by the muggles but I digress).
The main issue I really wanted to talk about is there is no character developments. You are told stuff about the characters and the sort of people they are but never shown it apart from I geuss Merlin but he just seems like an idiot for most of it and is only left handed in that he has a lot of weapons??? He has no like interesting thing other than his fashion sense which I personally dig and find cool in a male character but there is absolutely no substance to him.
Vivian is so dull and barely gets any description.
Susan honestly could die and I wouldn't care and she probably wouldn't care. Her only purpose is "becoming an art student" as we are literally told hundreds of times. She doesn't care about anything going on around her. Like we get absolutely nothing. Everything is just OK. Her mother being kinda very unstable and unable to support her is OK. Suddenly uncovering this whole new world is a bit shocking for a second then is like totally fine. Like we don't get to know her at all so when her big purpose is trying to find her dad I just don't really care enough to be rooting for her.
And the worlds building in this seems like the author had so many interesting ideas that if she just left as one idea would have been amazing but the whole time it's like she's just trying to one up each character. Like every character we meet is gonna be bigger and badder and more powerful than the last.
It's like she tries to subvert the normal trope of the feinting sensitive heroine who gets the guy who protects her from everything cause he's strong and can beat all the monsters by giving us a strong guy who can use weapons but Is so undependable the whole time and give us a heroine who does need the guy and everyone in this book to help her - and they all seem very invested in making her life as easy as possible one way or another even though they all just met her - but she really doesn't want their help and the only feminism she shows is in trying to say she doesn't need any help at all in the only bursts of anger we shortly see for most of the book.
Lastly the only diversity we see in this book about all white british booksellers who get help from old traditional other white British booksellers is through the accents they all apparently possess and we only know about from badly written imitations of what it should sound like or being told - poking fun at that lady beginning with an A who suddenly has a cockney accent we're all supposed to relate to in hating.
Oh and also out of nowhere in the first couple chapters we get sudden drop ins of a romance between merlin and Susan that makes no sense other than this is a book with a female lead and therefore needs to have romance with her and the other main male character for it to be complete, even if it made no sense and the plot would go on exactly the same with out it.

It has now been read from 10yr old boy, to adults and it never fails to offer a very good read.
Along the lines of Philip Pullman but much much bettter.
Really an excellent read, was so sorry when I finished it!
But will re-read it again!