ARC Review--Where the Library Hides by Isabel Ibanez

 

The stunning conclusion to the story that started in What the River Knows. A lush immersive historical fantasy set in Egypt filled with adventure, and a rivals-to-lovers romance like no other!

1885, Egypt

Inez Olivera is left reeling from her cousin Elvira’s murder, and her mother’s betrayal, and when Tío Ricardo issues an ultimatum about her inheritance, she’s left with only one option to consider.

Marriage to Whitford Hayes.

Former British soldier, her uncle’s aide de camp, and one time nemesis, Whit has his own mysterious reasons for staying in Egypt. With her heart on the line, Inez might have to bind her fate to the one person whose secret plans could ruin her.

 

 

 

I received this ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest and voluntary review. I was in no way compensated for this review.

 

Isabel Ibanez returns to the Nile in Where the Library Hides as she brings an electric conclusion to this smashing duology! Ibanez picks up right where we left off with that mind-blowing cliffhanger and the suspense only continues to build on from there! Prepare to set aside a few hours of the day for this one because you will not want to put it down!

Right away, I loved that we instantly pick up right where we left off when Whit proposes to Inez. Inez is being forced back to Argentina to return to her aunt despite her wishes, but since her uncle controls her inheritance until she marries, she's forced to do as he says...unless she marries Whit. But as we learned, it seems Whit has other ideas in mind for marrying Inez.

We start the story off with Whit frantically trying to plan a quick and legal wedding. While he would love to give Inez a perfect wedding, they are a time crunch. It's the closest you'll see to a drive through wedding in the late 1800s that's for sure! Whit has seemingly covered every base imaginable to make sure the wedding is legal and unbreakable.

But there's no time for happily wedded bliss between Inez and Whit as things happen drastically fast! They soon learn that Cleopatra's tomb has been robbed completely of everything! Inez suspects her mother to be involved as she had tricked Inez into giving her some of the valuable pieces inside where Inez thought she was saving them for historical reasons. But Inez has learned that her mother has been living a whole other life here in Egypt, one that spans greatly.

Then comes the BIG THING! We learn what Whit's true motives were for marrying Inez and as you might imagine, it drives a wedge between the couple and that's all I will say on that matter. Inez's world is about to be turned upside down and inside out by the time she gets through this new path she's taken. Absolutely everything changes.

We are talking big. Dramatic. Changes! Ibanez holds nothing back with these punches and it was fantastic! The shocks were handed out in droves. Just when you recovered from one shock, you were hit with another! It was fantastic! I loved the tension that was built up, I loved the shocks and reveals! This is a book you will not be able to put down nor want to! I truly could not get over the amount of shocks this story had! I was able to see a few a coming, but for the most part, I was taken by surprise and I LOVED that! There were always things you didn't quite know, but you knew there was something to them and the way they are revealed in their true nature was positively mind-blowing!

Though Ibanez does take some creative liberty, I do appreciate the amount of research she undetook for this series! It was phenomenal! I am not a big history buff, but I do enjoy learning about it. Just don't test me afterwards! It's something I enjoy learning about in the moment for sure, but as I age, my memory is just about shot for new information! Lol. Ibanez paints a stunning picture though with her lush descriptions of the sands of Egypt! I especially enjoyed her take on the more mysterious locations too, which we do uncover in this one!

Before things go down the proverbial hole, the romance in the early pages of this book were positively delightful! I loved seeing Inez and Whit so happy. While we do suspect Whit is harboring secrets (and we pretty much know he is), I felt like he wasn't necessarily acting when he was with Inez. And since we do still get his point of view, we can see he does have genuine feelings for her. Of course, we know that divide is coming where they'll be back to not "in love" with one another again, but even still, their dynamics between them are so incredibly powerful! Even when there is broken trust between them, these two have an impactful chemistry. I love that they still remind me of Evie and O'Connell from The Mummy movies! I see a bit more of that in this one too, although it's more like the first movie when they bickered, it's one of the most entertaining things to read about where book characters epitomize movie characters.

Another thing I forgot to mention loving are the illustrations! Illustrations are something of a rarity in books these days, unless it's meant to be an illustrated story. But I love that Inez was an artist and we sometimes got to see her artwork throughout the pages. We get more of that in this one which only enhances this remarkable story.

I truly loved how this one ended! Honestly, you couldn't really ask for a better ending. I felt like Ibanez covered all the bases. While there were a few loose threads left for possible futures, I feel like we got some good answers. I guess there might have been one or two things I would've liked a little more clarification on, but I feel like as readers, we'll always be a little nit-picky. Otherwise, you couldn't ask for a better ending than this one! If you're ready for a trip to Egypt, than look no further than the Secrets of the Nile duology! It's an adventure of a lifetime and should not be missed! 

Overall Rating 5/5 stars

Where the Library Hides releases November 5, 2024