©2025 Fable Group Inc.
3.5 

Libriomancer

By Jim C. Hines
Libriomancer by Jim C. Hines digital book - Fable

Publisher Description

Isaac Vainio combats magical threats that spring from the pages of books in this hilarious sci-fi/fantasy series full of vampires, ghosts, and robot insects—by Hugo Award winner Jim C. Hines.

“Superior worldbuilding.” —Charlaine Harris
“Really, really clever.” —Patrick Rothfuss
“This may be Jim Hines’ best work.” —Seanan McGuire

Isaac Vainio is a Libriomancer, a member of the secret organization founded five centuries ago by Johannes Gutenberg. Libriomancers are gifted with the ability to magically reach into books and draw forth objects. When Isaac is attacked by vampires that leaked from the pages of books into our world, he barely manages to escape. To his horror, he discovers that vampires have been attacking other magic-users as well, and Gutenberg has been kidnapped.

With the help of a motorcycle-riding dryad who packs a pair of oak cudgels, Isaac finds himself hunting the unknown dark power that has been manipulating humans and vampires alike. And his search will uncover dangerous secrets about Libriomancy, Gutenberg, and the history of magic. . . .

Download the free Fable app

app book lists

Stay organized

Keep track of what you’re reading, what you’ve finished, and what’s next.
app book recommendations

Build a better TBR

Swipe, skip, and save with our smart list-building tool
app book reviews

Rate and review

Share your take with other readers with half stars, emojis, and tags
app comments

Curate your feed

Meet readers like you in the Fable For You feed, designed to build bookish communities
app book lists

Stay organized

Keep track of what you’re reading, what you’ve finished, and what’s next.
app book recommendations

Build a better TBR

Swipe, skip, and save with our smart list-building tool
app book reviews

Rate and review

Share your take with other readers with half stars, emojis, and tags
app comments

Curate your feed

Meet readers like you in the Fable For You feed, designed to build bookish communities

290 Reviews

3.5
“I was asking for vampire book recommendations on TikTok and my buddy Kim recommended this book to me. I’m so glad she did too, it's a book that combines two of my loves: Vampires and Libraries. I have found an amazing new series to sink my teeth into (pun intended) Have you ever wanted to just reach your hand into a book and take something out? A cool new gadget, an interesting food item, a person…? Well enter the world of Libriomancy through our MMC Isaac, who himself is a Libriomancer. A normal human whos intense love of books created a magic that allows him to reach into books and bring things out. Not without a cost of course, all magic has a cost. And Isaac is going to see just what that cost is as he uses his favorite books to help him track down and contain a mad-man who's entered a book too many and has caused a group of vampires to go rogue and kill people. The book had a “Fantastic Beasts” vibe to it with Newt, I mean Isaac, carrying around a magical tarantula that catches fire when danger lurks. Because of the magic and the different types of characters, witches, vampires, nymphs, etc, it felt alot like Harry Potter with a mix of Ella Enchanted since our of characters is Nymph created from a book to suit the every whim of her lover, no matter what. This author did a good job of creating these cool, nerdy, weird characters that feel like friends and I couldn’t help rooting for Isaac. I also loved how the hero in the story is a librarian! There was something so amazing about him always finding a way to a bookstore or library to load up. Other people used guns, Isaac used books and words and knowledge. And he was the only one to figure out what was going on, someone nobody would expect because he was just a lowly library cataloguer. Think again! His immense knowledge of the books he read was never-ending, like he always had a solution from a book to help in every situation. Isaac was also such a selfless character, willing to sacrifice himself to save someone else’s happiness. He was just soo amazing, I could go on forever about how cool I thought he was as a narrator. Some of the world-building was a bit confusing; I still don’t quite understand how to lock a book, or how Gutenberg set up the automatons using the bible, but I’m willing to wait for the details to slowly emerge throughout the series.The amount of things I didn’t comprehend about the world Isaac lives in did not take away from my enjoyment of the book. I also did not like the back and forth romance between Lena and Isaac, especially after it took so long for him to even admit he wanted her. For the author to keep yanking our chain was annoying, because I didn’t even think the romance was necessary. However, the ending had a twist that I am excited to see through!”

About Jim C. Hines

Jim C. Hines has been a paid juggler, earned a black belt in two different martial arts, performed yo-yo tricks at the top of the Eiffel Tower, and lived with a brain-damaged squirrel. (Only three of those are true.) One of his earliest stories earned first place in the Writers of the Future contest. He’s published more than forty short stories as well as numerous fantasy novels, including the humorous Jig the Dragonslayer trilogy, the Princess series, which re-imagines traditional fairy-tale princesses as butt-kicking action heroines, and the Magic Ex Libris series, about a centuries-old secret society dedicated to the use and control of book magic. In 2012, he won the Hugo for Best Fan Writer. Jim lives in Michigan with his wife, two children, and an unstable number of pets. He can be found online at www.jimchines.com.

Start a Book Club

Start a public or private book club with this book on the Fable app today!

FAQ

Do I have to buy the ebook to participate in a book club?

Why can’t I buy the ebook on the app?

How is Fable’s reader different from Kindle?

Do you sell physical books too?

Are book clubs free to join on Fable?

How do I start a book club with this book on Fable?

Error Icon
Save to a list
0
/
30
0
/
100
Private List
Private lists are not visible to other Fable users on your public profile.
Notification Icon
Fable uses the TMDB API but is not endorsed or certified by TMDB