Book Club Review: The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins

The Library at Mount Char

Scott Hawkins

Publisher: Broadway Books

Published Date: June 16, 2015

Genres: Fantasy, Horror, Science Fiction

390 Pages / 16 Hours 47 Minutes

Date Read: January 17-28, 2026

Format: 📖

Source: Book Haul

As always, if you prefer a spoiler free review please read my quick review instead of the in-depth review below.

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About the Book

Carolyn has spent her life locked away in a “Library” and forced to study from a man who might be God. She knows she might be a little odd... especially after the terrible things she’s seen and the deaths she has endured herself. Carolyn finds Steve and offers him a job for $327,000. Soon he is swept up in a war he cannot comprehend. 

Quick Review (Spoiler Free)

I really wish I could give a simple explanation for you... but all I can say without spoiling anything is this is the most unique, wild ride that I have been on in a long time. It was weird, dark, confusing, intriguing, and maniacal all at the same time. You would think I were on drugs if I tried to explain it to you face to face with no context. But it was definitely a fun read. I enjoyed it but I’m not sure if I could make more sense of it if I read it again. 

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Now, let's get into the details!!

The first 50 pages or so are kind of rough because you really have no idea what’s going on and you just have to be okay with it and just buckle yourself in and push through. Some things begin to make sense as you read but then it scrambles other stuff in the process. But it all seems to have a certain oddness to it that flows equally throughout the entire book up to the end where you begin getting bigger reveals.

This is probably the most interesting set of characters that I’ve read about. Father, who has many names but is most often called this, has a hold on each of these characters. Each character has a “catalog” that they get to study and aren’t allowed to share information about their catalog with each other without being punished by Father or by one another with his instruction. It forces a divide, in a way, between the characters but they are also bonded by the trauma that they have been through and the way that they grew up. It gives them an oddly unique relationship. Each character has certain nuances about them based on the topic of their catalog too; for example, David being a total brute and Margaret being almost zombie-like. And not a single one of them seems to understand basic human mindsets, therefore are all doomed to fit in. But, again, they each experience this lack of skill in their own way.

The plot is the most tricky part for me to review. There are themes of life, death, fate/destiny, and A LOT of nonsense sprinkled in. Basically, we have Father who is seen as a God figure, we have Carolyn who is our sibling the story focuses mostly on, we have Steve who is our “American” who was drug into this “war”, we have Erwin who is the detective trying to make sense of this mess, we have a tiger who is also a diety of sorts, lions who are treated as disposable warriors after being saved, and then we have SEVERAL other siblings who are key players is all the madness. The story gives small bits at a time in a scrambled manner and then attempts to tie it all up with a nice bow in the end. Some of the story ends up making sense while other pieces are left unanswered. I’m not quite sure if that was to be a “reader interpretation” reasoning or not.

This is where I feel like I might be a little crazy. It was such an interesting and captivating read for me. I was constantly confused and learning new pieces both helped and hurt the story at times but then I had many “ah-ha” moments later on in the book. It became such a funny and odd experience that I ended up enjoying it overall.

All of this said, I really had fun reading and trying to figure it out. It almost felt like a puzzle. But like you were putting the puzzle together wearing kaleidoscope glasses. It has very heavy Umbrella Academy vibes, too. At the end of the day, would I recommend it to someone? Maybe. It really depends on your sense of humor and your ability to tolerate a lot of craziness.

Ratings