I was so pleased to receive this Early Reviewers book, having been a big fan of Wodehouse for many years. It didn't disappoint. Even the second, third and fourth reads of the Jeeves and Wooster stories are funny, stress-relieving, and mind-tickling. Anyone having a literary friend with a sense of humor should recommend this book to them, as it's a good entry into the world of Wodehouse.

My review of this book is being written very late. After reading this book, I was compelled to get all the earlier books in the series and read them straight through. The God of the Hive was a riveting read....couldn't put it down. The characters are engaging, the plot is suspenseful and clever, and the writing flows like a river. This is an excellent addition to the Sherlock Holmes and Mary Russell series by Laurie R. King.

Billy and Mona are recent graduates and newly employed by the Samuelson Company to do research for new dictionary words. In the course of their duties, they find strange notes hidden in the company reference catalog which reference a work of fiction that doesn't exist - The Broken Teaglass. What do these references mean and who has left them in the catalog for someone to find?

I enjoyed this book quite a bit. The characters of Billy and Mona are done very well, as are some of the minor characters. The setting is excellent - one doesn't often think about how dictionaries are made, but the process is fascinating. I wouldn't mind reading a series of books with this setting.

The reason I gave the book 4 out of 5 stars was because I thought the plot lacked tension and purpose. The reader begins to understand the meaning of the mysterious notes before the main characters do, and once the reason for the notes is revealed, there is a feeling of letdown. The most dangerous part of the story happened in the past, is unchangeable, and becomes more of an academic exercise for the young protagonists. If there had been an impending event which hinged on the past, it would have provided more tension for the story. At one point, I found myself wishing the story would provide a WOW moment, and make the leap into contemporary fantasy, and I could envision the missing suspense being added in that way as well.

Having said that, I still enjoyed reading the book all the way to the end, and this show more was due to the author's clever characters, wonderful setting, and very readable voice. I'm looking forward to this author's next work. show less