The Cartographers

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What to expect

'Exquisitely written ... Be prepared to be swept away on an incredible journey' Brad Thor, #1 bestselling author of Black Ice

'A story about magical maps that lead to your heart's desire [and] the people who would do anything to find them ... A vastly rich experience' Charles Soule, author of The Oracle Year

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Some places you won't find on any maps. Others, are only on maps . . .

Nell Young hasn't spoken to her father, the world-respected cartographer Dr. Daniel Young, in years - but this morning he was found dead in his office at the New York Public Library.

When they last met, Dr Young fired Nell after an argument over a seemingly worthless mass-produced highway map. Now every copy of this map is being found and destroyed . . .

To find out why, Nell will embark on a dangerous journey into the heart of a conspiracy beyond belief, discovering her family's darkest secrets and the true power that lies in maps . . .

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'A bedazzling metaphysical tale of lost and found.' Booklist

'Deeply satisfying ... Brilliant.' Washington Post

'A shimmering delight, full of wonder, danger, and marvel.' Library Journal

Critics Review

  • Peng Shepherd has done it again! The Cartographers is an exquisitely written, brilliantly plotted, absolutely fantastic novel. A story like this reminds us of why we all fell in love with reading to begin with. Be prepared to be swept away on an incredible journey that will stay with you long after you turn the final page

    Brad Thor, bestselling author of BLACK ICE
  • The Cartographers is a story about magical maps that lead to your heart’s desire, the sort of people who would do anything to find them, and the joy, regret, and possibility they bring. A vastly rich experience. I loved this book.

    Charles Soule, author of THE ORACLE YEAR
  • One of those brilliant books you have to read twice ... The Cartographers is, at its heart, about three things: family, found and otherwise; how much of one’s life can be built and balanced on a single lie; and the transformative nature of cartography. Its examination of this last aspect is what takes the book from an enjoyable, fast-paced (and fantastical) thriller to something you want to put down and think about before rereading it – snarling viciously at anyone who tries to pick it up before you can get that second pass.

    Washington Post
  • Shepherd’s convincing blend of magic from old maps with the modern online world both delights and thrills.

    Publishers Weekly
  • An engrossing tale involving maps, murders, and rooms that are not there … Readers will be hooked and find their imaginations sparking as they turn the pages.

    Library Journal
  • With an elaborately realized plot, fanatic cartographers, maps with surreal powers generated by phantom settlements (intentional errors), and many-faceted suspense, Shepherd contrasts science and art, obsession and love in a bedazzling metaphysical tale of lost and found

    Booklist

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