The Cartographers (Paperback)
Staff Reviews
The Cartographers is set alternately in New York Public Library's spectacular and slightly mysterious cartography room and in a rural New York home about 20 years ago where a tight knit group of PhD cartography students spent a summer working on what they were certain would be a mapping masterpiece. A fire and a death ended their project and scattered the students. Now, one of them - a cartographer at the NYPL - has died at work under suspicious circumstances, and his daughter is obsessed with learning why an old NY state road map was the only item in her father's special hiding place. As both stories move forward, old mysteries are revealed and new mysteries arise. Sharp characters, eerie settings, and many twists add up to a very satisfying thriller.
— Kay Wosewick
Nell followed in her parents’ footsteps and became a cartographer. The love of maps is her obsession, especially since her mother died in a tragic fire accident when she was young. Estranged from her father after the junk-box incident seven years ago, Nell is informed that he has passed away. Could it be foul play? The only proof is the map that cost her a job, her father, and her boyfriend. As she digs into the history of the map and why some shadowy entity known as The Cartographers will possibly kill for it, the discoveries she makes could change maps and her understanding of her own family history. A fun and twisty read!
— Jason Kennedy
When a cartographer mysteriously dies, his daughter discovers some very unusual connections to his graduate school classmates and a looming conspiracy. This is a clever variation on The Secret History school of novels, a thriller with a touch of speculation and inspired by a very real mysterious old road map. This book is map-tastic!
— Daniel GoldinApril 2022 Indie Next List
“A can’t-put-it-down immersive magical mystery that kept me up late to read. Anyone with an affinity for antique maps, the NY Public Library, and twisty-turny reveals will dig this. Highly entertaining with a superb cast of characters.”
— Cheri Anderson, The Bookloft (MA), Great Barrington, MA
Description
'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
*
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 . . .
*
'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
About the Author
Peng Shepherd was born and raised in Arizona, USA, where she rode horses and trained in classical ballet. She earned her MFA in creative writing from New York University, and has lived in Beijing; London; Los Angeles; Washington, D.C.; Philadelphia; and New York City. The Cartographers is her second novel.
Praise For…
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
The Cartographers is wildly imaginative and totally mind-bending in the best possible way. Shepherd has crafted a juicy mystery masquerading as a grown-up scavenger hunt filled with astonishing twists and revelations. The result is a romp that's pure pleasure to read and will keep readers guessing-and gasping-as the map's true power and beguiling history are brought to light—Bookpage
