What I'm Reading: THE LIBRARY AFTER DARK

A mashup between suspense and horror set in a library dedicated to fairy tales

A young bookseller with a murky past and dark secrets is whisked to an exclusive after-dark tour of a famous, and notorious, library for dark fairy tales as a Valentine’s surprise by her new paramour. When the group is accidentally locked inside and one of them dies, all of the tour groups’ individual secrets begin to surface. Interspersed with some of the fairy tales in the library’s most famous book, the story, told from multiple points of view, careens from dark revelation to darker revelations, and the body count rises.

Pliego’s book is a dark thriller with tinges of horror. You won’t want to look away until the stunning conclusion.

Thank you to Ballantine | Bantam and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advance copy.

THE LIBRARY AFTER DARK is out May 5, 2026.