Also by this author: The Book of Doors
on August 12, 2025
Goodreads
From the author of the internationally bestselling The Book of Doors, another fantastical, stand-alone novel in which a trio of seemingly everyday people are members of a secret society tasked with finding and protecting hidden magical objects—ordinary items with extraordinary properties.
The world of unknowable objects—magical items that most people have no idea possess powers—has been quiet for decades, but the three current members of a secret society have remained watchful, meeting every six months in the basement of a bookshop in London. They are pledged to protect their archive of magical items hidden away, safe from the outside world—and the world safe from them. But when Frank Simpson, the longest-standing member of the Society of Unknowable Objects, hears of a new artifact coming to light in Hong Kong, he sends Magda Sparks—author by day and newest member—to investigate.
Within hours of arriving in Hong Kong, Magda is facing death and danger, confronted by a professional killer who seems to know all about unknowable objects, specifically one that was stolen from him a decade before. Magda is forced to flee, using an artifact that not even the rest of the Society knows about.
Returning to London, Magda learns hers is not the only secret being kept from the other two members. And that the most pernicious secret is about the nature of the Society’s mission. Her discoveries will lead her on a perilous journey, across the Atlantic to the deep south of the United States, now in pursuit of not an unknowable object, but an unknowable the professional killer she first faced in Hong Kong. In doing so, Magda begins to understand that there are even more in the world who are chasing these magical items, and that her own family’s legacy is tied up in keeping all these secrets under wraps.
Magic has always been too powerful to reveal to the world. But Magda will learn there might be something even more
The truth.
The Book of Doors was easily one of my favorite books of 2024. I loved every word of it. It was one of the most unique books I have ever read. I had the same level of anticipation for The Society of Unknowable Objects by Gareth Brown. While the novel stands well on its own, it is set in the same world as Brown’s first novel. If you haven’t read The Book, you’ll miss some of The Society’s nuances. It isn’t quite as good as his debut work, but Brown’s newest novel is just as stunning. It is an equally refreshing and beautiful experience. Entertaining, captivating, and full of life.
My biggest qualm with The Society of Unknowable Objects: the characters. I liked them, but I didn’t know them. It was like making small talk at a networking event. I wanted more from them. I never fully understood them. The main character, Magda, also grated on my nerves. Thinking through it further, though, maybe that was Brown’s point. She started out as more of a bubbly, naïve idealist. Despite the death of her mother, magic is exciting and good. As the book continues, Magna transitions into a wise, competent, and independent minded leader.
The novel’s other issue: a letter. The characters discover a note that spells out everything they needed to know, and I didn’t much like that. I wish the characters had learned the facts little by little rather than all at once, in written correspondence. It’s too easy. I’m glad Brown explained everything, but I wish it would’ve been done differently. I want to graze on his brilliant ideas. Give me a feast, and I don’t know where to start. And I’ll get full before dessert! The letter was a simple way to answer questions, to put everything in one place. But I didn’t like it.
Without giving too much away, I can’t say much about the novel’s conclusion. I can say the ending of The Society of Unknowable Objects by Gareth Brown made me grin, like a giddy girl with a gift. I really, really hope to see more Books from Gareth Brown.