The Cartographers by Peng Shepherd
Real Life Cartographers place "phantom settlements" on their map so they can prove copyright infringement if other mappers copy their work.
SPOILERS ABOUND
In The Cartographers, these phantom settlements are real, as long as you have the map in-hand when approaching them.
seriously, I'm going to spill the entire plot now
So. This book starts with an absolutely amazing premise - that maps contain magic, that real physical spaces can be created by adding them to maps. This is an idea I absolutely love. This book explores this magical idea to a mediocre degree. Insofar as it deals specifically with the map-magic, I like this book, and it does a pretty decent job. But the overall plot, the character development, and many technical aspects are just ... not very good.
Nell Young was working in the map division at the New York Public Library when she found a 1930s New York State road map. She presented that map, and others, to her father - who led the map division. He was furious and refused to let her start the project. Her boyfriend Felix defended her. They both got fired and Nell spent 7 years not speaking to her father, before he was murdered. Felix and Nell broke up because Felix was mad at Nell for getting him fired.
Nell returns to The Library after her father's murder and finds that old 1930s New York State road map, which has a phantom settlement on it called Agloe. Her Father & Mother had a group back in college, and they called themselves "The Cartographers". Nell reconnects with some of those people while investigating the map and her father's death. It takes awhile, but she learns that Agloe is a phantom settlement and that maps have real magic.
Nell also reconnects with Felix after her father's death, asking him for help with the map. They have a series of problems that are at about a middle-school level of maturity, despite both of them being in their mid-to-late 20s. It's pitiful. They end up on good terms by the end, but god they're both such fucking babies. And Nell (and those around Nell) blame her for the relationship failing, when actually Felix is an asshole. The book and characters in it make Nell responsible for Felix. Like he's mad that she is "putting maps before him". But like, bro, she has her own life, is an individual, and you're a fucking adult. Get over yourself. The maps, and the investigation about her father are NOT ABOUT FELIX. He's being immature and possessive and controlling, and the book seems to think Nell is wrong for not ... obeying.
So anyway. When Nell was 2 years old, 'The Cartographers' found Agloe and started a mapping project. Wally - her mom's best friend - went a little crazy. He scoured the planet for all copies of the 1930s map. The whole friend group had a bunch of drama and problems - petty shit that a tight-knit group (even college-aged) should have been able to work through, at least a little bit. Their story ends when wally sets all the maps on fire, causing Agloe to disappear, and apparently killing Nell's mom.
WELL. Agloe didn't disappear. Nell's mom was alive. She lived in Agloe for 25 years, continuing to work on her map of it. Nell's dad had kept the 1930s map a secret, and Nell's mom had stayed in Agloe, to keep them safe from Wally. The only reason Wally was a danger to anybody is BECAUSE HE WANTED THE FUCKING MAP. The only thing they needed to do to keep Nell & her mom safe was to GIVE WALLY THE MAP. But instead Nell grew up without a mom, her mom spent 25 years isolated from society .... it's just fucking stupid.
In the end, Wally gets arrested for his many crimes, her mom is freed, Agloe is saved, and Nell is revealing Agloe to the world. Felix and Nell will probably reconnect, but we don't know for sure.
My problem with the plot is that ... the central conflicts just are not convincing to me. Wally's motivations are, just ... they don't feel sufficient. Nell's parents' fear of Wally also seems ridiculous - especially since they never re-considered how to handle the situation over the course of 25 years. The relationship issues with Felix are just stupid, and poorly written, and takes a bad perspective, and I don't like it.
And there's a lot of technical issues with the writing, in my opinion. Like early on, there is a cop investigating the murder (and a subsequent break-in to the library) and the interactions with him just feel so ... poorly executed. The dialogue just feels ... idk. Not right.
I actually mostly enjoyed reading this book. But there were so many deficiencies with it.
And it could have done so much more with the map magic. I think the map magic is a really awesome concept, but it just wasn't explored enough. The book was more interested in character drama and internal thought processes than it was in the world it had created. That's really just a personal preference - I care more about the world and the magic stuff. But the character drama wasn't very good. It was frustratingly immature. I want thoughtful characters, mature characters, and characters who grow as people. Characters who make mistakes and take accountability for them. Drama that is born out of deep challenges rather than shallow immaturity. I'm down for some relationship drama. But like ... not when it's just because you're both incapable of having respect for yourselves and eachother.
I have a feeling this book would land really well for younger readers. I was definitely super interested in the over-arching plot. I think less critical readers may find the full plot and the characters satisfying. I never really wanted to stop reading the book. But my dominant feeling when I finished it was "that was fucking stupid". Entertaining story. But ultimately, "fucking stupid" is my opinion.