It was chosen as one of the best 100 books of 2012 by the San Francisco Chronicle,[1] was a New York Times Editor's Choice,[2] and was on the New York Times Hardcover Fiction Best Seller list[3] as well as the NPR Hardcover Fiction Bestseller List.

[5][6][7] Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore combines elements of fantasy, mystery, friendship and adventure as a way of looking at the modern conflict and transition between new technology (electronic) and old (print books).

The protagonist is a laid-off Silicon Valley tech worker who begins working at a dusty bookstore with very few customers, only to start discovering one secret after another.

The mysterious old books, along with the store's owner, lead to a 500-year-old secret society.

He was inspired to write the story after a friend misread a sign claiming the existence of a "24 hour bookshop".