First published April 7, 2022
The ninth novel of the bestselling Rivers of London urban fantasy series returns to the adventures of Peter Grant, detective and apprentice wizard, as he solves magical crimes in the city of London.
There is a world hidden underneath this great city.
The London Silver Vaults–for well over a century, the largest collection of silver for sale in the world. It has more locks than the Bank of England and more cameras than a celebrity punch-up. Not somewhere you can murder someone and vanish without a trace–only that’s what happened.
The disappearing act, the reports of a blinding flash of light and memory loss amongst the witnesses all make this a case for Detective Constable Peter Grant and the Special Assessment Unit.
Alongside their boss DCI Thomas Nightingale, the SAU find themselves embroiled in a mystery that encompasses London’s tangled history, foreign lands and, most terrifying of all, the North!
And Peter must solve this case soon because back home his partner Beverley is expecting twins any day now. But what he doesn’t know is that he’s about to encounter something–and somebody–that nobody ever expects…
Effortlessly original, endlessly inventive and hugely entertaining–step into the world of the much-loved, number one bestselling Rivers of London series.
My Review
I had this audiobook on pre-order. Of course I did. And I started listening to it immediately I realised it was in my Audible library. I’ve been formulating this review for about a week. I think I have a special edition of the hardback on order with Goldsboro Books but I wasn’t going to wait for it to be delivered once I’d got caught up on the series.
The 9th book in the Rivers of London series, and Aaronovitch continues to impress. His characters, including secondary ones like Ash and Isis, continue to develop in realistic and entertaining ways. In this instalment a series of weird events take place, linked to a set of rings. Leslie May is involved somehow, and a creature that can pluck out human hearts. Peter is forced t travel to Manchester and the Pennines to get some answers, and meets magical orders of women, and smiths, who were once part of the Folly but broke away over time.
Back home, Beverley is getting ready to pop. Max gets in a bulldozer and builds a pond, and the foxes are on the alert for any enemies. Particularly cats. Peter has to defeat the avenging angel, apprehend Leslie, collect the rings, and get back in time to be present for the birth of their twins, or there will be consequences. When your partner is a river goddess, and her mother is the tidal Themes, those consequences will be painful.
Aaronovitch weaves history, folklore and magic together to build a modern London that is so much more interesting than the real thing. Wouldn’t it be fun if the rivers had genius locii that liked bananas and there were enchanted rings? Not so much the tortured soul of a fifteenth century Spanish peasant forced to become an avenging angel and hunt down Jews who left Spain and Portugal during the Inquisition.
The writing is entertaining, with LOTR references thrown in, and plot gripping. As ever, Holdbrook-Smith narrated the story brilliantly, at the correct pace and with the appropriate tone.
Everything Is Better With Dragons 