Blurb
‘A bloodcap, an angelus and a Jack Russell terrier. They’re all I had by me to face mortal combat with the Queen of the Ælves.
I’d be dead in minutes…’
The historic streets of Edinburgh hide a parallel realm of shadowy killers, vicious ælves and deranged shades. All that stands between them and the unsuspecting populace are a daemon called Archer and the group of angelii he’s feuding with.
Drew Macleod is caught in the middle. Someone, somewhere is hunting him. But why? Delving deeper into this parallel realm, Drew finds allies in a feisty herbalist, an ancient creature in disguise and an old clock-maker – but are any of them really who they seem to be?
Touchpaper takes us on an exciting journey in the footsteps of Neverwhere and Rivers of London. This original and imaginative story lets a quirky cast of characters lead us into a hidden and dangerous world. The contemporary setting and the richness of the characters holds our attention in a fast-paced and at times humorous read, full of plot twists and quirky details.
Buy Links
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Touchpaper-Parallel-Realm-Book-ebook/dp/B0DR67GBRV/ref=sr_1_1
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D97469FW
Goodreads
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/222859499-touchpaper
My Review
Thanks to @KellyALacey and the team at @lovebookstours for organising this tour and to David Dodds for sending me a copy of this book, even if it did go to the wrong address and I had to bother neighbours on Monday to get it, two weeks after it was delivered. It’s been a while since I’ve done an LBT blog tour, I’m getting very discerning about which books I’ll accept for review these days.
I’ve been reading this book since my neighbour at the other end of the street brought it up on Monday. I started Monday evening, but was tired so I went to bed. Tuesday I read a few pages while I was getting dry at the swimming pool, and then for an hour in the evening. That left me with about half the book to read, so on Wednesday morning I sat down and finished the rest. Took about three hours. With toilet and tea breaks.
Firstly, I found the book entertaining and enjoyed the references to mythology. There are minor differences from established language and mythology, but they’re minor. I liked the new perspective on angels and demons; I think the author definitely knows his stuff and is drawing on pre-Christian understandings of them. By the way, the language spoken by the 8th to 11th century people of Scandinavia wasn’t ‘Scandinavian Viking’, but Norse – see holmganga (chapter 19) for reference.
Secondly, the cosy world of Alyssum, Archer, and Traggheim, into which Drew falls after being attacked by a sceadhu (she-had-du – it’s a shadow lich that attacks humans to draw off their life energy), is well-developed and the use of Edinburgh’s monuments and ancient streets as access points to the parallel realm works to build an atmospheric setting. It reminds me of a series I’ve read/am reading set in a future Edinburgh with magic, by T.L. Huchu, starting with The Library of the Dead, and quite a lot of Ben Aaronovitch’s Rivers of London series.
Thirdly, I don’t usually enjoy first person POV, it’s too limiting, but I didn’t mind it in this case. Drew really is a bit of a dolt, but he’s learning to be better and he tries to do better.
Forth, the action comes at a breakneck pace and builds to a crescendo, two or three times, as Drew and friends deal with one problem after another. I was amused by the banter between Alyssum, Drew, and later Jamie, and the developing romance between Drew and Ashnil is complicated by his complete and utter inability to read her. Luckily, Alyssum and Mamma Harbinger are there to set him straight.
So, I enjoyed the story, the setting and the characters, but, essentially there were three books in this book. And none of them were as fully formed as they could have been. We have:
- A monster attacks Drew who is rescued by Archer, a daemon, and introduced to the parallel realm. They believe Drew is being attacked by the Aelf queen. Follow to the end where Drew defeats the queen and replaces her with Stanley, as Stents crew go about replacing the stones that form a barrier between the aelves and humans
- The monster is actually being sent by a rival of Archer’s, Obadiah, who wants to lure Drew away from Archer’s side, and destroy Archer. Clues are sprinkled in, follow to the end where Archer and Obadiah fight, Archer loses and is temporarily lost.
- The angelii engage in politicking and try to take control of the galdrfolc of Edinburgh, release an ancient monster and then claim victory when things fall out the way they do.
I’m not telling anyone how to do their job, everyone writes differently, but, this story feels like it could have done with more space.
I would say, as someone who reads a lot of fantasy, and has written one or two, that these could have been the first three books in a series, if they were fleshed out more, and if they’d been third-person, or alternating first person POV. Chapters from Archer, Alyssum, and later Ashnil’s, perspectives, as well as Drew’s would have produced a more rounded story. I understand the internal pressure to tell all of the story at once, but sometimes that doesn’t do the story any good and it’s better to follow one line at the time.
The series could have started with the war against the Aelf-queen, with maybe some focus on Stent and his crew, hints placed that the angelii are traitors, and that the aelves aren’t behind the sceadhu attack on Drew; the second book could have followed with increasing tension between Archer, Drew, et al, and the angelii as Drew and Ashnil develop their relationship, with Obadiah making his appearance and the traitorous angelii becoming known, the fight between Archer and Obadiah, with Archer’s presumed death. The third novel would be the showdown between Drew and the angelii as they try to take over the galdrfolc, and then the galdrmoot, the release of the judgement monster, and finally Obadiah’s defeat, and the release of Archer. The hypothetical third novel could end as Touchpaper does, with Archer angry and in pain, and the angelii taking credit for the defeat of Obadiah, setting us up for the next book.
I definitely enjoyed this book and it has a place on the shelf of those who enjoy this sort of alternative/urban fantasy, it’s a page turner, that would have benefited from more space to explore the setting and characters. I would definitely read the next book, if I could.
Author bio
After years of reading and enjoying vibrant fantasy novels and writing dry, professional articles David broke free and now enjoys writing the sort of books he likes to read. His writing uses the history and legends of Edinburgh to provide a backdrop for a hidden fantasy world.
David’s first degree was in history, since when he has had a haphazard career, taking in conserving bats, managing businesses that would have been better left unmanaged, bookselling, and many other random things, all of which provide odd snippets of material for his writing.
He lives in an old railway-workers cottage in Peebles with his wife, Rona, a one-eyed cat and a small, opinionated dog. In his spare time he teaches people to fly gliders.
Everything Is Better With Dragons 