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3.75 AVERAGE
3.75 AVERAGE
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
An urban fantasy paranormal procedural mystery. (Enough genres for you?) Constable Peter Grant seems destined for a career of paperwork, paperwork, and oh more paperwork until he discovers that he has a modicum of magical talent. Then he finds himself apprenticed to Inspector Nightingale, a detective and wizard, and trying to smooth over a tiff between the river spirits of London while also hunting a serial killer who makes people's faces melt off.
The chief points of appeal here are Grant's snarky POV (though I wonder if some of the references will feel dated in ten years) and the book's enormous fondness for London as a place. The hero is biracial, which I appreciate in a genre that's often lily-white, but I wish the publishers had had the guts to not make him a silhouette on the cover.
The chief points of appeal here are Grant's snarky POV (though I wonder if some of the references will feel dated in ten years) and the book's enormous fondness for London as a place. The hero is biracial, which I appreciate in a genre that's often lily-white, but I wish the publishers had had the guts to not make him a silhouette on the cover.
I’ve started re-reading this series because I loved it the first time around and missed the world.
Peter Grant is very likable. He’s so young but already has a smooth bearing when it comes to police work. Most of the time! Learning about the magical world with him is a lot of fun.
This book (and series in general) runs like a police procedural more than anything. Yes, there’s plenty of magic but it’s usually bookended with a lot of grunt police work. Some series get carried away with the magical world but Rivers of London keeps it grounded most of the time with real life.
Ah, Nightingale. What a grand old chap. Get used to wanting more Nightingale doing magic in your life because this series ALWAYS leaves you wanting more. In this book he’s especially noticeably absent a lot, which I found really odd since Peter is just learning to navigate the magical police world and needs more guidance.
This is a good intro book for the series. It touches on a lot of the themes, characters, and ideas featured in most future books, and it has a decent mystery for them to solve. It’s rough, but lovably so, and they get even better as the series goes on. Highly recommended.
DISCLAIMER: This book was a sharp smack to my knowledge of British slang for sure. I have always liked books set in England and prided myself on knowing a lot of slang words but I really had google on standby the first time I read this. I don’t want that to scare anyone away because it is a great series, but just know if you aren’t British there are some odd words about. Big example: “Nick”. This word has like three different meanings? It means to steal, to get arrested, and it’s the name for a local police HQ.
Peter Grant is very likable. He’s so young but already has a smooth bearing when it comes to police work. Most of the time! Learning about the magical world with him is a lot of fun.
This book (and series in general) runs like a police procedural more than anything. Yes, there’s plenty of magic but it’s usually bookended with a lot of grunt police work. Some series get carried away with the magical world but Rivers of London keeps it grounded most of the time with real life.
Ah, Nightingale. What a grand old chap. Get used to wanting more Nightingale doing magic in your life because this series ALWAYS leaves you wanting more. In this book he’s especially noticeably absent a lot, which I found really odd since Peter is just learning to navigate the magical police world and needs more guidance.
This is a good intro book for the series. It touches on a lot of the themes, characters, and ideas featured in most future books, and it has a decent mystery for them to solve. It’s rough, but lovably so, and they get even better as the series goes on. Highly recommended.
DISCLAIMER: This book was a sharp smack to my knowledge of British slang for sure. I have always liked books set in England and prided myself on knowing a lot of slang words but I really had google on standby the first time I read this. I don’t want that to scare anyone away because it is a great series, but just know if you aren’t British there are some odd words about. Big example: “Nick”. This word has like three different meanings? It means to steal, to get arrested, and it’s the name for a local police HQ.
adventurous
funny
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Really promising start!!! Looking forward to the rest of the series!
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
i definitely didn’t know what i was getting into with this one, why was the protagonist… like that? truly a man who thinks with his genitalia and so, naturally, every character and relationship told through his perspective fell very flat and shallow i fear. but i am a fan of mr nightingale, my old school british babe. but that was genuinely about it, i didn’t quite like the story. it was a good audiobook to play while driving tho, just the right amount of drama and silliness and magic.
adventurous
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Would be better if it wasnt copaganda