Rivers of London by Ben AaronovitchSynopsis: “Probationary Constable Peter Grant dreams of being a detective in London’s Metropolitan Police. Too bad his superior plans to assign him to the Case Progression Unit, where the biggest threat he’ll face is a paper cut. But Peter’s prospects change in the aftermath of a puzzling murder, when he gains exclusive information from an eyewitness who happens to be a ghost. Peter’s ability to speak with the lingering dead brings him to the attention of Detective Chief Inspector Thomas Nightingale, who investigates crimes involving magic and other manifestations of the uncanny. Now, as a wave of brutal and bizarre murders engulfs the city, Peter is plunged into a world where gods and goddesses mingle with mortals and a long-dead evil is making a comeback on a rising tide of magic.“

My Review

I love this series, and as I’ve started listening to it for the third time I thought it was about time I reviewed it here on the blog.

The story is told by Peter Grant, who as you can see in the synopsis is a probationary police constable. This first book starts with a very strange encounter he has in Covent Garden that changes his professional life overnight!

I don’t want to give much away as it’ll spoil all your fun as you experience a very different London, following Peter, his friend and colleague Lesley May, and his new superior officer Detective Chief Inspector Thomas Nightingale. 

This series is marketed as urban fantasy which is not a genre I would normal read. In fact I would give it a very wide berth as I don’t read fantasy at all. It’s also police procedural which I’m not always that keen on either, but strangely it works for me.

The stories have good mysteries plus there are loads of details about London through the ages which always has me Googling for more information. Oh yes and it’s laugh out loud funny if you appreciate the British sense of humour!

The audiobooks are narrated superbly by Kobna Holdbrook-Smith. He brings the characters to life perfectly, adding to my listening experience.

Highly recommended on audio if you’ll looking for something a bit different.