A bit of a twist on the paranormal detective, a genre which I generally like.

What to Expect

What starts as a noir detective quickly moves into a bizarre world, more Alice in Wonderland on a bad acid trip than your typical paranormal detective. As the blurb says, John Taylor isn’t really a detective, just a man with a strange gift to find things. When a woman hires him to find her daughter, it naturally takes him to his shady past and even shadier alter-world behind London from which he tries to escape.

What I liked

I did finish the novel, which usually indicates there was at least enough going on to draw me to continue reading. Upon reflection, I think it was a combination of the outlandish world and a desire to read something non-taxing.

What to be aware of

The world of the Nightside is very over-the-top on everything, so much so it can come across as a flat trope rather than the ominous vibe Taylor describes at every opportunity. It often comes across as Green trying too hard to be different.

The characters are fairly flat, and people in their ‘late 20’s’ are old hands with long histories which makes it seem a bit simplistic immature in tone. Taylor has a big bad rep in the Nightside, but why so isn’t clear, not even to Taylor himself. There’s also very little to do with London, except that the protagonist happens to live there and uses the tube (underground) to get to the world of the Nightside.

Felix’s Review

Felix said it reminded him of that one time he had the funny mushrooms. There wasn’t an element of mystery or solving a crime to the story, nor any coherence to the story.

Summary

Meh. Good if you’re in the mood for something trippy and come with low expectations.

---

Enjoying the reviews, but wondering who the heck is that Felix fellow? Glad you asked! He’s the protagonist of the Togas, Daggers, and Magic series, an historical-fantasy blend of a paranormal detective on the background of ancient Rome.

Come meet Felix and his world on the free short stories and novels!