Reviews

Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch

Only show reviews with written explanations

arclight's review against another edition

5.0

This is a great book. I love the idea of a department of the Met that deals with the supernatural and magic.

Constable Peter Grant is not really much of a copper and is destined to a dreary life on the beat, until a chance encounter with a ghost leads him on another career path within the Met, that of a magician.

The way that Ben Aaronovitch mixes up myth with places from London is very reminiscent of Neil Gaimens Neverwhere. The fact that lead character, Peter Grant, has to actually study and learn magic is very refreshing - it beats most other stories where the character discovers he has magical abilities and then in a few pages is master.
I listened to the Audible audiobook of this which is narrated by Kobna Holdbrook-Smith who is hands down one of the best narrators on audible, he really can make the story come to life.

anonymous239's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous funny fast-paced

5.0

trnolan's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

Stumbling across this in a London bookshop and reading it on the tube during my visit was the perfect introduction to this series. It feels distinctly British and fair warning to American readers that you may need Google's assistance as British slang (not Cockney rhyming at least) pops up quite often and the author just assumes you know what's happening. The plot can be hard to follow as the magic is quite nebulous. But I think this book does a good job of capturing the melting pot of cultures that is London while having likable/intriguing enough characters that you want to keep turning the page. I'm excited to see how Aaronovitch's writing grows in later entries in the series.