The Rivers of London series, now at 5 books and counting, is what would happen if Sherlock Holmes and Harry Potter had a baby. The series follows several murder mysteries in a world very similar to ours, save only the small difference that magic does indeed exist, and our law enforcement is equipped to protect us from its malicious practictioners.

This is the first set of novels where I’ve been most compelled by the prose itself, even though the plots and characters are captivating in and of themselves. The writing is sarcastic, cynical, sometimes vulgar and all the while with a witty, dry sense of humor, causing the reader to retain a growing affection for the protagonist, and even the author himself.

Notable Excerpts

Midnight Riot (Book 1)

I find it helpful to quote the wisdom of my father, who once told me, “Who knows why the fuck anything happens?”

…because while history and tradition have a fine voice in London, money has a sweet siren song all its own.

…society became too complex for any one person to grasp all at once, and thus bureaucracy was born. A bureaucracy breaks the complexity down into a series of interlocking systems; you don’t need to know how the systems fit together or even what function your bit of the system has, you just perform your bit and the whole machine creaks on. The more diverse the functions performed by an organization, the more complex the interlocking systems and subsystems become.

And take it from one who knows—death is more of a bore than a tragedy.”

Maybe all ghosts were like this, a pattern of memory trapped in the fabric of the city like files on a hard drive—slowly getting worn away as each generation of Londoners laid down the pattern of their lives.

Moon Over Soho (Book 2)

I listened to make sure she wasn’t coming up the stairs and had a poke through the underwear drawers but got nothing except a vague sense of being really unprofessional.

…rock and roll was all right for those who needed help following a beat.

…a trumpet player likes to aim his weapon at the audience, but a sax man likes to cut a good profile and that he always has a favorite side.

“Fortune favors the prepared,” said Nightingale.

…and never lie down with a woman who’s more magical than you are.

Whispers Under Ground (Book 3)

…the rules of English grammar are largely an artificial construct with little or no bearing on the language as it is spoke.

It was a good plan, and like all plans since the dawn of time, this would fail to survive contact with real life.

As Conan the Barbarian famously said, “That which does not kill us does not kill us.”

Broken Homes (Book 4)

Sober, works late, drinks lager in halves and knows how to change a nappy. He’d be looking to make Detective Superintendent soon-ish

Foxglove Summer (Book 5)

…ipsa scientia potestas est—knowledge itself is power

…it’s easier to manage people if they maintain a sense of agency.