Moon Over Soho
Encyclopedia
Moon Over Soho is the second novel in the Rivers of London series by English
author Ben Aaronovitch
. The novel was released on 21st April 2011 through Gollancz
and was well received.
Police Constable and apprentice wizard Peter Grant is called in to help investigate the brutal murder of a journalist in the downstairs toilet of the Groucho Club
in London's Soho
district. At the same time Peter is disturbed by a number of deaths of amateur and semi-professional jazz musicians that occurred shortly after they performed. Despite the apparently natural causes of death each body exhibits a magical signature which leads Peter to believe that the deaths are far from natural.
The US cover by publishers Del Rey
once again caused controversy on-line, with reviewers again noting the change of cover from one featuring an obscured black man to one in silhouette only. Stephen Bitsoli, writing for The Macomb Daily, offered "two versions of that cover also exist, one black, one silhouette. Guess which one has been published?" while Thomas Wagner, founder of SF Reviews, stated "There's no way to bullshit what's going on here. The character's face has been silhouetted for no purpose other than to conceal his ethnicity. And there is one word for that: racist.".
In a review for The Daily Telegraph
, Peter Ingham praised the novels "laconic humour" and stated "It is a rich formula with a bittersweet ending. Terrific entertainment and ripe for a series.". Writer Sam Downing was also positive in his review, calling the protagonist a "fresh, likeable hero", the plot "messy and ridiculous and fun as it sounds." and stated that "It’s this kind of world-building that leaves me double-keen to see what magic Aaronovitch will work in the forthcoming third instalment". The novel was also reviewed by Joshua Hill, writing for the Fantasy Book Review, who praised the character's "casual acceptance of magic", stating that it "makes sense, when you consider the often used belief that the human mind fills in a lot of the details of things we do not understand.". Hill also stated that while "this book once again blew my mind"; referring to the previous in the series; he also found that the book was "let down with utterly atrocious editing" as "when a book is published to the world, you expect the grammatical mistakes to be non-existent". The novel was again well received by Jared of Porno Kitsch who stated that "Moon Over Soho is very good. Ben Aaronovitch continues the successful formula of Rivers of London in bringing to the surface the endearing minutae of a city that he clearly adores.". He does, however, also note that he feels the series is "[starting] to display some of the symptoms of series-itis" given that the plot of the novel is not entirely self-contained; and that the part of the plot that is self-contained is "a fairly transparent whodunnit".
The novel was reviewed by Thomas Wagner of SF Reviews, who awarded the novel three out of five. He stated that while he found the climax of the novel "both exhilarating and emotionally affecting" and that he "really appreciated seeing [Jazz] music featured as a dominant motif in a fantasy novel", he found that the plot "lacks the clarity it should have" and that, with respect to the villain, "the character's desire lines remain obscure.". He further goes on to say "I guess that's the idea, sure, but I do like a series fantasy to at least pretend to be subtle about leading me to the sequel setup.".
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
author Ben Aaronovitch
Ben Aaronovitch
Ben Denis Aaronovitch is a London-born British writer who has worked on television series including Doctor Who, Casualty, Jupiter Moon and Dark Knight...
. The novel was released on 21st April 2011 through Gollancz
Gollancz
Gollancz often refers to the British publishing house Victor Gollancz Ltd.Gollancz, a family name originating from the Polish town Gołańcz , is mainly known as the name of a prominent British Jewish family, including:* Sir Hermann Gollancz , rabbi* Sir Israel Gollancz , scholar of...
and was well received.
Plot
Following the events of Rivers of LondonRivers of London (novel)
Rivers of London is the first novel in the series of the same name by English author Ben Aaronovitch. The novel was released on 10th January 2011 through Gollancz and was well received by critics, earning a Galaxy National Book Awards nomination for Aaronovitch in the New Writer of the Year...
Police Constable and apprentice wizard Peter Grant is called in to help investigate the brutal murder of a journalist in the downstairs toilet of the Groucho Club
Groucho Club
The Groucho Club is a well-known private social club located at Dean Street in Soho, London. Its members are mostly drawn from the media, entertainment, arts and fashion industries....
in London's Soho
Soho
Soho is an area of the City of Westminster and part of the West End of London. Long established as an entertainment district, for much of the 20th century Soho had a reputation for sex shops as well as night life and film industry. Since the early 1980s, the area has undergone considerable...
district. At the same time Peter is disturbed by a number of deaths of amateur and semi-professional jazz musicians that occurred shortly after they performed. Despite the apparently natural causes of death each body exhibits a magical signature which leads Peter to believe that the deaths are far from natural.
Returning Characters
- Police Constable Peter Grant; an officer in the Metropolitan Police and the first official wizard's apprentice in sixty years.
- Police Constable Lesley May; an officer in the Metropolitan Police. Currently on medical leave due to injuries suffered in the course of an earlier case.
- Detective Chief Inspector Thomas Nightingale; head of the Folly and the last officially sanctioned English Wizard.
- Molly; The Folly's domestic helper, of unknown species.
- Dr Abdul Haqq Walid; world renowned gastroenterologist and cytopathologist.
- Detective Sergeant Miriam Stephanopoulos; case officer of the Belgravia Murder Investigation Team and de facto Senior Investigating Officer.
- Frank Caffrey; LFB (London Fire BrigadeLondon Fire BrigadeThe London Fire Brigade is the statutory fire and rescue service for London.Founded in 1865, it is the largest of the fire services in the United Kingdom and the fourth-largest in the world with nearly 7,000 staff, including 5,800 operational firefighters based in 112 fire...
) Fire Investigator, ex-para and a key "associate" of the Folly. - Cecilia Tyburn Thames; aka Lady Ty, "daughter" of Mama Thames and goddess of the River Tyburn.
- Oxley; one of the "sons" of Father Thames and his chief negotiator.
- Ash; a "son" of Father Thames and god of the River Ash.
Characters introduced in this novel
- Harold Postmartin D.Phil, F.R.S.; official archivist and historian of English Wizardry he operates out of the Bodleian LibraryBodleian LibraryThe Bodleian Library , the main research library of the University of Oxford, is one of the oldest libraries in Europe, and in Britain is second in size only to the British Library...
. - Detective Constable Sahra Guleed; a junior member of the Belgravia Murder Investigation Team.
- Detective Chief Inspector Zachary Thompson; acting Senior Investigating Officer Belgravia Murder Investigation Team.
- Detective Constable David Trollope; Peter's liaison with the Norfolk Constabulary.
- The Pale Lady; an assassin working for the Faceless Man who kills by excising the penis of her male victims with her vagina dentataVagina dentataVagina dentata is Latin for toothed vagina. Various cultures have folk tales about women with toothed vaginas, frequently told as cautionary tales warning of the dangers of sex with strange women and to discourage the act of rape....
. - Olympia and Chelsea; school age twin "daughters" of Mama Thames and goddesses of Counter's CreekCounter's CreekCounter's Creek is a largely subterranean stream that arises in Kensal Green, west London and flows south into the River Thames on the Tideway at Sands End, Chelsea...
and the River WestbourneRiver WestbourneThe River Westbourne is a river in London, England. It flows from Hampstead down through Hyde Park to Sloane Square and into the River Thames at Chelsea...
respectively. - Derek “Max” Harwood; jazz bass player and founder member of Lord Grant's Irregulars jazz quartet.
- Daniel Hossack; teacher at Westminster SchoolWestminster SchoolThe Royal College of St. Peter in Westminster, almost always known as Westminster School, is one of Britain's leading independent schools, with the highest Oxford and Cambridge acceptance rate of any secondary school or college in Britain...
, jazz musician and founder member of Lord Grant's Irregulars jazz quartet. - James Lochrane; lecturer in 17th Century French history at Queen Mary's CollegeQueen Mary, University of LondonQueen Mary, University of London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college of the federal University of London...
, jazz drummer and founder member of Lord Grant's Irregulars jazz quartet. - Henry May; Lesley May's father.
- Tista Ghosh; jazz aficionado and official for the Musician's UnionMusicians' Union (UK)-About the MU:The Musicians' Union is an organisation which represents over 30,000 musicians working in all sectors of the UK music business.-Campaigns:The MU stages regular campaigns in relation to relevant musical and industrial issues...
. - Abigail Kamara; annoyingly persistant teenaged girl.
Cover Artwork and Controversy
As with the previous book in the series the Gollancz cover is based upon a detail from Stephen Walter's 'The Island.'The US cover by publishers Del Rey
Del Rey Books
Del Rey Books is a branch of Ballantine Books, which is owned by Random House and, in turn since 1998, by Bertelsmann AG. It is a separate imprint established in 1977 under the editorship of author Lester del Rey and his wife Judy-Lynn del Rey. It specializes in science fiction and fantasy...
once again caused controversy on-line, with reviewers again noting the change of cover from one featuring an obscured black man to one in silhouette only. Stephen Bitsoli, writing for The Macomb Daily, offered "two versions of that cover also exist, one black, one silhouette. Guess which one has been published?" while Thomas Wagner, founder of SF Reviews, stated "There's no way to bullshit what's going on here. The character's face has been silhouetted for no purpose other than to conceal his ethnicity. And there is one word for that: racist.".
Reception
The novel was well received, with reviewers praising the novels humour and sense of place; the main detractor being the incomplete plot when taken as a self-contained novel as much of the story is left unresolved.In a review for The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
, Peter Ingham praised the novels "laconic humour" and stated "It is a rich formula with a bittersweet ending. Terrific entertainment and ripe for a series.". Writer Sam Downing was also positive in his review, calling the protagonist a "fresh, likeable hero", the plot "messy and ridiculous and fun as it sounds." and stated that "It’s this kind of world-building that leaves me double-keen to see what magic Aaronovitch will work in the forthcoming third instalment". The novel was also reviewed by Joshua Hill, writing for the Fantasy Book Review, who praised the character's "casual acceptance of magic", stating that it "makes sense, when you consider the often used belief that the human mind fills in a lot of the details of things we do not understand.". Hill also stated that while "this book once again blew my mind"; referring to the previous in the series; he also found that the book was "let down with utterly atrocious editing" as "when a book is published to the world, you expect the grammatical mistakes to be non-existent". The novel was again well received by Jared of Porno Kitsch who stated that "Moon Over Soho is very good. Ben Aaronovitch continues the successful formula of Rivers of London in bringing to the surface the endearing minutae of a city that he clearly adores.". He does, however, also note that he feels the series is "[starting] to display some of the symptoms of series-itis" given that the plot of the novel is not entirely self-contained; and that the part of the plot that is self-contained is "a fairly transparent whodunnit".
The novel was reviewed by Thomas Wagner of SF Reviews, who awarded the novel three out of five. He stated that while he found the climax of the novel "both exhilarating and emotionally affecting" and that he "really appreciated seeing [Jazz] music featured as a dominant motif in a fantasy novel", he found that the plot "lacks the clarity it should have" and that, with respect to the villain, "the character's desire lines remain obscure.". He further goes on to say "I guess that's the idea, sure, but I do like a series fantasy to at least pretend to be subtle about leading me to the sequel setup.".
External links
- The Island by Stephen Walter