Book Review: A Police Procedural but with Magic
Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch is an easy urban fantasy read but lacks character depth
Peter Grant is on the cusp of finishing his probationary period as a constable with the Met when a particularly gruesome murder occurs. While standing guard at the crime scene, he has a conversation with a witness. Unfortunately, that witness is a ghost and what ensues diverts Peter from a career in cop data entry and into the world of magic.
Ask anyone in any urban fantasy fan group what book to read after reading the Dresden Files series by Jim Butcher, and you will invariably get The Rivers of London series as a recommendation. After floundering around for a good read, I decided to dive into this series and see what the fuss is about. It’s not as good as the Dresden series, but it’s not bad either. For all that and more, I gave this 4 stars.
The Plot
Peter Grant doesn’t have a fantastic future ahead of him at the Met. For some reason, he’s been assigned a data entry position once he finishes his probationary term. So, it’s probably for the best when a ghost talks to him at a murder scene, because maybe he can pull a rabbit out of his hat (or a murderer) and save his career from the dulldrums.
