Whispers Underground (Rivers of London) - Ben Aaronovitch

If I don’t know what to read, mystery novels are my default. As long as a book has an engaging plot and interesting characters, I know that I will enjoy it. That is why I picked up Whispers Underground. It sounded quirky and mysterious and the blend of magic and reality intrigued me. 

The Rivers of London series revolves around Detective Grant who is a police officer working on solving cases involving magic and superstition. This particular novel tells the story of a murder in the tunnels of London’s underground railway done with a magical shard of pottery. I was interested throughout the whole novel however I became confused at times by the magical references and the way that the “magical” world worked. That may have been due to the fact that this book is not the first in the series. At times there were sayings or mannerisms which I did not understand either, perhaps it is because I’m not British. On the other hand, I really liked the characters and their unusual interactions with each other. Also, the London setting was enjoyable to read about, particularly since I have visited London before, there were many locations which were familiar. Ben Aaronovitch does not have a particularly descriptive or sophisticated writing style, but he does create an effective character voice in the way he tells the story from Detective Grant’s perspective. The mystery itself is intriguing with many suspects and a few curveballs to keep the reader on their toes. This makes for an amusing and quirky novel with a mystery like none I have read before.

- Inkpot Blogger