Tuesday, January 21, 2014

Wanted Dispatch Jan 21 '14

 

Dirty Magic by Jaye Wells

When it comes to Urban Fantasy I tend to like books that lean towards noir or police procedural so when I heard about Dirty Magic which was compared to both The Wire and Breaking Bad I knew I had to read it. Sometimes its a dangerous thing to make such comparisons but having read the advance reader copy I have to say I tend to agree. Jaye Wells has put together a tightly plotted first person narrated police drama that involves a very crunchy almost hard version of magic based on the pseudo science of alchemy. She includes lots of ins and outs and layers to the politics and relationships in this book which felt very much like the pilot story arc for an compex cop drama. Is it the Wire of Breaking Bad well no, like many of the books I've loved its a mix of things the author knows well and loves combined to make something new. .... I plan a review this week but till then here is a link to an excerpt from the Orbit website and synopsis....

MAGIC IS A DRUG. CAREFUL HOW YOU USE IT.

The Magical Enforcement Agency keeps dirty magic off the streets, but there's a new blend out there that's as deadly as it is elusive. When patrol cop Kate Prospero shoots the lead snitch in this crucial case, she's brought in to explain herself. But the more she learns about the investigation, the more she realizes she must secure a spot on the MEA task force.

Especially when she discovers that their lead suspect is the man she walked away from ten years earlier - on the same day she swore she'd given up dirty magic for good. Kate Prospero's about to learn the hard way that crossing a wizard will always get you burned, and that when it comes to magic, you should never say never.

 

What Makes This Book so Great by Jo Walton

A few years back Jo Walton won awards for her book Among Others that featured a heroine that loved classic science fiction and now she has written a book about the classics she loved. This book collects the essays that Jo wrote for the tor.com website and includes her thoughts about books across the history of speculative fiction.... You probably could go back and find them all but its nice to have a collection all in one place.... Here is the announcement from tor.com for your reading pleasure...

 

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