The Hanging Tree (Rivers of London Series #6)

by Ben Aaronovitch

Overview

Ben Aaronovitch's bestselling Rivers of London urban fantasy series • “The perfect blend of CSI and Harry Potter.” —io9

Suspicious deaths are not usually the concern of Police Constable Peter Grant or the Folly—London’s police department for supernatural cases—even when they happen at an exclusive party in one of the flats of the most expensive apartment blocks in London. But the daughter of Lady Ty, influential goddess of the Tyburn river, was there, and Peter owes Lady Ty a favor.

Plunged into the alien world of the super-rich, where the basements are bigger than the houses, where the law is something bought and sold on the open market, a sensible young copper would keep his head down and his nose clean.

But this is Peter Grant we’re talking about.

He’s been given an unparalleled opportunity to alienate old friends and create new enemies at the point where the world of magic and that of privilege intersect. Assuming he survives the week…

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780756409678
Publisher:	Astra Publishing House
Publication date:	01/31/2017
Series:	Rivers of London Series , #6
Pages:	304
Sales rank:	87,112
Product dimensions:	4.10(w) x 6.70(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Ben Aaronovitch was born in London in 1964 and had the kind of dull routine childhood that drives a man either to drink or to science fiction. He is a screenwriter, with early notable success on BBC's legendary Doctor Who, for which he wrote some episodes now widely regarded as classics, and which even he is quite fond of. After a decade of such work, he decided it was time to show the world what he could really do, and embarked on his first serious original novel. The result is Midnight Riot, the debut adventure of Peter Grant. He can be contacted at his website, http://www.the-folly.com/.

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Excerpted from "The Hanging Tree"
by .
Copyright © 2017 Ben Aaronovitch.
Excerpted by permission of DAW.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

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Editorial Reviews

12/05/2016
Aaronovitch’s sixth supernatural police procedural featuring Peter Grant (after Foxglove Summer) is another superior blend of mystery and wry humor. Grant, who is one of just two people in London authorized to practice magic, is asked by an acquaintance, Lady Cecelia Tyburn-Thames, to make sure that her adolescent daughter, Olivia, is not implicated in the homicide investigation into the fatal overdose of a friend, 17-year-old Christina Chorley. The aristocrat also insists that Grant keep her request confidential, which he promptly ignores. When Grant looks into the death, he finds evidence that the dead teenager had been practicing magic, without permission, at the time of her death. His pursuit of the truth ends up leading to a ledger kept by legendary Victorian criminal Jonathan Wild, which may indicate where Isaac Newton’s lost alchemy papers can be found. The worldbuilding is both clever and funny, and Grant continues to be an interesting hero. (Feb.)

Publishers Weekly

Praise for the Rivers of London series:

"A low-income housing tower gone awry, an old enemy with a bone to pick...and a shocker of an ending—Broken Homes is a delight." —Charlaine Harris, #1 New York Times-bestselling author

"The prose is witty, the plot clever, and the characters incredibly likeable." —Time Out

"This series is a constant joy to read....I’ve been looking forward all year to find out what happened next, and the book did not disappoint.” —Genevieve Cogman, author of acclaimed The Invisible Library

"It's witty, fun, and full of vivid characters, and the plot twists will keep even seasoned mystery fans guessing." —Publishers Weekly

“The perfect blend of CSI and Harry Potter.” —io9

"This book is, at its heart, a police procedural with an overlay of urban fantasy elements. The voice is persuasive and funny as all get-out, and the reader is engaged with the narrative from the very first page. Aaronovitch has written a diverse cast of characters who all feel like real people with their own specific motivations. This book is simply wonderful." —RT Reviews (top pick)

"The most satisfying fantasy thriller to hit bookshelves in quite some time." —SFX Magazine

"The most entertaining book that I have read in such a long time.... It's very funny, it's very clever, it's very nicely written.... It's such a treat." —Nancy Pearl

"Aaronovitch makes the story sing, building momentum until the ending is literally breathless.” —SF Revu

"Aaronovitch has a very witty, casual voice, with a tendency toward sarcasm and humor, which is threaded throughout Broken Homes. And a few crazy plot twists will devastate and delight fans in equal measure." —RT Reviews

From the Publisher

01/01/2017
While police constable/wizard apprentice Peter Grant has settled into a domestic routine with Beverley Brook (at least as domestic as you can get with the physical incarnation of the goddess of one of London's rivers), he still approaches Bev's big sister, Lady Tyburn, with caution. Tyburn calls in a favor when her daughter Olivia is arrested in conjunction with a death at a posh London apartment, but the case soon grows into something Peter and his boss cannot keep off the books. Especially when former colleague Lesley May shows up and they finally have a lead on the identity of the Faceless Man. The world of Peter Grant and the Rivers of London (last visited in Foxglove Summer) is extremely English, the British police jargon especially might go over American readers' heads. VERDICT The mix of humor, fantasy, and meticulous attention to the police procedural continue to make this an enjoyable series for urban fantasy fans.—MM

Library Journal