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Moon over Soho
407 pages
A smoky, jazz-infused plunge into the hidden, magical underbelly of London, guided by a narrator with a badge and a dangerously dry wit.
What it feels like
Reading this feels like stepping into a smoky, subterranean jazz club long after midnight, where the music gets under your skin and the shadows hide teeth. It balances the grounded, methodical rhythm of a police procedural with the eerie, unpredictable pulse of urban magic. The narration is a delight—wry, endlessly observant, and packed with affectionate, hyper-specific trivia about London's streets and architecture. As the investigation deepens, the initially breezy, irreverent tone gives way to something darker and more dangerous, pulling you into a nocturnal world where magic exacts a visceral toll. It is perfect for readers who want their fantasy anchored in gritty reality, served with a pint, a saxophone solo, and a distinctly British sense of humor.
- Mood
- smoky
- nocturnal
- jazzy
- eerie
- Tone
- wry
- irreverent
- observant
- dryly humorous
- Pace
- brisk
- Themes
- hidden urban histories · the cost of magic · bureaucracy meets the supernatural · musical legacy
- The writing
- Snappy and distinctly British, the narration is laced with dry wit, architectural trivia, and sharp observational humor.
- The arc
- The journey shifts from confident, witty investigation into a sobering confrontation with a darker, more insidious magical underworld.
- Who it's for
- Readers who love their urban fantasy grounded in gritty police work, dry humor, and a deep, affectionate obsession with London's geography.
Content notes
- murder
- body horror
- sexual content
- magical violence
About the book
The second novel in Aaronovitch's Peter Grant series takes the police constable cum apprentice magician into Soho and the world of jazz, where somebody seems to feed of the musician's vibes, while a black magician is expanding his territority.
Description from Open Library.
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