There is some much to enjoy in this debut that bristles with confidence and ambition. This brings her to the attention of a secret magical society that own The Library of the Dead a repository of magical knowledge and places her in a huge level of danger as she then discovers more children are going missing and returning in a terribly changed way – robbed of their youth. However, one ghost has an interest in their young son who has gone missing in the living world and reluctantly Ropa agrees to investigate. This keeps a caravan roof over her family’s head even though she gets bored dealing with petty domestic disputes that death has not ended. One of these is Ropa who has now left school and using her family’s magical talent of being able to speak to the dead to help pass on messages for a price. The Scottish Parliament is in ruins, some areas are flooded, power is erratic and there are many slums, cut-throats and long-term camps surrounding the city as people just try to survive. In a not-too-distant future Edinburgh is very very different to how it is now. A hugely promising start to the new Edinburgh Nights series that I think has the potential to become something truly special.
For something that treads between the two and gave me an excellent refreshing read I can now strongly recommend to you The Library of the Dead by T L Huchu that takes the detective format, adds magic and then throws in a near future dystopian Edinburgh for us to explore on top. Sometimes things get weirder with tales like Neverwhere, The City We Became or Claire North’s various novels that are weaving magic and our world in unexpected ways. We tend to these days have a simple expectation of most contemporary fantasy it often just be a major city usually New York or London mixed with a detective of some form solving a mystery. Yet as shadows lengthen, will the hunter become the hunted? And in the process, she discovers an occult library and some unexpected allies. ) as she calls on Zimbabwean magic and Scottish pragmatism to hunt down clues. She’ll dice with death (not part of her life plan. But what she learns will change her world. It’s on Ropa’s patch, so she feels honour bound to investigate. Until, that is, the dead whisper that someone’s bewitching children – leaving them husks, empty of joy and life. A girl’s gotta earn a living, and it seems harmless enough. Ropa dropped out of school to become a ghostalker – and she now speaks to Edinburgh’s dead, carrying messages to the living. Price – £14.99 hardcover £8.49 Kindle eBook I would like to thank Tot for an advance copy of this novel in exchange for a fair and honest review.
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