tamaranth | 2020/145: Tales from the Folly -- Ben Aaronovich

2020/145: Tales from the Folly -- Ben Aaronovich

Hail Dominic and Victor, the foxes had hailed us, soon to be blessed above all other minor landowners in Herefordshire and the wider border regions. The little bastards could have given us more of a warning.

‘He seems like a good little chap,’ said Victor.

‘Victor,’ I said slowly. ‘He’s the god of the River Lugg.’ [p. 205]

An assortment of short stories and vignettes set in the world of the Rivers of London series. The first six stories are told from Peter Grant's viewpoint: the others by more-or-less minor characters, or characters who don't appear in the novels.

To be honest I don't think short fiction is Aaronovitch's forte: perhaps it's because I read the entire book in a single sitting, but none of the stories really stood out, and some seemed very slight. Probably the two I enjoyed best were 'Three Rivers, Two Husbands and a Baby' (which picks up the story of Victor and Dominic, previously encountered in Foxglove Summer) and 'Dedicated Follower of Fashion', a tale of the Swinging Sixties, South London, drug dealers and thugs and the Wandle. This barely intersected at all with the Rivers novels, and may well have been better for it: plus, there are some truly luscious descriptions of fabric.

Far from awful, but could have done with more Nightingale (my perennial complaint) and also more foxes.