If Terry Pratchett's Samuel Vimes and Dashiel Hammett's Sam Spade ever had a love child, he would be finder Markhat. Sardonic, embittered, suspicious, but at heart a gentleman and an honorable ex-soldier, he expects the worst from everyone and brings out the best in many.
Tuttle's world is very reminiscent of Terry Pratchett's Ankh-Morpork. Very reminiscent - to the point where it bothered me quite a bit. Not only is there the same mix of fantasy and urban reality, you have Trolls playing a very large part in the story - and they're identical to Pratchett's trolls. Even the opening reminds one of the start of 'Guards, Guards'. The character names are very similar, as are the details of shops and the city and the river. Not identical, mind you, just a bit too close an imitation at times. As 'Dead Man's Rain, progresses, however, it finds its own unique voice and setting, and I stopped thinking this was Pratchett noir.
'Dead Man's Rain' is a horror story and a narrative about venal instincts, greed and guilt. The set up is a little Maltese Falconish, and Markhat's weary cynicism is pure Spade as he deals with the snobby Widow Merlat and a incredible tales of ghosts and hauntings. But then, just as Tuttle sets you up thinking the plot will be resolved one way, he takes you down another. We learn more about Merlat's family, and her, and her servants, and Markhat reveals the qualities that kept him alive through a bitter and destructive war, in order to save the good and punish the wicked. This is not a romance - there's no pairing in this at all - and that's how it should be for our tarnished hero.
Tuttle's writing is delightful, and even if he's borrowed some settings a little too heavily, Markhat's his own memorable creation, as are the plots and the dialogue. He's funny, in a very Bogartian sort of way, but like Pratchett, there's a deeper thread to his narrative than simple humour, with many a wry observation on human and non-human behaviour, populating his stories with vivid characters who continually surprise the reader.
Really, there's nothing not to like here, if you like this genre, and aren't put off by the lack of romance. Finder Markhat is someone I want to read more about, and I hope Mr Tuttle revisits him.
