Tomorrow, the Killing (Low Town 2) [Hardcover]

The story is an awesome return to Warden's life. Set three years after The Straight Razor Cure, it's readable as a standalone story, but far richer if you've also read the former. We not only catch up with Warden and his friends, but also learn more about Warden's past and those passages form a continuing story with those of the prior book. They're not necessary to understand the plot of this one, but they do inform it.

In Tomorrow the Killing we get not one but two mysteries to solve, not just the identity of the people behind the murders of Roland and Rhaine, but also the motivation for them. In both cases they aren't killed by whom you'd suspect. In my opinion the puzzle of the whodunit was more intricate this time around; in The Straight Razor Cure I'd figured out who did it early on, even if I didn't know why until the end. In Tomorrow the Killing I was taken completely by surprise by the identity of the instigator of both murders--Polansky pulled a fast one on me. In hindsight, there were enough clues, I'd just completely missed them.

But far more than a murder mystery this is a further exploration of the character of the Warden. Polansky continues to show us Warden's history through flashbacks to relevant events in his life. We learn not just more about Warden, but about Adolphus and several smaller secondary characters as well. We also learn more of the history of the Rigan Empire, in particular about the war with the Dren, which is very reminiscent in setting to WWI. Polansky evokes the Great War's trench warfare and the trials and tribulations of the soldiers fighting it vividly. From the endless mud and rain, the futility of gaining - or losing as the case may be - a few foot of ground after each assault, and the devastating effect of shell shock on the troops, you can just feel the blunted despair of the soldiers. During the book we see Warden slip down a slippery slope, becoming more and more morose and bleak, and seeking his refuge in drugs even more, culminating in confrontation with Adeline, Adolphus' wife - who almost functions as a stand-in for the reader at that point, at least this reader, trying to talk some sense into this self-destructive man that Warden has become - and by the end there might be a suggestion that he'll turn his life around.

Even in the lowest point of his downward swing, Warden is humanised by his relationships with Adolphus, Adeline and Wren and his sense of obligation to General Montgomery and Rhaine. While he becomes distinctly unsympathetic at points and does some pretty atrocious things, which can't - and shouldn't - be excused because of his, mostly, good intentions, his care and sense of responsibility for his 'family' at the Earl show that at heart he isn't the blackguard he seems; he's flawed, certainly, and a thug and an addict, but he's not evil, such as The Old Man. He's broken, both by the losses he suffered from the plague as a child and his experiences during the war.

While we learn more about Warden's history with the Black House, we still haven't learned what happened to get him stripped of his position there. A third book is in the works though, so I'm hoping all will be revealed sooner rather than later. There is also a growing threat from The Old Man, the head of the Black House, its Special Operations unit, and Warden's erstwhile mentor. It seems he isn't quite done with Warden yet. So there are plenty of avenues left open for Polansky to explore and that's not even taking into account what new plot lines he might introduce. I can't wait to find out what they might be.

Tomorrow the Killing is a fantastic second novel for Polansky and it has only whetted my appetite for more: more of Low Town and more of Polansky's writing. If you haven't met the Warden yet, you're missing out. Tomorrow the Killing, like its predecessor The Straight Razor Cure, comes highly recommended and is a strong candidate for my top 10 Books of 2012.

This book was provided for review by the publisher.

The story is not complicated nor a long drawn out affair but gripping nevertheless. The dialogue is brilliant, comparison's to Erikson and Glen Cook spring to mind. The interaction between characters is witty, clever and absorbing.

I criticised the first book due to the obviousness of the climax, this book is just a story based in a city over a few days yet unbelievably engrossing. I could continue with my superlatives but won't bore you, if you enjoy fantasy then I cannot see how you could not enjoy this book and would recommend it highly.

Having enjoyed Daniel's first book, I was eagerly looking forward to embarking on another adventure with anti-hero Warden whose actions take the reader on a hard boiled expedition into the seedy underworld in which he inhabits blending the best of crime with fantasy.

As with the original its well written, the characters not only fun to be around but fully fleshed which when blended with the authors no nonsense writing style alongside cracking pace makes this a hard title to put down. Add to this a huge variety of twists to keep you glued and all in it's a title that I had a hell of a time putting down. Just don't expect to get much rest the night you start this book.