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Ben Aaronovitch

Rivers of London (A Rivers of London novel) Paperback – 25 Aug. 2011

by Ben Aaronovitch (Author)

7,386 ratings

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My name is Peter Grant and until January I was just probationary constable in that mighty army for justice known to all right-thinking people as the Metropolitan Police Service (and as the Filth to everybody else). My only concerns in life were how to avoid a transfer to the Case Progression Unit - we do paperwork so real coppers don't have to - and finding a way to climb into the panties of the outrageously perky WPC Leslie May. Then one night, in pursuance of a murder inquiry, I tried to take a witness statement from someone who was dead but disturbingly voluable, and that brought me to the attention of Inspector Nightingale, the last wizard in England.

Now I'm a Detective Constable and a trainee wizard, the first apprentice in fifty years, and my world has become somewhat more complicated: nests of vampires in Purley, negotiating a truce between the warring god and goddess of the Thames, and digging up graves in Covent Garden ... and there's something festering at the heart of the city I love, a malicious vengeful spirit that takes ordinary Londoners and twists them into grotesque mannequins to act out its drama of violence and despair.

The spirit of riot and rebellion has awakened in the city, and it's falling to me to bring order out of chaos - or die trying.

Print length

432 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Gollancz
Publication date

25 Aug. 2011
Dimensions

12.8 x 2.8 x 19.6 cm
ISBN-10

9780575097582
ISBN-13

978-0575097582
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From the Publisher

The new Rivers of London novel from Ben Aaronovitch!

Discover the Rivers of London series by bestselling author Ben Aaronovitch

Product description

Review

A darkly comic read with characters you can't help but like ― The Sunday Express

Funny and wildly inventive ― Mail on Sunday

Masterfully crafted . . . gives the late, great Terry Pratchett a run for his money ― The Sun

Ben Aaronovitch has created a wonderful world full of mystery, magic and fantastic characters. I love being there even more than the real London ― Nick Frost

Charming, witty, exciting ― Independent

An incredibly fast-moving magical joyride for grown-ups ― The Times

What would happen if Harry Potter grew up and joined the Fuzz. A hilarious, keenly imagined caper ― Diana Gabaldon

A consummate story of real policing in a vividly real world intersecting the decidedly unreal to marvellous effect. Filled with detail and imagination, the quality of this achievement stands out, making Aaronovitch a name to watch ― Peter F. Hamilton

Magical, mysterious and mesmerising, Rivers of London will have you spellbound ― Total Sci Fi

An engaging mix of magic and police procedural, this is a great kick off to a very promising series as well as the most satisfying fantasy thriller to hit bookshelves in quite some time. Witty, imaginative and gripping ― SFX

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ 0575097582
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Gollancz (25 Aug. 2011)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 432 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9780575097582
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0575097582
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 12.8 x 2.8 x 19.6 cm

Best Sellers Rank: 3,126 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- 26 in Horror Fantasy
- 44 in Ghost Horror
- 58 in Contemporary Horror

Customer reviews:
7,386 ratings

About the author

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Ben Aaronovitch

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Ben Aaronovitch was born in 1964. Discovering in his early twenties that he had precisely one talent, he took up screenwriting at which he was an overnight success. He wrote for Doctor Who, Casualty and the world’s cheapest ever SF soap opera Jupiter Moon. He then wrote for Virgin’s New Adventures until they pulped all his books.

Then Ben entered a dark time illuminated only by an episode of Dark Knight, a book for Big Finish and the highly acclaimed but not-very-well-paying Blake’s 7 Audio dramas.

Trapped in a cycle of disappointment and despair Ben was eventually forced to support his expensive book habit by working for Waterstones as a bookseller. Ironically it was while shelving the works of others that Ben finally saw the light. He would write his own books, he would let prose into his heart and rejoice in the word. Henceforth, subsisting on nothing more than instant coffee and Japanese takeaway, Ben embarked on the epic personal journey that was to lead to Rivers of London (or Midnight Riot as it is known in the Americas).

Ben Aaronovitch currently resides in London and says that he will leave when they pry his city from his cold dead fingers.

Customer reviews

5 star		61%
4 star		24%
3 star		10%
2 star		3%
1 star		2%

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Top reviews from United Kingdom

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Sylklok

I wish I'd found this author much, much sooner.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 23 July 2022

Verified Purchase

Ben Aaronovitch & Terry Pratchett. Bear with me here. Yes, they are different genres but I love Terry's books (may he RiP) because of the clever characterisations and extremely, and a lot of the time, subtle turns of phrase that would make me laugh out loud - even in a crowded carriage of the Tube. From page 1 of Ben's book, I could see another quietly witty genius at work - all the very, very finely-drawn characters and commentary that any Brit (or Kiwi living in the UK for a long time) just knows to be the real world of the situation and it suddenly makes you smile, and laugh, and sometimes snigger, at the aptness of the observation - all done in such a casual but tightly woven way. The many threads of story were melded together seamlessly and making London and it's often overlooked history a character was joyous. I can't wait to start the next book.

Helpful

The first novel in this excellent series of London based urban fantasies

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 4 April 2022

Verified Purchase

‘The spirit of riot and rebellion has awakened in the city, and it’s falling to me to bring order out of chaos – or die trying’ - Peter Grant, narrator of ‘The Rivers of London’ by Ben Aaronovitch, 2011.

I first read this superb work of urban fantasy in 2012 and was pleased to revisit it again this year.

Peter Grant had been a probationary constable in the Metropolitan Police until he attempted to take a witness statement from a ghost during a murder enquiry. Peter's ability to communicate with the corporally challenged brings him to the attention of Detective Inspector Thomas Nightingale, the last wizard in England, who is in charge of investigations into crimes involving magic and other manifestations of the supernatural.

Peter is promoted to Detective Constable and becomes a trainee wizard under Nightingale's tutelage. He finds himself plunged into a strange world that sees him dealing with nests of vampires and assisting in complex negotiations between the warring gods and goddesses of the rivers of London. There is also a wave of murders linked to that initial crime in which a malignant spirit is taking over the bodies of ordinary Londoners in order to act out a violent drama.

I could tell from the outset that Aaronovitch is in love with London and, as suggested by the title, its history and cityscape are central to the story. It is also very much a police procedural as Peter Grant and others investigate a series of strange murders.

His descriptions of London were highly detailed and I attributed this to assisting readers who are not familiar with the history and cityscape of London.

The story itself was fast-paced with plenty of pop culture references and wry humour and I loved it. It has been published in the USA as ‘Midnight Riot’.

Following this powerful debut, Aaronovitch has continued to write more adventures for Peter Grant and Company with the ninth novel, ‘Amongst Our Weapons’ published this week.

Helpful

Introducing Peter Grant

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 2 June 2021

Verified Purchase

I will admit that I did read this book, so far the only one I have read in the series when it first became available in paperback, but as that was some years ago I have decided to read it again. Our narrator is Peter Grant, a young police officer in the Met, who coming to the end of his probation finds himself being pushed in a direction that he does not want to go. After an incident that he and a fellow probationer encounter though, and his sighting and talking to a ghost leads him into a different part of the police force, one that is secretive and that you will never have heard of.

Peter thus finds himself coming under the leadership of DCI Nightingale, or rather becoming his apprentice, as Nightingale is a wizard. We find ourselves then being introduced to a world that is just as mundane as ours on the surface, but scratch just underneath and you find a whole different world running alongside it. This is what makes this novel work as we have the ordinary police procedural/ detective novel, but with these other elements coming through, which gives us the addition of myths and legends, and the folklore of London and the Thames Valley area.

This does have some awkward moments at times but is more than fast paced and full of incident. At times you do wish that there was some more emotion with the characters and also as this is the first tale in a series there is obviously quite a bit given up of the tale to introduce us to this new world and vision of London. Taking up his new position so Peter finds himself learning magic, investigating the case that he was originally looking at, which is bizarre and full of supernatural elements, as well as helping out in bringing some peace between Old Father Thames and his followers, and Mother Thames and her acolytes. In all then this does make for some slightly different escapism, and there is more than enough humour added to make this pleasurable to read. Whilst reading this you may also find out some things about the capital and its history that you were previously unaware of.

2 people found this helpful

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Jynx

Good but not amazing.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 7 April 2022

Verified Purchase

I gave this 4 stars, but not sure it qualifies as a 4* book for me personally. I didn't give it 3* stars because it is too well written to given that dishonour. It isn't a bad book. It is better than a mediocre 3* rating implies. It was interesting and entertaining, but it wasn't brilliant. It was the book equivalent of one of those action films you put on. Entertaining, but doesn't require much thought process. A good book to read when you want to switch off, but not something that is going to make me want to talk about it. 3.5*

Helpful

Rosalind Healy

a fun read, especially for a Pratchett fan

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 11 July 2022

Verified Purchase

Of course it’s not Discworld. Of course Vimes is not in it. Of course Binky isn’t trotting out of his stable…but still…it touches the same part of your heart, the place that’s been missing for a few years. I liked Peter and trust the author. Looking forward to lots more adventures to come.

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