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392 pages, Hardcover
First published January 10, 2011
"Carved above the lintel were the words SCIENTIA POTESTAS EST. Science points east, I wondered? Science is portentous, yes? Science protests too much. Scientific potatoes rule. Had I stumbled on the lair of dangerous plant geneticists?"The US-titled Midnight Riot (which used to be called Rivers of London before some American publisher undoubtedly decided that the target audience should NOT be aspiring US-based geographers) is a great read for me, a self-proclaimed devout Dresdenite (as in Harry Dresden, the Chicago wizard for hire, and not so much the German city). It has all the surface similarities to that series - a magically-inclined
"I'd like to say that I remembered the practice of exchanging hostages from school history classes or from stories of precolonial life in Sierra Leone, but the truth was that it came up while playing Dungeons and Dragons when I was thirteen."Peter Grant is joining the ranks of my favorite characters with his self-deprecating humor firmly rooted in pop-culture and modern world, as well as his own complicated family dynamics. A probationary constable who is recruited into a small (now consisting of 2 people) department of London police dealing with the supernatural, he approaches learning magic from a viewpoint of a natural scientist, carrying out experiments, creating theories, and even using science and valid deductions to counteract the villain in one of the major confrontations. All helped along with humor, and told in a narrative voice that is very even-keeled, even when the protagonist is faced with a life-or-death situation, and which, in my opinion, adds to the appeal of this story.
"We did an hour of practice, at the end of which I was capable of flinging a fireball down the range at the dizzying speed of a bumblebee who'd met his pollen quota and was taking a moment to enjoy the view."
"Being a seasoned Londoner, Martin gave the body the "London once-over" - a quick glance to determine whether this was a drunk, a crazy or a human being in distress. The fact that it was entirely possible for someone to be all three simultaneously is why good-Samaritanism in London is considered an extreme sport - like BASE jumping or crocodile wrestling."--------------------------------------
"If you ask any police officer what the worst part of the job is, they will always say breaking bad news to relatives, but this is not the truth. The worst part is staying in the room after you've broken the news, so that you're forced to be there when someone's life disintegrates around them. Some people say it doesn't bother them - such people are not to be trusted."---------------
"When I’m considering this I find it helpful to quote the wisdom of my father, who once told me, Who knows why the fuck anything happens?”