The Rivers of London series (alternatively, the Peter Grant or the PC Grant series[2]) is a series of urban fantasy novels by English author Ben Aaronovitch, and comics/graphic novels by Aaronovitch and Andrew Cartmel, illustrated by Lee Sullivan.
| In timeline order[1] The Masquerades of Spring(2024) Action At A Distance (graphic novel) (2019) Rivers of London (Midnight Riot in the US) (2011) Moon Over Soho (2011) Whispers Under Ground (2012) Broken Homes (2013) Body Work (graphic novel) (2016) Foxglove Summer (2014) What Abigail Did That Summer (novella) (2021) Night Witch (graphic novel) (2016) Black Mould (graphic novel) (2017) The Furthest Station (novella) (2017) The Hanging Tree (2016) Detective Stories (graphic novel) (2017) Cry Fox (graphic novel) (2018) Water Weed (graphic novel) (2018) Lies Sleeping (2018) The Fey and the Furious (graphic novel) (2019) The October Man (novella) (2019) False Value (2020) Amongst Our Weapons (2022) Monday, Monday (graphic novel) (2021) Deadly Ever After (graphic novel) (2023) Winter’s Gifts (novella) (2023) | |
| Author | Ben Aaronovitch (novels and graphic novels) Andrew Cartmel (graphic novels) |
|---|---|
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Urban Fantasy |
| Publisher | Gollancz |
| Published | 2011–present |
| Media type | |
Plot overview
editNovels and novellas
editRivers of London
edit(American title: Midnight Riot)
The novel centres on the adventures of Peter Grant, a young officer in the Metropolitan Police; who, following an unexpected encounter with a ghost, is recruited into the small branch of the Met that deals with magic and the supernatural.
Peter Grant, having become the first English apprentice wizard in over seventy years, must immediately deal with two different but ultimately inter-related cases. In one he must find what is possessing ordinary people and turning them into vicious killers, and in the second he must broker a peace between the two warring gods of the River Thames and their respective families.[3]
Moon over Soho
editFollowing the events of Rivers of London Police Constable and apprentice wizard Peter Grant is called in to help investigate the brutal murder of a journalist in the downstairs toilet of the Groucho Club in London's Soho district. At the same time Peter is disturbed by a number of deaths of amateur and semi-professional jazz musicians that occurred shortly after they performed. Despite the apparently natural causes of death each body exhibits a magical signature which leads Peter to believe that the deaths are far from natural.[4]
Whispers Under Ground
editThe son of a US senator is stabbed to death, and magic involvement is suspected. An FBI agent is involved with DC Grant's case. Meanwhile, in the sewers near the tunnels of London's Underground, something is happening.[5]
Broken Homes
editAnother killer is on the loose, and the prime suspect could be an associate of the twisted magician known as the Faceless Man. A town planner goes under a tube train, and a grimoire has been stolen. And when Peter gets word of something very odd happening in Elephant and Castle, he has to investigate whether there is a connection.[6]
Foxglove Summer
editLeaving London, Peter goes to a small village in Herefordshire, where there appears to be a supernatural element to the disappearance of two local girls. Having to cope with local cops, as well as local gods, Peter finds the mystery deepens.[7]
The Hanging Tree
editBack in London, Peter faces the legacy of London's hangings. Investigating suspicious murders in the world of the super-rich, Peter is in a different world to the one he is used to investigating.[8]
The Furthest Station (novella)
editIn this novella, published in September 2017, Peter needs to deal with commuting ghosts, forgetful commuters, and deciphering a ghost's urgent message.[9]
Lies Sleeping
editPublished in November 2018, Peter continues the investigations into Martin Chorley.[10]
The October Man (novella)
editPublished in June 2019. Tobias Winter, the only apprentice in the "Abteilung komplexe und diffuse Angelegenheiten" (KDA) (Department for Complex and Diffuse Matters – the German equivalent of the Folly) investigates a suspicious death in a vineyard near the Moselle. His local colleague is Vanessa Sommer, who is going to join the KDA in the end as well.[11]
False Value
editPeter Grant is facing fatherhood, and an uncertain future, with equal amounts of panic and enthusiasm. Rather than sit around, he takes a job with émigré Silicon Valley tech genius Terrence Skinner's new London start-up: the Serious Cybernetics Company. The book was released on 20 February 2020.[12][13]
Tales from the Folly
editTales from the Folly, a short story collection, was published in November 2020.[14]
What Abigail Did That Summer (Novella)
editWhat Abigail Did That Summer is a novella set at the same time as Foxglove Summer. In the series chronology it is the first novella, taking place before The Furthest Station.[15]
- Hardback: ISBN 9781473224346, First edition 18 March 2021
- eBook: ISBN 9781473224360, First edition 18 March 2021
Amongst Our Weapons
editThis novel, the ninth in the series, was released on 7 April 2022.[16] Peter Grant, now an expecting father, is tasked to investigate a suspicious magical death in London's silver vaults and uncover a centuries' old mystery.
Winter's Gifts (novella)
editWinter's Gifts is a novella set after Lies Sleeping,[17] published in June 2023. It follows FBI Agent Kimberley Reynolds, introduced in Whispers Underground, who has subsequently become an ally of the Folly.
The Masquerades of Spring (novella)
editThe Masquerades of Spring follows Nightingale and an old aquaintance of his from The Folly in 1920s New York, tracking down the history of a cursed Saxophone.
Graphic novels
editThe graphic novel series, cowritten by Andrew Cartmel. Initially published serially, the individual story arcs later appeared as graphic novels.
Body Work
editInvolves a cursed car. It takes place between Broken Homes and Foxglove Summer.[1] Originally released as five monthly issues. [18]
- Hardback: ISBN 9781785853647, First edition March 2016
- Softback: ISBN 9781782761877, First edition March 2016
Night Witch
editA Russian Oligarch's daughter is kidnapped. He kidnaps Night Witch Varvara Sidorovna in return.[19] Set between Foxglove Summer and The Hanging Tree[1] Originally published as five monthly issues.
- Hardback: ISBN 9781785853647, First edition November 2016
- Softback: ISBN 9781785852930, First edition December 2016
Black Mould
editAn investigation of a black mold infestation and a haunted ice cream van.[20] Set between Night Witch and The Hanging Tree (A reader's guide in Black Mould places this story after The Hanging Tree[1] but a brief reference is made in The Hanging Tree to the events shown here.)[21]) Originally released as five monthly issues.
- Hardback: ISBN 9781785863851, First edition June 2017
- Softback: ISBN 9781785855108, First edition July 2017
Detective Stories
editPeter encounters difficulty in making Detective. Set between The Hanging Tree and Cry Fox. Originally released as four monthly issues.
- Softback: ISBN 9781785861710, First edition December 2017
Cry Fox
editA story centered around Reynard. Set between Detective Stories and Water Weed and originally released as four monthly issues.
- Softback: ISBN 9781785861727, First edition June 2018
Water Weed
editA story starting with an encounter between the river goddesses Chelsea and Olympia and a crew of possibly magic-using drug dealers. Originally released as four monthly issues, June 2018 – September 2018.
- Softback: ISBN 9781785865459, First Edition December 2018
Action At A Distance
editNightingale searches for a serial killer in 1957 London.
- Softback: First Edition: November 2019
The Fey and the Furious
editA story centering on Peter.
- Softback: First Edition: November 2020
- Set after the events of Lies Sleeping
Monday, Monday
editA routine undercover operation leads to a Swedish werewolf.[22]
- Softback: ISBN 9781787736269, First edition November 2021
- Set after the events in Amongst Our Weapons
- Originally released as four monthly issues between July and October 2021
Deadly Ever After
edit- Softback: ISBN 9781787738591, First edition January 2023
- Originally released as four monthly issues between May and September 2022
Here Be Dragons
editAfter a rash of strange UFO sightings above the capital, a Met Police helicopter night patrol is attacked by what can only be described as a dragon![23]
- Softback: ISBN 9781787736269: First edition January 2024
- Originally released as four monthly issues between July and October 2023
Future instalments
editAaronovitch has announced some forthcoming titles on his personal blog.
Aaronovitch has announced several works within the same fictional universe, but set outside the chronology of the main series. These works include a short story entitled 'Cock of The Wall' focusing on Petrus Aelius Bekemetus,[17] who Aaronovitch describes as a "temple official/Londinium wideboy" – i.e. set in Roman London which Peter Grant briefly visited in the first book of the series.[24]
Main characters
edit- Police Constable Peter Grant; an officer in the Metropolitan Police and the first official apprentice wizard in sixty years.
- Detective Chief Inspector Thomas Nightingale; head of the Folly and the last officially sanctioned English Wizard.
- Lesley May; Police Constable colleague of Peter's in the Metropolitan Police.
- Detective Chief Inspector Alexander Seawoll; Senior Investigation Officer at the Westminster Murder Investigation Team.
- Detective Sergeant Miriam Stephanopoulos; case officer of the Belgravia Murder Investigation Team and 'right-hand man' to DCI Seawoll.
- Detective Constable Sahra Guleed; Attached to Belgravia Murder Investigation Team, often works with Peter when his cases are in London.
- Dr Abdul Haqq Walid; world-renowned gastroenterologist and cryptopathologist.
- Frank Caffrey; LFB (London Fire Brigade) Fire Investigator, ex-para and a key "associate" of the Folly.
- Professor Harold Postmartin D.Phil. FRS BMon "Postmartin the Pirate" Archivist and expert for the Folly.
- Molly; The Folly's domestic helper, of not entirely clarified species, but she has been referred to as fae-like in the novel Foxglove Summer.
- Abigail Kamara; an annoyingly persistent teen-aged girl who is the de facto founding member of the Folly's Youth Wing. Lives at the same estate as Peter's parents.
- Beverley Brook; "daughter" of Mama Thames and goddess of Beverley Brook, a small river in South London; in later books, Peter Grant's girlfriend.
- Cecilia Tyburn Thames; aka Lady Ty, "daughter" of Mama Thames and goddess of the River Tyburn.
- Oxley; god of the River Oxley one of the "sons" of Father Thames and his chief negotiator.
- Toby; Peter's dog, who can detect magic, indicated by yapping.
- Varvara Sidorovna Tamonina (aka. Varenka Dobroslova); Russian/Soviet witch (Night Witch), magical WWII veteran (365th Special Regiment of the Red Army), later living on her own in Britain with a magically extended lifetime.
Stories listed by internal chronology
editThis section possibly contains original research. (August 2020) |
In a blog entry,[25] the author has provided a list of the stories, by internal chronology.
| Timeframe (if known) | Story title | Published |
|---|---|---|
| 1920s | The Masquerades of Spring (novella) | 27 August 2024 |
| 1957 (framing story takes place after the events of The Hanging Tree and Water Weed) | Action at a Distance (graphic novel) | Parts 1–4, October 2018 through January 2019, collected 12 November 2019 |
| 1966 | Moment #1 | included in Tales from the Folly |
| 1960s | A Dedicated Follower of Fashion (short story) | Waterstones edition of False Value, included in Tales from the Folly |
| January to June 2012 | Rivers of London (novel) | 10 January 2011 |
| During the 2012 Summer Olympics | The Home Crowd Advantage (short story) | 'London Edition' of Rivers of London and on his official website, included in Tales from the Folly |
| 2012 | Moment #3 | included in Tales from the Folly |
| September to October 2012 | Moon Over Soho (novel) | 21 April 2011 |
| The Domestic (short story) | Waterstones edition of Whispers Under Ground, included in Tales from the Folly | |
| December 2012 | Whispers Under Ground (novel) | 21 June 2012 |
| The Cockpit (short story) | Waterstones edition of Broken Homes, included in Tales from the Folly | |
| March–April 2013 | Broken Homes (novel) | 25 July 2013 |
| Not given | Body Work (graphic novel) | Parts 1–5 – 16 July 2015 through 20 November 2015, collected 29 March 2016 |
| August 2013 | Foxglove Summer (novel) | 13 November 2014 |
| What Abigail Did That Summer (novella) | 18 March 2021 | |
| The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Granny (short story) | Waterstones edition of Foxglove Summer, included in Tales from the Folly | |
| Night Witch (graphic novel) | Parts 1–3 – 16 March 2016 through 18 May 2016, collected 1 November 2016 | |
| December 2014 | Favourite Uncle (short story) | Waterstones edition of Lies Sleeping, included in Tales from the Folly |
| Black Mould (graphic novel) | Parts 1–5 – 12 October 2016 through 8 March 2017, collected 25 July 2017 | |
| King of the Rats (short story) | Waterstones edition of The Hanging Tree, included in Tales from the Folly | |
| Late July 2014 | The Furthest Station (novella) | 28 September 2017 |
| Undisclosed month in 2014 | The Hanging Tree (novel) | 3 November 2016 in the UK,[26] 31 January 2017 in the US[27] |
| A Rare Book of Cunning Device (audio book) | Audible special edition in 2017, included in Tales from the Folly | |
| Detective Stories (graphic novel) | Parts 1–4, 7 June 2017 through 3 September 2017, collected 29 December 2017 | |
| 2014 | Moment #2 | included in Tales from the Folly |
| Cry Fox (graphic novel) | 8 November 2017, collected 26 June 2018 | |
| Water Weed (graphic novel) | Parts 1–4, June 2018 through September 2018, collected 18 December 2018 | |
| Prologue dated 14 November 2014[28] Main events summer 2015, based on reference to Michelle Obama's visit to a London school[29] (in reality, Tuesday 16 June 2015[30]) | Lies Sleeping (novel) | 18 November 2018 in the UK |
| The Fey and the Furious (graphic novel) | 25 November 2020 | |
| The October Man (novella) | 31 May 2019 | |
| January 2016[31] | False Value (novel) | 20 February 2020 |
| Vanessa Sommer’s Other Christmas List (short story) | Waterstones edition of The October Man, included in Tales from the Folly | |
| Amongst our Weapons (novel) | April 2022 | |
| Three Rivers, Two Husbands and a Baby (short story) | included in Tales from the Folly | |
| Cock of the Wall (short story) | unpublished as yet | |
| Monday, Monday (graphic novel) | 1 December 2021 |
On the page where the official order is given, the author writes: "One caveat – the short story The Home Crowd Advantage is obviously set in 2012 during the London Olympics but because it was written before the chronology of the series had firmed up it contains a number of anachronisms. I've learnt to be philosophical about this sort of thing." Many of the stories give vague dates, and some of those dates conflict with the official series order (compare Foxglove Summer and The Furthest Station).
Reception
editThe Guardian's Sarah Shaffi wrote:
The books have consistently featured on bestseller lists, with the most recent two novels – 2022's Amongst Our Weapons and 2020's False Value – going straight to No 1 on the Sunday Times bestseller list...Aaronovitch’s work has been translated into 14 languages and sold in excess of five million copies worldwide, and has its own wiki, Follypedia.[32]
Reviewing the ninth book in the series, Amongst our Weapons, in The Guardian, Lisa Tuttle wrote:
Aaronovitch has no peers when it comes to successfully combining the appeal of a down-to-earth police procedural with all-out fantasy: here are real places, real history and real problems complicated by the existence of magic, ancient spirits, fairies, ghosts and talking foxes, all dwelling alongside ordinary, clueless humans. His plotting is still satisfyingly inventive and the continuing characters maintain their charm in the ninth novel of a series that began in 2011.[33]
Adaptations
editOn 1 May 2019 it was announced that a television adaptation of Rivers of London would be produced by Simon Pegg and Nick Frost's production company, Stolen Picture.[34] However, according to Aaronovitch, the series is "still in the same state of permanent pre-pre-production".[35] On 7 July 2022, a new TV adaptation of the book series, produced by Pure Fiction Television, See-Saw Films and Unnecessary Logo, Aaronovitch's production company, was announced.[36] On 2 November 2023, it was announced that John Jackson would be lead writer on the television adaptation.[37]
At Dragonmeet convention in London, on 30 November 2019, it was announced that a role-playing game based on the book series would be published by Chaosium.[38] The game was released in PDF version on 30 November 2022, pending book version.
See also
edit- GURPS Infinite Worlds#Azoth-7, also based on the premise of Isaac Newton as a major wizard.
References
edit- ^ a b c d Ben Aaronovitch; Andrew Cartmel (2017). Black Mould. Titan Comics. ISBN 9781785863851. - Rivers of London Reader's Guide
- ^ The PC Grant Novels. Orion Publishing Group. 13 July 2018. ISBN 9781473214385. Retrieved 4 March 2023.
- ^ Bullock, Saxon (14 January 2011). "Rivers Of London by Ben Aaronovitch – book review". SFX. Retrieved 25 November 2011.
- ^ Ingham, Peter (24 June 2011). "Book Review". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 28 November 2011.
- ^ Walter, Damien (21 November 2012). "London: fantasy's capital city". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 31 May 2024.
- ^ Aaronovitch, Ben (12 July 2018). Broken Homes. Orion Publishing Group, Limited. ISBN 978-0-575-13248-1.
- ^ "Foxglove Summer by Ben Aaronovitch book review - Fantasy Book Review". www.fantasybookreview.co.uk. Retrieved 31 May 2024.
- ^ Aaronovitch, Ben (12 July 2018). The Hanging Tree. Orion. ISBN 978-0-575-13258-0.
- ^ Aaronovitch, Ben (13 July 2018). The Furthest Station. Gollancz. ISBN 978-1-4732-2243-4.
- ^ Aaronovitch, Ben (13 July 2018). Lies Sleeping. Orion. ISBN 978-1-4732-0784-4.
- ^ Aaronovitch, Ben (5 November 2019). The October Man. Orion Publishing Group, Limited. ISBN 978-1-4732-2432-2.
- ^ "False Value By Ben Aaronovitch". penguinrandomhouse.com. Penguin Random House. Retrieved 6 July 2019.
- ^ False Value By Ben Aaronovitch. Gollancz. 21 May 2019. ISBN 9781473207882. Retrieved 23 September 2019.
- ^ "Tales from the Folly Review".
- ^ Aaronovitch, Ben (7 August 2019). What Abigail Did That Summer. Orion. ISBN 9781473224360.
- ^ "Amongst our weapons". Goldsboro books. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
- ^ a b "Temporarily Significant – Book and Comic Chronology". Retrieved 1 October 2017.
- ^ Ben Aaronovitch; Andrew Cartmel (2016). Body Work. Titan Comics. ISBN 9781785853647.
- ^ Ben Aaronovitch; Andrew Cartmel (2016). Night Witch. Titan Comics. ISBN 9781785852930.
- ^ Ben Aaronovitch; Andrew Cartmel (2017). Black Mould. Titan Comics. ISBN 9781785863851.
- ^ Aaronovitch, Ben (11 July 2017). The Hanging Tree. London, England. ISBN 9780575132573. OCLC 943233035.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ Ben Aaronovitch; Andrew Cartmel (2021). Monday, Monday. Titan Comics. ISBN 9781787736269.
- ^ Ben Aaronovitch; Andrew Cartmel (2024). Here Be Dragons. Titan Comics. ISBN 9781787740921.
- ^ "Ben Aaronovitch on Twitter". Retrieved 7 October 2017.
- ^ "Temporarily Significant: Book and Comic Chronology".
- ^ "The Hanging Tree Announcement - Gollancz". Archived from the original on 5 July 2018. Retrieved 18 May 2018.
- ^ "The Hanging Tree by Ben Aaronovitch: 9780756409678 | PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books". PenguinRandomhouse.com.
- ^ Aaronovitch, Ben. Lies Sleeping. p. 2.
- ^ Aaronovich, Ben (2018). Lies Sleeping. Gollancz. pp. 90–91. ISBN 9781473207837.
- ^ Khaleeli, Homa and Weale, Sally (16 June 2015). "Michelle Obama tells London schoolgirls 'the world needs you'". The Guardian.
- ^ This can be dated by a reference in the opening chapter of the novel, where Peter starts a new job on same day that David Bowie died, i.e., 10 January 2016
- ^ "Ben Aaronovitch's Rivers of London novels are set for TV adaptation". TheGuardian.com. 7 July 2022.
- ^ "The best recent science fiction and fantasy – reviews roundup". TheGuardian.com. 8 April 2022.
- ^ "Simon Pegg and Nick Frost to turn fantasy novel series Rivers of London into a TV series". Retrieved 10 May 2019.
- ^ Tabler, Elizabeth (29 April 2022). "An Interview With Ben Aaronovitch". Grimdark Magazine. Retrieved 13 July 2022.
- ^ Shaffi, Sarah (7 July 2022). "Ben Aaronovitch's Rivers of London novels are set for TV adaptation". the Guardian. Retrieved 11 July 2022.
- ^ "Rivers of London set writing team led by the Gentlemen scribe".
- ^ "Chaosium Announces Rivers of London Roleplaying Game". Retrieved 2 January 2020.