Rivers of London Volume 7: Action at a Distance by Ben AaronovitchMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Another corker in the expanded Rivers Of London universe, written again by Ben Aaronovitch (Rivers Of London) and Andrew Cartmel (The Vinyl Detective, Doctor Who) with art work and colouring by Brian Williamson and Stefani Renne, both with credits for the likes of comic giants Titan, DC and Marvel as well as others.
Action at a Distance has Peter Grant delving into the Folly's archives to learn about an investigation long gone, from the time of World War 2. During which time, the Nazi's had vested interests in magic and the occult in an attempt to further their cause and Nightingale definitely wasn't the only wizard on the scene.
After some back story, eventually the detective is tasked with helping the police to take down a serial murderer, whom they believe to be a nazi magician gone spy for the brits (and being recruited by the Yanks), as just when they thought they'd got him, mysterious men in trench coats would come and give him the all clear... Of course, he's aiming at collecting the entire set of young, vulnerable women, and Nightingale just can't let this slide regardless of the big wigs.
Not just a spy, the German is also a nuclear scientist, in that he uses his special powers to perform dangerous operations at nuclear sites. Of course, when Nightingale gets hot on his tale thanks to the help of Hesperus the Bloodhound, the creepy serial killer decides to leave for the states after all, leaving one last goodbye message at the nuclear plant before he leaves... Will Nightingale be able to stop him before he slips through their grasp and avert a nuclear disaster? If anyone can...
It's a really good little story and it's nice to read about some of the war time history of Nightingale. It's quite a fantastic story but doesn't always rely on magic, and I enjoyed the use of Hesperus the bloodhound and Angus the detective and his partner played their roles, too.
The bad guys all look sufficiently shady and the artwork is top notch yet again. Coming to the end, we're treated yet again to some short witty ditties and some essays about the topics covered throughout the story, including magic and illusions in the war, the history of the bloodhound and Nuclear history and the Windscale disaster, all of which are really interesting to get your teeth into and are a great addition to the narrative.
I didn't enjoy the short stories as much this time as they just didn't seem as funny, but you can't knock the quality and the entire collection seems the most polished in this issue hence the 5 stars. A great addition to a great series. Recommended.
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