122) Whispers Underground by Ben Aaronovitch

The Blurb :

It begins with a dead body at the far end of Baker Street tube station, all that remains of American exchange student James Gallagher—and the victim’s wealthy, politically powerful family is understandably eager to get to the bottom of the gruesome murder. The trouble is, the bottom—if it exists at all—is deeper and more unnatural than anyone suspects . . . except, that is, for London constable and sorcerer’s apprentice Peter Grant. With Inspector Nightingale, the last registered wizard in England, tied up in the hunt for the rogue magician known as “the Faceless Man,” it’s up to Peter to plumb the haunted depths of the oldest, largest, and—as of now—deadliest subway system in the world.

At least he won’t be alone. No, the FBI has sent over a crack agent to help. She’s young, ambitious, beautiful . . . and a born-again Christian apt to view any magic as the work of the devil. Oh yeah—that’s going to go well.

My Thoughts :

This third book in the series was a new release that I couldn't wait for. I was literally counting down the days till this came out and hoping that Audible would have an audio version straight away. I knew I would have to wait for the audio version if they didn't. I listened to the first two books and couldn't even think about reading the book. Luckily Audible had the book as soon as it was released and I couldn't wait to start listening to it.

It didn't take long to finish the book. Once you get into the story it is hard to stop listening to it at every moment possible. I love Peter's witty British humour and enjoy his stories about the Met Police. The London setting is also extremely interesting and I admire the author for bringing so much Britishness into the books. It is very realistic and it makes me really homesick. Of course the highlight of the books is the magical and weird stuff and this third book is not without its fair share.

This time around the plot seems, after the very exciting first two books, a little bland and it had a serious lack of Nightingale involvement. However the writing style and content makes up for this less action packed storyline. With fake houses, hidden air raid shelters and FBI involvement, Whispers Underground really is packed to the brim. A lot of the specifics actually had me going to google. It is all ready there! Fake houses and all!

I am really enjoying this series and can't wait for more. Will Peter and Lesley ever get together? What trouble will Abigail get them in? What other London secrets does Aaronovitch have up his sleeves? I only hope that the wait for book four won't be a long one. I need more British fantasy!

If you like the two Harry's (Potter & Dresden) then you really should have read this series already. If you like British writers and enjoy some good humour with your ghosts and magic then you need to try these books. Not to be missed! This is a must 'listen' too for me and I can highly recommend the audio version! The narrator really captures the characters and tells the story well.