The Minority Council (Matthew Swift #4) Review

The Minority Council (Matthew Swift #4)

Kate Griffin

Publisher: Orbit

Matthew Swift, sorcerer, Midnight Mayor, is in charge. Or so he'd like to think. And London, being London, is having its issues. Drug use is rampant. Teenage vandalism is driving away business. Violent crimes are on the rise. Once upon a time, Matthew Swift wouldn't have given a toss. Now it's his mess to clean up. Especially when the new drug on the market is fairy dust and the production process involves turning humans into walking drug labs. And when the teenage vandals are being hunted by a mystical creature. And when the petty criminals of London start dying by magical means. 
It becomes clear that not only is this Swift's mess to clean up, but someone is trying to tell him how to do his job. Now he has to sort out who's behind the crime wave and who's interfering in his business. Swift has a lot of old enemies and few friends. If he's going to save London from a rising tide of blood -- he's going to have to learn his lessons and fast

Matthew Swift is one of the few remaining Sorcerers left in London – wizards who can create spells and manipulate the magic of the city. Added to that is the Midnight Mayor, protector of that city. He is also having a bad day. When he finds out that something is sucking the souls out of teenagers in his city and a dear acquaintance calls asking for help, he decides that these things must be dealt with, no matter the cost.

Matthew is a unique character – he came back from the dead merged with the blue electrical angels of the wires and is enormously powerful and at the same time completely helpless. He is both inhuman and humane. He cares about the city, but not at the expense of the people. As well as Matthew we meet again his apprentice Penny. She is total awesome but at the same time vulnerable and realistic, with a perchance for speaking too much and swearing a lot. Matthew also gains an assistant in the shape of Kelly, who over the course of the book becomes very endearing.

Kate Griffin’s writing is once again melodic and descriptive, allowing you to fall into this London, this world and be swept along with the other debris as the story races around the city and between subplots. London is depicted as a magical place but at the same time it is not dressed up like a Richard Curtis film to look all sweet and innocent. It’s a magnificent city full of the best and worst of humanity, with some parts falling into disrepute and decay, while others thrive. I love this view and the scenes set in areas I’m familiar with add a fission of depth and colour.

This is London UF done well and done differently. However, unlike the previous instalments of Matthew Swift’s adventures, there was a certain hint of menace missing. While this threat is more personal and emotional for Matthew, it was not a threat to the city and as such seemed to miss a certain element for me. Not that this was a bad instalment in the series – just not my favourite! I would still highly recommended this series!

Recommended for fans of Anne Rice and Jim Butcher. 8 out of 10

The Neon Court Review

The Neon Court (Matthew Swift 3)

-       Kate Griffin

Publisher: UK – Orbit

When the city was founded, he was the mad native spirit that waited in the dark, on the edge of the torchlight. When the streets were cobbled over, he became the footsteps heard on stone that you cannot see. When the Victorians introduced street lighting, he was the shadow who always shied away from the light, and when the gas went out, there he was. The shadow at the end of the alley, the footsteps half-heard in the night. A daimyo of the Neon Court is dead. So are two warriors of the Tribe. And a freshly-prophesied 'chosen one' is missing. Each side blames the other and Matthew Swift is right in the middle of it, trying to keep the peace. Because when magicians go to war, everyone loses. But Swift has even bigger problems. A dead woman is trying to kill him and the city itself is under attack from a force of unimaginable power. As if trying to stay one step ahead of an assassin and juggling magical politics weren't challenging enough, Swift must also find a way to defeat a primal threat from humanity's darkest nightmares. Or there may not be a London left to fight over ...

I love London. I live on the outskirts and have spent many a happy hour wandering the streets, footpaths and cobbles of the city. If there was one series of books that best describes the magic of London, it would be the Matthew Swift series. Once again Kate Griffin has captured the uniqueness of a city so old and new, both dirty and clean, ordinary and extra-ordinary. The system of magic is based on urban magic, electricity and concrete, rush hour and terms and conditions can carry their own spell. The writing is so detailed and layered and just sucks you in – once you get used to the style. 300 pages that feel like a lungful of air to a drowning man – vital, life saving and far too short.

The previous two Matthew Swift books had him swept up in events beyond his control, but this time Matthew takes charge as his character has grown and developed. His apprentice Penny has helped ground him and gives him someone else to care about. At the same time his new responsibilities both to Penny and the city are taken seriously and as ever Matthew and the blue electric angels don’t want to die. They fight for the city, for Penny, for themselves and weep over those they can’t save.  

This may not be the place to start if you haven’t read any Kate Griffin before, as many elements of the story do refer to previous events and existing relationships. But that just means you have three fantastic books to read ahead of you! Start with A Madness of Angels and then The Midnight Mayor. I can not recommend this series enough.

Recommended for fans of Felix Castor and China Mieville. 10 out of 10.

The Midnight Mayor Review

The Midnight Mayor

- Kate Griffin

Publisher: UK – Orbit

It's said that if the ravens ever leave the Tower of London, then the Tower will crumble and the kingdom will fall. As it happens, that's not so far from the truth ...One by one, the magical wards that guard the city are failing: the London Wall defiled with cryptic graffiti, the ravens found dead at the Tower, the London Stone destroyed. This is not good news. This array of supernatural defences - a mix of international tourist attractions and forgotten urban legends - formed a formidable magical shield. Protection for the City of London against ...well, that's the question, isn't it? What could be so dangerous as to threaten an entire city? Against his better judgement, resurrected sorcerer Matthew Swift is about to find out. And if he's lucky, he might just live long enough to do something about it ...

A Madness of Angels was one of my favourite reads last year and The Midnight Mayor follows the same vein. While initially the story is somewhat similar to A Madness.., the character of Matthew Swift is explored in more depth. At first he’s woken up confused and chased by Spectres and soon realises the Midnight Mayor is dead and London is under attack. This time however, instead of Swift’s motivation being revenge, its fear for himself and his city that drives his actions. As the book progresses we follow Swifts journey – both literally and figuratively and see a more vulnerable side than we’ve not seen before and eventually it is his humanity that saves the day. There are times when he fears he won’t survive and that made me connect to him more this time than in the first book. The relationship between Swift and his enemy/partner Oda is expanded in this story and has a very bittersweet feel to it.

The writing is as atmospheric and beautiful as ever with the descriptions of London dirty, truthful and spot on. The action travels all over the city from Morden to Willesden and it obvious Griffin loves this city. As a Londoner myself it just made me love the book even more as I recognise the attitudes of the people and the places described.

This is an Urban fantasy book as it deals with sorcerers in a city setting, but this is very much set in our world with little in common with the ‘regular’ urban fantasy – and perhaps better for it.

Recommended for Mike Carey and Jim Butcher fans – but read A Madness of Angels first. I don’t think it’s necessary to read this book, but it is an excellent book as well. 10 out of 10 – highly recommended.