London FallingPaul Cornell
Tor Books, April 2013
ISBN: 978-0765330277
Police officers Quill, Costain, Sefton, and Ross know the worst of London--or they think they do. While investigating a mobster's mysterious death, they come into contact with a strange artifact and accidentally develop the Sight. Suddenly they can see the true evil haunting London’s streets.
At the end of a a four year sting operation, Rob Toshack, a major London crime figure, dies in police custody in a very unnatural way. The four police officers assigned to find out how and why this happened, end up instead finding a very different London from the one they thought they knew.
Following the sting operation, officers Quinn, Constain, Ross and Sefton find themselves with paranormal abilities; they see ghosts, remnants of the past, and most importantly, a suspect that adds a new dimension to the case on which they’ve been working. When Ross's research lead them to the lair of Mora Losley, a serial-killing witch with a trail of bodies in her wake, the team finds a whole different order of villainy behind Toshack's seemingly unassailable position in organised crime. With this new power, they do the only thing that they know how to do: tackle the problem with their tools and knowledge as police officers.
Paul Cornell’s phantom London is a fascinating place. There are deep magical roots to the city, wholly dependent upon the memories, perceptions, and actions of its citizens. Ghosts patrol the sites where they lost their lives, invisible ships travel up and down the Thames, and if you get onto certain buses, you’ll end up in an entirely different world.
London Falling combines a police procedural with dark urban fantasy, and retains both the grittiness of the former with the wonder and awe of the latter. Paul Cornell’s London Falling is a deceptively easy novel to start, before he cranks up the pressure, delivering an impressive, captivating story that’s complex, emotional and a lot of fun to read. Highly recommended!
PAUL CORNELL is a British writer best known for his work in television drama, most notably for Doctor Who. Three of his Doctor Who episodes have been nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form. He has written several Doctor Who spin-off novels, and created the character Beatrice Summerfield. He has also written for Marvel Comics and DC Comics, and had two original novels published.
ISBN: 978-0765330277; ISBN10: 076533027X; Imprint: Tor Books; On Sale: 4/16/2013; Format: Hardcover; Pages: 416; $24.99
