I really felt immersed in the period of the time and the historical facts and characters many of whom were real to that time were really believable. It went along at a good pace ensuring I wanted to read on to the end to find out who did what and why. An absolute delight in a series that goes from strength to strength’ S. G. McLean, prize-winning author of the Seeker series When work commences on the alms-house, and a mutilated body is found in the work yard, thus halting work, Catherine is forced to call on her friend Marwood to try and speed up the investigation and so prevent her project from failing before it begins. And with that we are launched head-first into another fast-moving and intricately plotted tale in London in the years following the Great Fire. I loved that the grumpy boss is not at all grumpy, but a shy, taciturn man… and maybe with cero sexual experience? He was too shy and cute. My final complaint is with the audiobook version, and it's the same complaint I had about the audiobook of And Then She Vanished. Ray Porter is a fantastic narrator, and I've enjoyed a number of his recordings. But he's American. This is a book set in England with English characters. Porter reads for Joseph's speech and narration in an American accent, even when he's using Britishism's like "loo" and "mate". Other characters are voiced with an English accept, which is absolutely passable most of the time (I especially liked Vinny's characterisation). Unfortunately, his voicing of the British female characters is deeply unattractive, especially the love interest, Alexia, who comes across with a cold, clipped Lady Penelope sort of accent. Ray Porter: fantastic narrator, but not the right choice for this series.

I guess he wasn't done traveling yet. But, who is W.P. Brown and why does he need Joe to solve the mystery of 1962? Pippa DaCosta books are urban fantasy, and are essentially M/F (there's a reverse harem thing going on in one series which is totally divine, but I digress). Suffice it to say Pippa's UF books are amazing. Amy reminds Joe how as a kid she misquoted the Star Wars saying. “ May the forks be with you!” And it's still something she'll say when out to dinner with her friends. The magic system — or is it magic, hmm? — had me a wee bit dubious at times, but then I'm more into science fiction than fantasy, so I'm probably not the best judge. There is one very non-magical thing I have a question about, though: Hey, Londoners, is a fall into the Thames normally assumed to be fatal? Like, can y'all not swim? The water can't be *that* toxic, can it? 🤔 A tasty, if not always tasteful, tale of supernatural mayhem that fans of King and Crichton alike will enjoy.Before the final time jump to try and save Lucy, Joe and Vinny research Frankie's gangster history, now some 60 years in the past. Frankie was eventually arrested, confessed to numerous crimes, including strangling his mother because she turned the family crime business over to his brother Tommy and finally Frankie hung himself while in prison. Joe arrives on a December night in 1962 when London is choked in smog and a big bank heist is already underway. Frankie and company have dug a tunnel from a nearby house over to the bank and up inside the vault, where they are bagging cash, breaking into safety deposit boxes and finding incriminating evidence on politicians and members of the royal family. What intrigued me the most was Olivia's ramble about the lurking shadow, the coin Kempthrone seems to horde like that was what made him Midas and Alexander Kempthorne, the man, himself. I would love to see more of this guy's past. The things he seems to derive joy from are... well questionable for a ruch guy with too many houses and toys to play with. Also I'm hoping something goes down between Dom and Alex because their chemistry?🤯 I couldn't carve it out with a knife if I tried. :3 All of us bunking under the same roof meant secrets were hard to keep—unless your name was Kempthorne. He hoarded secrets like the rest of us hoarded the office pens. In a London that's littered with dangerous, magical artifacts, and latents who can use them to boost their own magical powers, tensions run high, and someone is pulling the strings behind the scenes. Someone or some thing is lurking in the shadows... and has Dom in their sights.

Twisted Pretty Things is the first book in the all-new Shadows of London MM urban fantasy series. Action, mystery, and MM romance combine in this fast-paced adventure from the author who brought you the award-winning Silk & Steel series and the best-selling Prince's Assassin series. Coming August 2021. The world-building and the plot is amazing. Like it's Ariana Nash, what do you expect? ;) As is the narration style.

Summary

The IRL - Institute of Registered Latents. A government-funded agency that controls, tests and registers latents, making sure they're safe to be a part of society.