Risen (Alex Verus, #12)

by Benedict Jacka

Alex Verus must keep his friends close—and his enemies closer—in the epic conclusion to the bestselling urban fantasy series about a London-based mage.

Mage Alex Verus has gone from a Camden shopkeeper to one of the most powerful mages in Britain. Now his last and most dangerous battle lies before him. His lover, the life mage Anne, has fallen fully under the control of the deadly creature she made a bargain with, and it is preparing to create an army of mages subject to its every whim.

Alex, the Council, and the Dark mage Richard Drakh agree to call a truce in their war, and plans are made for a joint attack. But Alex knows that it's only a matter of time before Drakh and the Council turn on each other . . . and neither cares about keeping Anne alive. Can Alex figure out a way to stop Anne and to free her from possession before time runs out?

• ISBN10: 0440000629
• ISBN13: 9780440000624
• Publish Date: 7 December 2021 (first published 30 November 2021)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
• Imprint: Ace
• Format: Paperback (US Mass Market)
• Pages: 336
• Language: English
• URL: https://penguinrandomhouse.com/books/isbn/9780440000624

Reviews

[annieb123]

Originally posted on my blog: Nonstop Reader.

Risen is the 12th and final Alex Verus urban fantasy novel by Benedict Jacka. Released 7th Dec 2021 by Penguin Random House on their Berkley Ace imprint, it's 334 pages and is available in paperback, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately.

This is a consistently solid series, well written, skillfully plotted, and precisely engineered. Titular protagonist Alex Verus is world-weary, cynical, and generally fed up with everyone's crap. This installment sees him yet again navigating the self-created crises the council have managed to create in their jockeying for power whilst (hopefully) staying alive and preventing minor catastrophes like the end of the universe and all life in it.

I've seen Verus and the series as a whole compared to Butcher's Dresden. They're both seat of their pants mages and reactive and sarcastic, but Dresden is indelibly American in tone, language, and impulse - he's a hot tempered cowboy. Verus seems more considered and tactical - he usually has a backup plan or two (and usually needs them).

The plotting throughout is tight and the plotline is beautifully fluid, leading to a satisfying climax, denouement, and conclusion. For all the readers who enjoy binge reading from start to finish and aren't already huge fans, this is a good candidate. It's top notch well written urban fantasy with well rendered characters and settings.

Four and a half stars. Sad to see the end of the series, but it's very very well done.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes