Lies Sleeping: The Seventh Rivers of London novel (Rivers of London, #7)

by Ben Aaronovitch

Martin Chorley, aka the Faceless Man, wanted for multiple counts of murder, fraud and crimes against humanity, has been unmasked and is on the run.

Peter Grant, Detective Constable and apprentice wizard, now plays a key role in an unprecedented joint operation to bring Chorley to justice.

But even as the unwieldy might of the Metropolitan Police bears down on its foe, Peter uncovers clues that Chorley, far from being finished, is executing the final stages of a long term plan.

A plan that has its roots in London's two thousand bloody years of history, and could literally bring the city to its knees.

To save his beloved city Peter's going to need help from his former best friend and colleague - Lesley May - who brutally betrayed him and everything he thought she believed in. And, far worse, he might even have to come to terms with the malevolent supernatural killer and agent of chaos known as Mr Punch . . .

• ISBN10: 1473207819
• ISBN13: 9781473207813
• Publish Date: 15 November 2018
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 5 March 2021
• Publish Country: GB
• Imprint: Gollancz
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 416
• Language: English

Reviews

[annieb123]

Originally published on my blog: Nonstop Reader.

Lies Sleeping is the 7th book in Ben Aaronovitch's brilliant urban fantasy/mystery Rivers of London series. Released 20th Nov 2018 by Penguin on their Berkley imprint, it's 406 pages and available in all formats.

This series is a strong favourite. The books are very very well written, taut, engaging, brilliantly plotted, and satisfying. If this entry isn't quite up to the level of most of the other books, it's still wonderfully entertaining. The hunt for the faceless man continues, more demi-gods are interviewed, Peter and Bev's relationship moves along; in short, it's a fun visit with old friends and enemies.

Aaronovitch is a gifted author with a razor wit and a prodigious talent for descriptive narrative. The dialogue is never clunky, the world building and magic systems are virtuoso, and the book swallowed me whole.

Since there are so many interwoven multi-book plot threads in this series, it wouldn't work very well as a standalone. I strongly recommend reading the series start to finish, they're wonderful.

Five stars for the series as a whole, four stars for this installment.

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