Just Finished Reading: A Madness of Angels by Kate Griffin

After an absence of two years, urban sorcerer Matthew Swift is back in London and back from the dead. His revenge against those who killed him will not be easy, however, as he quickly discovers the powerful forces ranged against him. His mentor and teacher has built a supernatural organisation known as The Tower and is using his dark talents to crush all opposition, amassing both wealth and magical artefacts in the process. Matthew was his greatest hope and greatest disappointment in the quest for immortality – for Matthew has a special relationship with the Blue Angels who live in the telephone lines in the gaps between conversations. Now Matthew and the Angels are one, melding into each other to produce a new type of being. A being who is at once a real danger to The Tower’s existence and an embodiment of its leaders hopes to transcend the mortal realm. Using and being used by the remnants of magical opposition to The Tower, Matthew Swift plans to bring down the organisation and finally face the man who taught him how to use his powers as a child.

This is a very different type of urban fantasy novel. Normally the city is used as a backdrop to the goings on of magical creatures – usually vampires and werewolves with the odd witch or demon thrown in for good measure. They are standard fantasy stories modernised for a more urban readership that have grown up on Buffy and her acolytes. Kate Griffin’s novel uses the idea of urban magic that places the city centre stage. In a very real sense the city is a magical environment for those who have eyes to see it – from the protective sigils in the graffiti to the handy magical directories deposited on the tops of bus shelters. The city in her book is a magical resource and technology, rather than being the antithesis of magic, actually generates a different type of magical power available to anyone who can see it and use it. Magic, as Swift says on more than one occasion, is simply a point of view.

This is a wonderfully rich and adult read. The author has obviously done her research to bring alive modern urban magic in a truly believable sense. With minimal effort suspension of belief is more than possible. The reader, after what I think is a deliberate disorientating introduction, cannot help but be drawn into Swift’s life and believe that magic is all around us, even in the most technologically advanced cities, for those with the eyes and the attitude to see it, to feel it. Life is, as Swift is fond of saying, magic and there is nowhere as alive as a city. Griffin has created a great character in the reincarnated Swift and we cannot help but empathise with him as he comes to terms with his new life and his now intimate relationship with the Blue Angels who cohabit in his body. Swift also finds himself surrounded by a whole host of magical, semi-magical and mundane characters each with their own agendas, strengths and all too human weaknesses. This was by far one of the best fantasy books I can remember reading as well as one of the best books I’ve read in years. I was delighted to discover, half way through this book, that the sequel had just been published. Needless to say I have already bought it! I shall saviour the idea of reading more about magical London before actually reading it – maybe over Christmas….. [muses]. As you can probably imagine I highly recommend this book to anyone jaded by the present poor state of modern urban fantasy or to anyone who wants a damned good off-the-wall read.