Books: The Hanging Tree By Ben Aaronovitch (2017)

 

“Suspicious deaths are not usually the concern of Police Constable Peter Grant or the Folly—London’s police department for supernatural cases—even when they happen at an exclusive party in one of the flats of the most expensive apartment blocks in London. But the daughter of Lady Ty, influential goddess of the Tyburn river, was there, and Peter owes Lady Ty a favor. Plunged into the alien world of the super-rich, where the basements are bigger than the houses, where the law is something bought and sold on the open market, a sensible young copper would keep his head down and his nose clean. But this is Peter Grant we’re talking about. He’s been given an unparalleled opportunity to alienate old friends and create new enemies at the point where the world of magic and that of privilege intersect. Assuming he survives the week.”

As the sixth novel in the Rivers of London series plays out, we get some new developments in Peter's personal life, with the overall arc of the series takes a solid step forward. This tale still plays out as more procedural, even though we still get a lot magic. While Peter spends time hob-knobbing with the upper-crust of British life, Aaronovitch does not use this too much as social commentary on Peter’s life or his job. Here, also, DC Guleed, a female cop who wears a hijab, who debuted as a minor character in Whispers Under Ground, gets a co-starring role here. She’s a wonderfully realized here.

As always, Aaronovitch adds his dark humor, with some often time, and laugh out loud, clever comic touches. After the books fives diversion to the suburbs and novella that dealt with ghosts haunting the underground railway system, The Hanging Tree gets back to the main arc –dealing with the Faceless Man and his alliance with Lesley –though what their ultimate endgame is remains elusive.