He is perfect! He gives Peter's character just the right accent and attitude, that of a young mixed race man from a working class background who has a breezy attitude and many a smart remark to make. I want to talk about the narrator, Kobna Holdbrook-Smith. Other reviews give a much more detailed description of the book, and I refer you to those other descriptions. Peter Grant is a lovely character, who is smarter than he realizes, and who looks at London and its residents with a jaundiced eye and very ironic comment. they encounter a great deal of violence, a number of River Spirits, ghosts, vampires, and general confusion. As Peter, Nightingale and Constable Lesley May, a friend of Peter's, work their way through the mystery. Now, sweep all ideas of Harry Potter out of your mind - this is not a Hogwarts type of story. Turns out Nightingale is a wizard, and Peter becomes his apprentice. As a result of his being able to see and converse with the ghost, he is recruited by Inspector Thomas Nightingale to work in a unit (made up of only Nightingale and Peter) whose 'beat' is anything non-human, undead or uncanny. Constable Peter Grant, having just finished his probationary period with the Metropolitan Police, interviews a witness to murder, only to find out that his witness is the ghost of a man who died 120 years before. In addition, I learned a bit of history about various sites in and around London. I laughed out loud repeatedly when listening. It is fast-paced, engrossing and hilarious. What a revelation! This book gives the reader a rollicking ride through modern day London in the course of a murder investigation.

Then I read some member reviews of 'Midnight Riot,' and thought I'd give it a try, despite the dead, undead and non-human monsters. For several years now, I have studiously avoided any and all of the current books involving vampires, ghosts, werewolves, spirits and similar creatures in mystery and other genres.

Rivers of london midnight riot