A Madness of Angels - Kate Griffin

The wonderful thing about A Madness of Angels is how it takes the concept of sorcerers and magicians and places it in a present day setting in familiar London locations, finding mystical powers can be drawn from the lights, neon and communication highways of the modern metropolis and that regulations, by-laws and even the conditions of sale on an underground ticket all have the powers of ancient spells. Somehow, through these means, sorcerer Matthew Swift, having been killed two years earlier in what seemingly was a purge of the community by a powerful group known as The Tower, is now back walking on the streets, his consciousness sustained by a collective entity known as the electric blue angels, seeking to find and destroy this growing and dangerous threat.

This isn’t of course an entirely original idea - London urban fantasy has been explored by Neil Gaiman in Neverwhere, Alan Moore in From Hell, in works by Iain Sinclair and Peter Ackroyd - but Kate Griffin’s book seems to channel the same force into her writing, being open to the vast potential of accumulated power that resides in the history and in the energy of the modern city. The London of A Madness of Angels then is familiar, but transformed by the concept and the vivid writing, pulsating with energy and excitement, with danger as well as marvels to be explored on every corner (the eerie hospital for magicians being one great example). This is thrilling as long as it retains an air of suspense and mystery, but the storyline dips once the initial idea and concepts have been established and the build-up to the finale feels a little over-extended. There is however one would hope still surely much more to be explored in this universe.