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Rivers of London #10
Stone & Sky
THE BRAND NEW NOVEL IN THE NUMBER ONE BESTSELLING RIVERS OF LONDON SERIES
'This isn't London. The rules are different up here...'
All Detective Constable Peter Grant wanted was a nice holiday up in Scotland.
He'll need one once this is over...
check.
some.
sort of - but that's not the only thing in the sky...
'This isn't London. The rules are different up here...'
All Detective Constable Peter Grant wanted was a nice holiday up in Scotland.
He'll need one once this is over...
check.
some.
sort of - but that's not the only thing in the sky...
392 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 3, 2025
1113 people are currently reading
3253 people want to read
About the author
Ben Aaronovitch
157 books13.4k followersBen Aaronovitch's career started with a bang writing for Doctor Who, subsided in the middle and then, as is traditional, a third act resurgence with the bestselling Rivers of London series.
Born and raised in London he says that he'll leave his home when they prise his city out of his cold dead fingers.
Born and raised in London he says that he'll leave his home when they prise his city out of his cold dead fingers.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 818 reviews
June 27, 2025
It’s been a long, long time since I read an Aaronovitch before listening to it. Something about how Kobna Holdbrook-Smith reads has just worked so much better for me than the cadence of the writing. I’ll be honest, I’m not sure I even read The Hanging Tree–I’ve just listened to it unnumerable times. So when I opened a review copy of Stone and Sky, I wasn’t sure what I would find. It turns out it was really, really good, albeit a little weird with an adult–ie, sexual–Abigail’s point of view and almost no commentary on architecture. As I said, very weird. And remarkably light at only 300 pages. There’s a whole novella missing!
The story appears to have leapt forward in time a couple of years from events in Amongst Our Weapons. The twins are talking and Abigail is technically an adult. I had the strangest feeling that I missed a whole book in there, but I suppose I didn’t. Stone & Sky is mostly told in Peter’s voice, with the occasional chapter from Abigail’s point of view. The story starts when an old friend of Dr. Walhid’s in Scotland contacts him to tell him about some mysterious sheep deaths. Abigail and Nightingale plan to investigate. Of course Peter thinks he needs to keep an eye on them, and Beverly thinks it would be a fanstastic vacation with the family. (Can you imagine my happy wiggles when I discovered it will be in Scotland?! I cannae wait for Kobna!!*). Of course, things happen.
“Before we continue, I’d like to point out that a) none of this was my fault and b) ultimately the impact on overall North Sea oil production was pretty minimal.”
Peter hooks up with local law enforcement for some police work–giving rise to more networking–and Abby reaches out to the local foxes. Indigo has traveled with her and serves as local guide.
“There’s a plume of smoke rising from the ground in front of her, and I realize I’ve done a Peter and blown up a tree stump.”
The Scottish setting is fun, changing up the scene from London a bit and giving the English among us a chance to poke at the Scots. as well as a whole new set of vocabulary for the Americans to look up.
“Could be the ten percent of the city that gets pissed every night.”
‘As low a percentage as that?’
‘I was only counting the IC-1 males below forty,’ said Blinschell. ‘As a nation we just don’t drink like we used to.'”
I’m sure I have lots of bits to quote, but let’s be honest; it’s like an awful tease when I really just want to hear it read (July 3, it’s on the calendar). Peter’s voice is one of my favorite in fiction (and quite probably anywhere), a delightful mix of observant with humor so dry, you could stick an olive in it.
“I could tell from the smell that the Aberdeen mortuary was probably overdue a refurbishment, a deep clean and good going-over with a flame thrower.”
Or maybe that’s just Aaronovitch.
Many thanks to NetGalley and DAW for the advance copy. All opinions my own. Quotes subject to change in final publication.
*I plan to take a 15 hour drive the day the audio book comes out.
The story appears to have leapt forward in time a couple of years from events in Amongst Our Weapons. The twins are talking and Abigail is technically an adult. I had the strangest feeling that I missed a whole book in there, but I suppose I didn’t. Stone & Sky is mostly told in Peter’s voice, with the occasional chapter from Abigail’s point of view. The story starts when an old friend of Dr. Walhid’s in Scotland contacts him to tell him about some mysterious sheep deaths. Abigail and Nightingale plan to investigate. Of course Peter thinks he needs to keep an eye on them, and Beverly thinks it would be a fanstastic vacation with the family. (Can you imagine my happy wiggles when I discovered it will be in Scotland?! I cannae wait for Kobna!!*). Of course, things happen.
“Before we continue, I’d like to point out that a) none of this was my fault and b) ultimately the impact on overall North Sea oil production was pretty minimal.”
Peter hooks up with local law enforcement for some police work–giving rise to more networking–and Abby reaches out to the local foxes. Indigo has traveled with her and serves as local guide.
“There’s a plume of smoke rising from the ground in front of her, and I realize I’ve done a Peter and blown up a tree stump.”
The Scottish setting is fun, changing up the scene from London a bit and giving the English among us a chance to poke at the Scots. as well as a whole new set of vocabulary for the Americans to look up.
“Could be the ten percent of the city that gets pissed every night.”
‘As low a percentage as that?’
‘I was only counting the IC-1 males below forty,’ said Blinschell. ‘As a nation we just don’t drink like we used to.'”
I’m sure I have lots of bits to quote, but let’s be honest; it’s like an awful tease when I really just want to hear it read (July 3, it’s on the calendar). Peter’s voice is one of my favorite in fiction (and quite probably anywhere), a delightful mix of observant with humor so dry, you could stick an olive in it.
“I could tell from the smell that the Aberdeen mortuary was probably overdue a refurbishment, a deep clean and good going-over with a flame thrower.”
Or maybe that’s just Aaronovitch.
Many thanks to NetGalley and DAW for the advance copy. All opinions my own. Quotes subject to change in final publication.
*I plan to take a 15 hour drive the day the audio book comes out.
April 29, 2025
I mean, this is a Rivers of London novel, so obviously it's entertaining and humorous and full of magic. Peter, Nightingale, Abigail, and Beverly all make an appearance, and this time they're in Scotland chasing down a magical panther. If you've enjoyed the previous Rivers of London novels, there's a pretty good chance that you'll enjoy this one too.
At the same time, however, I don't think I enjoyed this one quite as much as the previous installments. Maybe it's the lack of a London backdrop, or maybe it's because there's more focus on Abigail (and therefore less on Peter) this time around? I dunno. The story starts out pretty slow, too. It's still an enjoyable read, but at the same time it's definitely no Broken Homes or The Hanging Tree.
Also, is anyone else incapable of keeping the characters straight with these novels?? It's certainly not unique to this book, but Aaronovitch has a tendency to briefly introduce a bazillion side characters, disappear them for a hundred pages or so, and then bring them back and expect you to remember who the heck they are. My Swiss cheese brain can't handle it, and I'm seriously going to have start taking notes whenever a new character is brought into the story.
Still, this one is pretty fun. Like the previous novels, it's very, very British, both in humor and in vocabulary. There's more of Abigail than I recall there being in previous installments, which can be either a good thing or a bad thing depending on how much, well … how much you like Abigail, obviously. There are the usual werelights and impellos and the demi-monde, and Indigo and the other talking foxes are an integral part of the storyline. (Yay! I love the talking foxes!) Basically, it has everything you'd expect of a Rivers of London novel but in an unfamiliar “nowhere near the rivers of London” setting.
So, yeah. Is this book as good as the previous installments? Eh, perhaps not. But is it worth a read if you're a fan of the series? Definitely. I'll happily keep reading these novels for as long as Ben Aaronovitch keeps writing them.
3.7 stars, rounded up.
Many thanks to NetGalley and DAW for providing me with an advance copy of this book to review. Its expected publication date is July 8, 2025.
At the same time, however, I don't think I enjoyed this one quite as much as the previous installments. Maybe it's the lack of a London backdrop, or maybe it's because there's more focus on Abigail (and therefore less on Peter) this time around? I dunno. The story starts out pretty slow, too. It's still an enjoyable read, but at the same time it's definitely no Broken Homes or The Hanging Tree.
Also, is anyone else incapable of keeping the characters straight with these novels?? It's certainly not unique to this book, but Aaronovitch has a tendency to briefly introduce a bazillion side characters, disappear them for a hundred pages or so, and then bring them back and expect you to remember who the heck they are. My Swiss cheese brain can't handle it, and I'm seriously going to have start taking notes whenever a new character is brought into the story.
Still, this one is pretty fun. Like the previous novels, it's very, very British, both in humor and in vocabulary. There's more of Abigail than I recall there being in previous installments, which can be either a good thing or a bad thing depending on how much, well … how much you like Abigail, obviously. There are the usual werelights and impellos and the demi-monde, and Indigo and the other talking foxes are an integral part of the storyline. (Yay! I love the talking foxes!) Basically, it has everything you'd expect of a Rivers of London novel but in an unfamiliar “nowhere near the rivers of London” setting.
So, yeah. Is this book as good as the previous installments? Eh, perhaps not. But is it worth a read if you're a fan of the series? Definitely. I'll happily keep reading these novels for as long as Ben Aaronovitch keeps writing them.
3.7 stars, rounded up.
Many thanks to NetGalley and DAW for providing me with an advance copy of this book to review. Its expected publication date is July 8, 2025.
July 16, 2025
There should be one of those long, German words to describe this feeling. You’ve eagerly awaited the next book in your favorite ongoing series, and when it finally arrives you find that it’s disjointed, underwhelming, and feels more like a filler episode than a vital part of the ongoing story. And now you’ve got to wait another year or two until the next book comes out and hopefully restores that old magic charge that you failed to get from this one.
Yeah, that is unfortunately how reading Stone and Sky felt. Characters like Nightingale and Peter’s dad and his jazz band were present, but barely used. The story meandered, and Peter’s case never really felt terribly high stakes. (Having him on holiday in Aberdeen, Scotland without any official authority didn’t help matters.) And then the story was split between Peter and Abigail as first person narrators, and often their stories seemed little more than tangentially related.
Abigail is a great side character who can add a lot to the story. But when she becomes the narrator and main focus of the story it changes the whole dynamic of the book. I am not the first to point out that when Abigail is narrating the story takes on a YA romancy vibe. That’s great, if you were looking to read a YA romancy, but that’s not why I read the Rivers of London books.
Stone and Sky picked up in its last third and tied things up with an action packed finish, but it still felt slight compared with earlier books in the series. Honestly, it felt like this book was more about setting up new characters, creatures, and expanding the in world map for future stories than anything else. Guess we will have have to wait for that next installment, and maybe work on constructing that German word that will perfectly capture how we felt about this one.
Yeah, that is unfortunately how reading Stone and Sky felt. Characters like Nightingale and Peter’s dad and his jazz band were present, but barely used. The story meandered, and Peter’s case never really felt terribly high stakes. (Having him on holiday in Aberdeen, Scotland without any official authority didn’t help matters.) And then the story was split between Peter and Abigail as first person narrators, and often their stories seemed little more than tangentially related.
Abigail is a great side character who can add a lot to the story. But when she becomes the narrator and main focus of the story it changes the whole dynamic of the book. I am not the first to point out that when Abigail is narrating the story takes on a YA romancy vibe. That’s great, if you were looking to read a YA romancy, but that’s not why I read the Rivers of London books.
Stone and Sky picked up in its last third and tied things up with an action packed finish, but it still felt slight compared with earlier books in the series. Honestly, it felt like this book was more about setting up new characters, creatures, and expanding the in world map for future stories than anything else. Guess we will have have to wait for that next installment, and maybe work on constructing that German word that will perfectly capture how we felt about this one.
June 25, 2025
With thanks to NetGalley for an ARC, provided in exchange for an honest review.
Rivers of London is one of my favorite urban fantasy series, as it blends a mix of excellent characters, wry humor, and an obvious love for London and its environs. I have been looking forward to the latest installment of the series for a while now. But this is not my favorite book in the series, by far.
One of the things I love about Rivers of London is how there are thematic threads that carry through the books, like episodes of a TV series, that build toward a "big bad" or a convergence of factors. But if this series is like a prestige TV series, this book was a bottle episode.
Peter, Bev, Abigail, Nightingale, Peter's parents, and the twins all head to Scotland for a vacation. Things happen, a vacation does not. And while it's a perfectly fine story, the novel doesn't really advance anything in the mythos or lore. We get our usual inclusion of new and weird quasi-magical creatures, but the change of setting feels more like a convenient excuse to get the fantastic Kobna Holbrook-Smith to have to speak in new accents on the audiobook version.
In this way, "Stone and Sky" feels more like "Foxglove Summer," probably one of my least favorite books in the series. Also coincidentally one that focuses a lot on Abigail.
Speaking of, I like Abigail as a character, but fully half the book is dedicated to her POV and adventures in Scotland, including falling in love with [REDACTED]. Abigail's fine, but I'm so invested in Peter at this point that I'd rather have Abigail spun off into her own books with her own POV. Switching between Peter and Abi made the pace of the novel feel like neither got a chance to let the reader really sink their teeth into what they were doing. It felt like two separate, but linked, novellas. Nightingale was also essentially sidelined for this book, reduced to a background character only around to mentor Abigail and save the day, deus ex magicus. We did get a lot of fox spycraft though, which was fun.
In short, what I wanted was: more Peter, more Nightingale, more LORE. I really didn't get any of those things, and I hope Ben Aaronovitch returns to what made this series so unique and wonderful.
Rivers of London is one of my favorite urban fantasy series, as it blends a mix of excellent characters, wry humor, and an obvious love for London and its environs. I have been looking forward to the latest installment of the series for a while now. But this is not my favorite book in the series, by far.
One of the things I love about Rivers of London is how there are thematic threads that carry through the books, like episodes of a TV series, that build toward a "big bad" or a convergence of factors. But if this series is like a prestige TV series, this book was a bottle episode.
Peter, Bev, Abigail, Nightingale, Peter's parents, and the twins all head to Scotland for a vacation. Things happen, a vacation does not. And while it's a perfectly fine story, the novel doesn't really advance anything in the mythos or lore. We get our usual inclusion of new and weird quasi-magical creatures, but the change of setting feels more like a convenient excuse to get the fantastic Kobna Holbrook-Smith to have to speak in new accents on the audiobook version.
In this way, "Stone and Sky" feels more like "Foxglove Summer," probably one of my least favorite books in the series. Also coincidentally one that focuses a lot on Abigail.
Speaking of, I like Abigail as a character, but fully half the book is dedicated to her POV and adventures in Scotland, including falling in love with [REDACTED]. Abigail's fine, but I'm so invested in Peter at this point that I'd rather have Abigail spun off into her own books with her own POV. Switching between Peter and Abi made the pace of the novel feel like neither got a chance to let the reader really sink their teeth into what they were doing. It felt like two separate, but linked, novellas. Nightingale was also essentially sidelined for this book, reduced to a background character only around to mentor Abigail and save the day, deus ex magicus. We did get a lot of fox spycraft though, which was fun.
In short, what I wanted was: more Peter, more Nightingale, more LORE. I really didn't get any of those things, and I hope Ben Aaronovitch returns to what made this series so unique and wonderful.
July 10, 2025
oh fuck. This is SUCH a bloody disappointment. This arrived yesterday, I'm up to chapter 6 and now seriously wondering whether to put this in the 'charity shop' pile unfinished.
It all seems so....... meh, somehow. There's no sense of 'being there with them'. I have this horrid feeling this is one of those books written just to make money (well, aren't they all, but you know what I mean.) Everyone seems two-dimensional and I am utterly sick of reading about the twins and the beach and so on. Rich detail is one thing, but give me a break. I want magic and mystery not rash vests and sand .
fuck. (and I LOATHE first person present tense writing.) And just how old is Abigail??? 13?
stumps off, grumbling to herself.....
Ah, shit. Finished reading (skimmed a lot of it though) It's as if someone else wrote this.
It all seems so....... meh, somehow. There's no sense of 'being there with them'. I have this horrid feeling this is one of those books written just to make money (well, aren't they all, but you know what I mean.) Everyone seems two-dimensional and I am utterly sick of reading about the twins and the beach and so on. Rich detail is one thing, but give me a break. I want magic and mystery not rash vests and sand .
fuck. (and I LOATHE first person present tense writing.) And just how old is Abigail??? 13?
Ah, shit. Finished reading (skimmed a lot of it though) It's as if someone else wrote this.
July 8, 2025
A mass migration from London to Aberdeen
Stone and Sky is the tenth full-length novel in Ben Aaronovitch's Rivers of London series. Novel nine, Amongst Our Weapons, ended with Nightingale loosing a bombshell -- he intends to retire, leaving Peter in charge of the Folly. Nightingale is not gone yet, but Peter, with the weight of incipient professional responsibility on him, not to mention domestic responsibility in the form of a wife and two children, is ever so slightly more subdued than in past books.
Abigail, in contrast, is not in the least subdued. She seems a bit matured, in the sense that she doesn't think of "Olds" with the unbridled contempt of her earlier effusions. She clearly respects Nightingale and even, somewhat surreptitiously, Peter and Bev. Or maybe she IS a bit subdued. Abigail is carrying a weight -- her brother Paul died of the chronic illness his family has been living with for all his years.
Of course, the vacation becomes less relaxing when the local police involve Peter in the investigation of a murder and a missing person, both cases involving "weird bollocks," of the sort that the Folly exists to deal with.
Most of the story is told in chapters whose point-of-view alternates between Peter and Abigail. There's a nice contrast here. Peter is more staid and more concerned with police procedural details. And architecture, of course. (To summarize, Aberdeen is built of granite.) Abigail is much less restrained.
I enjoyed this addition to the Rivers of London series. It broadened and advanced the development of Peter and Abigail's characters.
Blog review.
IT ALL STARTED when Dr. Brian Robertson, retired GP, enthusiastic amateur ecologist and self-confessed cryptid aficionado, stumbled over a dead sheep a few kilometers west of the town of Mintlaw, Aberdeenshire.Brian contacts his old friend Dr Walid about his strange discovery, and before long a migration of a dozen Folly-associated folks is camped out in Brian's garden. You're probably wondering, given the small size of the Folly's payroll, how we get up to a dozen. Well, Nightingale decides that it is time to take his apprentice Abigail Kamara out into the field to broaden her experience. Peter and Bev decide to come along as a holiday. The twins, now two years old, of course come along. And Peter's mother, who has expansive ideas of Family, attaches herself to the excursion. She brings Peter's father along. And since Peter's father is now performing again, his band, Lord Grant's Irregulars, comes with to do a few shows in the Aberdeen area, accompanied by their now-manager Zach Taylor. I believe that adds up to 13 persons. Sadly, Molly and Foxglove remain in London.
Stone and Sky is the tenth full-length novel in Ben Aaronovitch's Rivers of London series. Novel nine, Amongst Our Weapons, ended with Nightingale loosing a bombshell -- he intends to retire, leaving Peter in charge of the Folly. Nightingale is not gone yet, but Peter, with the weight of incipient professional responsibility on him, not to mention domestic responsibility in the form of a wife and two children, is ever so slightly more subdued than in past books.
Abigail, in contrast, is not in the least subdued. She seems a bit matured, in the sense that she doesn't think of "Olds" with the unbridled contempt of her earlier effusions. She clearly respects Nightingale and even, somewhat surreptitiously, Peter and Bev. Or maybe she IS a bit subdued. Abigail is carrying a weight -- her brother Paul died of the chronic illness his family has been living with for all his years.
Of course, the vacation becomes less relaxing when the local police involve Peter in the investigation of a murder and a missing person, both cases involving "weird bollocks," of the sort that the Folly exists to deal with.
Most of the story is told in chapters whose point-of-view alternates between Peter and Abigail. There's a nice contrast here. Peter is more staid and more concerned with police procedural details. And architecture, of course. (To summarize, Aberdeen is built of granite.) Abigail is much less restrained.
I enjoyed this addition to the Rivers of London series. It broadened and advanced the development of Peter and Abigail's characters.
Blog review.
April 29, 2025
I didn't hugely enjoy this. Peter - and the gang - end up off on holiday and solve crime in Scotland. The POV switching is interesting if somewhat disjointed but the basic story just follows the usual formula. Interesting hints of something building in the background was much more appealing. A shoutout to Neil Gaiman in a book being published in mid 2025 feels like a mis-step as well as repeated shoutouts to Brewdog, a company repeatedly in the news for employee relations.
August 26, 2025
This was a delightful installment of the Rivers of London series. I must confess that the graphic novels don't thrill me in the same way as the regular novels do. However, this one had a cast of characters that worked extremely well together: Peter and Bev, Nightingale, Abigail, and numerous foxies. Peter has calmed, Nightingale has mellowed, and Abigail has matured. The foxes remain fun and sly. Bonus points for bringing Peter and Bev's twins, Peter's parents, and the Lord Grant Irregulars along for the ride.
Once again, we learn that “there are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.“ Bev seems to have a pretty good handle on things, but her non-divine companions have many things to learn. Not to mention the Aberdeen coppers.
Splitting the narration between Peter and Abigail gave us readers firsthand knowledge of the entire investigation without a bunch of dry explanation. The Scottish foxes’ hardware assets were smile inducing, as was foxy pride in their own abilities.
You know, I'm surprised at how long this series has continued without going stale. I'm still enjoying the basic premise and the embroidering around it. Aaronovitch has managed to keep it fresh and fun, not an easy task. (Plus he obviously wanted Kobna Holdbrook-Smith to have some Scots accents to deal with while recording this audiobook.) I don't currently have the leisure to revisit the first Abigail book, but I find myself wanting to. A sure sign of a favoured series.
Once again, we learn that “there are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.“ Bev seems to have a pretty good handle on things, but her non-divine companions have many things to learn. Not to mention the Aberdeen coppers.
Splitting the narration between Peter and Abigail gave us readers firsthand knowledge of the entire investigation without a bunch of dry explanation. The Scottish foxes’ hardware assets were smile inducing, as was foxy pride in their own abilities.
You know, I'm surprised at how long this series has continued without going stale. I'm still enjoying the basic premise and the embroidering around it. Aaronovitch has managed to keep it fresh and fun, not an easy task. (Plus he obviously wanted Kobna Holdbrook-Smith to have some Scots accents to deal with while recording this audiobook.) I don't currently have the leisure to revisit the first Abigail book, but I find myself wanting to. A sure sign of a favoured series.
July 20, 2025
The Rivers series has lost its magic. This reminds me of a 1970s Dr Who adventure, complete with a disused quarry, monsters and military style operations.
The fragmented story has two narrators and feels like two loosely related novellas.
Peter Grant’s rather dull investigation sits uncomfortably alongside a YA romantasy.
Nightingale is relegated to a very minor role, with all manner of series characters are name-checked but play no real part.
The fragmented story has two narrators and feels like two loosely related novellas.
Peter Grant’s rather dull investigation sits uncomfortably alongside a YA romantasy.
Nightingale is relegated to a very minor role, with all manner of series characters are name-checked but play no real part.
August 1, 2025
The YA romance kinda ruined it for me, I do not need to read about horny Abigail and her beau for pages and pages, a couple of sentences (ok, half pages, in total) would do the trick. It took away from the investigative part (Peter, Nightingale, et al). Sans the romance part, the book is a solid four stars and one of the best entries in the whole series.
August 1, 2025
The 10th book in the series already!
This time, we're not in London though. Instead, it's a holiday book! *lol* Peter is going to Scotland on vacation ... or so he thought. Not only are all kinds of people suddenly accompanying him, his wife and two kids (this happened after a time jump of a few years), there is also a missing woman, a black panther and all kinds of magical shenanigans that are most probably tied in with a local oil drilling company.
Things really are different in Scotland! I kinda liked the atmosphere the author created, everything being less orderly, more wild, and definitely mysterious because not even Nightingale knows what lives in or under the North Sea and what kind of creatures actually exist (as opposed to folklore).
Interestingly, this book had two MCs/narrators: Peter and Abigail. As I said in one of my status updates, I love Abigail (and the foxes), but I wished the author hadn't mixed the POVs so much. Sure, the two narratives intertwined nicely, but it nevertheless felt slightly disjointed at times.
As with the previous books, I LOVED the worldbuilding. Here, with the rough sea, strong weather, mermaids and kelpies and selkies and whatnot. I could practically smell the salt in the air. It didn't hurt that the weather, here, was similar to what was sometimes described. *cackles*
Once again, the characters were lovely. Not sure if Peter will soon hand in the badge or why Abigail featured so heavily here. Maybe the author had two half-ideas and by combining them he created a full novel? I kinda hope it's that and not us having to say goodbye to Peter and see him replaced.
Naturally, my favorite still is Nightingale ... I totally understand Indigo, no matter what time of the year it is. *chuckles*
I'm also happy to report that the author is still keeping is "realistic". What I mean is that Peter still isn't the perfect wizard and while Abigail is doing her homework, neither is she. All of the people have to do proper investigating to solve the mystery - magic isn't just magicallly solving all problems and that's the way it ought to be.
Cool addition to the series, though not 100% perfect. But it made me felt cozy, had some nice wildlife, and entertained me greatly so no real complaints.
This time, we're not in London though. Instead, it's a holiday book! *lol* Peter is going to Scotland on vacation ... or so he thought. Not only are all kinds of people suddenly accompanying him, his wife and two kids (this happened after a time jump of a few years), there is also a missing woman, a black panther and all kinds of magical shenanigans that are most probably tied in with a local oil drilling company.
Things really are different in Scotland! I kinda liked the atmosphere the author created, everything being less orderly, more wild, and definitely mysterious because not even Nightingale knows what lives in or under the North Sea and what kind of creatures actually exist (as opposed to folklore).
Interestingly, this book had two MCs/narrators: Peter and Abigail. As I said in one of my status updates, I love Abigail (and the foxes), but I wished the author hadn't mixed the POVs so much. Sure, the two narratives intertwined nicely, but it nevertheless felt slightly disjointed at times.
As with the previous books, I LOVED the worldbuilding. Here, with the rough sea, strong weather, mermaids and kelpies and selkies and whatnot. I could practically smell the salt in the air. It didn't hurt that the weather, here, was similar to what was sometimes described. *cackles*
Once again, the characters were lovely. Not sure if Peter will soon hand in the badge or why Abigail featured so heavily here. Maybe the author had two half-ideas and by combining them he created a full novel? I kinda hope it's that and not us having to say goodbye to Peter and see him replaced.
Naturally, my favorite still is Nightingale ... I totally understand Indigo, no matter what time of the year it is. *chuckles*
I'm also happy to report that the author is still keeping is "realistic". What I mean is that Peter still isn't the perfect wizard and while Abigail is doing her homework, neither is she. All of the people have to do proper investigating to solve the mystery - magic isn't just magicallly solving all problems and that's the way it ought to be.
Cool addition to the series, though not 100% perfect. But it made me felt cozy, had some nice wildlife, and entertained me greatly so no real complaints.
July 11, 2025
Not enough Peter or Nightingale, too much Abigail. Overall majorly underwhelming after such a long wait.
September 11, 2025
UPDATE - I have not listened to the audiobook as well as read the book and have to say, that the narration improved my experience with this one because Kobna is one of my favorite narrators of all time. That said, I still feel like the story was lacking, and miss the more Peter- / Nightingale-centric stories of the earlier parts of the series...
ORIGINAL REVIEW - First let me say that I LOVE this series. The books. The audiobooks. The cover art. Everything about it (even the graphic novels, and I'm not generally a fan) is fabulous and creative and fun. That said, this was not one of my favorite books...
I loved the bits with Peter and Beverly solving the mystery. I found the Abigail sections to read more like YA blossoming romance/coming-of-age than I expected, and while I get that she's growing up and into herself, I found those bits way less interesting. I like her best when she's working with the Foxes to pursue magical critters and explore her formidable talents (intellectual and magical), and those parts of the book were fabulous as always. I read this series for the magic, not for tales of burgeoning romance... It's fine but felt like a distraction.
To that end, I wanted more Nightingale, more Wahid, and more investigation into the Market and the strange creatures and parallel worlds that aren't really parallel worlds (allokosmos is such a fabulous concept). I still enjoyed it, because I always love a trip into Peter's world, but wish there had been more focus on that world and its newly discovered inhabitants...
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my obligation-free review copy.
ORIGINAL REVIEW - First let me say that I LOVE this series. The books. The audiobooks. The cover art. Everything about it (even the graphic novels, and I'm not generally a fan) is fabulous and creative and fun. That said, this was not one of my favorite books...
I loved the bits with Peter and Beverly solving the mystery. I found the Abigail sections to read more like YA blossoming romance/coming-of-age than I expected, and while I get that she's growing up and into herself, I found those bits way less interesting. I like her best when she's working with the Foxes to pursue magical critters and explore her formidable talents (intellectual and magical), and those parts of the book were fabulous as always. I read this series for the magic, not for tales of burgeoning romance... It's fine but felt like a distraction.
To that end, I wanted more Nightingale, more Wahid, and more investigation into the Market and the strange creatures and parallel worlds that aren't really parallel worlds (allokosmos is such a fabulous concept). I still enjoyed it, because I always love a trip into Peter's world, but wish there had been more focus on that world and its newly discovered inhabitants...
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my obligation-free review copy.
July 10, 2025
Welp, this was bland, casava and rice without a single chili. Sweet baby deities, it was boring. I didn't have the stamina to finish it.
Peter is now a guy who calls a river goddess "the wife" and Abigail has had a personality transplant and become a fifth grader wandering around in a woman's body and wondering what to do. Abigail? No, just no.
And I'm all for live and let live, but someone really should tell middle-aged men not to write teen romance, especially from a young girl's point of view. Pure ick.
I think I died a little with this one. Peter Grant and crew have been my go to reminder of what the world could be and this is just not it.
Peter is now a guy who calls a river goddess "the wife" and Abigail has had a personality transplant and become a fifth grader wandering around in a woman's body and wondering what to do. Abigail? No, just no.
And I'm all for live and let live, but someone really should tell middle-aged men not to write teen romance, especially from a young girl's point of view. Pure ick.
I think I died a little with this one. Peter Grant and crew have been my go to reminder of what the world could be and this is just not it.
July 23, 2025
Review: This sure follows the series path without deviation. Same world building with minor character developments. The author makes pointed digs at conservatives and parlays homosexualty into a normative idealized form. This novel should have been labeled as such.
I had a good time relaxing, as the scene progression and POV shifts are interesting enough to keep the patterned story line moving. Perhaps it is a good thing that Ben stays in a London invaded.
I had a good time relaxing, as the scene progression and POV shifts are interesting enough to keep the patterned story line moving. Perhaps it is a good thing that Ben stays in a London invaded.
July 12, 2025
61 year old man writes young adult lesbian erotica in between another tired entry in the series.
July 10, 2025
It has been a while since I’ve been in the company of members of the Folly, the contingent of the London police tasked with dealing with things magical. So it has been a delight to join Nightingale and Peter, as well as Abigail and her compatriot, Indigo the talking fox. As Stone and Sky begins, these three, as well as Peter’s wife Beverly, the river goddess, and their two year old twins, Peter’s parents and his father’s jazz band, and Dr. Walid, arrive in Scotland. Those connected with the Folly, including the highly educated doctor, are in search of a mutant panther. Everyone else is on vacation. Peter had hopes of being on vacation but…
This is new territory for the team. They don’t know the players in Aberdeen and the area and they don’t have contacts in the police of fae world, or not many. Nightingale’s history goes way back but he hasn’t seen anything quite like this out of place animal. As the family vacations, the team gets to work, learning about the fae world of Scotland, trying to figure out what this mutant animal might foretell. Abigail is a new character for me so she was fun to watch developing as well as her relationship with Indigo and the mysterious Ione. There is a rogue plot to uncover that will need the team to unravel.
Recommended for anyone who enjoys mystery with a paranormal and magical twist and enough sly humor to satisfy. Aaronovitch has built a great world and keeps it going very nicely. This book can be read without reading all of the series but at least some familiarity with the characters and concepts would be very useful, if not necessary, for full enjoyment.
Thanks to DAW books for an advanced copy of this book. This review is my own.
This is new territory for the team. They don’t know the players in Aberdeen and the area and they don’t have contacts in the police of fae world, or not many. Nightingale’s history goes way back but he hasn’t seen anything quite like this out of place animal. As the family vacations, the team gets to work, learning about the fae world of Scotland, trying to figure out what this mutant animal might foretell. Abigail is a new character for me so she was fun to watch developing as well as her relationship with Indigo and the mysterious Ione. There is a rogue plot to uncover that will need the team to unravel.
Recommended for anyone who enjoys mystery with a paranormal and magical twist and enough sly humor to satisfy. Aaronovitch has built a great world and keeps it going very nicely. This book can be read without reading all of the series but at least some familiarity with the characters and concepts would be very useful, if not necessary, for full enjoyment.
Thanks to DAW books for an advanced copy of this book. This review is my own.
August 5, 2025
2.3⭐
Sadly, this book marks the point of diminishing return for the Rivers of London series. It's jumped the shark. Or jumped the selkie, in this tale of supernatural Scotland.
I've long been a fan of Aaronovitch's magical police stories but for the last few it feels like he's just been going through the motions. This novel is formulaic and re-uses plot points and dialogue from earlier books.
The plot is muddled, padded with pointless distractions and meandering. I found the conclusion trite and unconvincing.
It's lazy writing, in my opinion.
This time detective/wizard Peter Grant, his entire family and his boss - The Nightingale, are in Scotland for a supposed working holiday. They are quickly entangled is a series of interconnected magical mysteries, involving various supernatural Scottish creatures and North Sea oil.
There are many references to the earlier stories in the series, which do nothing to further the plot . It looks like a case of fan service over story telling ( or perhaps an attempt to get readers to buy those other books?)
I wanted to like this book as much as I liked the first novels in the series but I don't feel it delivers anything like value for money.
Aaronovitch has been pumping out a prodigious number of books, short stories and graphic novels in the series ( cashing in). It would be nice if he took a break to give himself time to get back to the quality of story he's capable of writing.
Sadly, this book marks the point of diminishing return for the Rivers of London series. It's jumped the shark. Or jumped the selkie, in this tale of supernatural Scotland.
I've long been a fan of Aaronovitch's magical police stories but for the last few it feels like he's just been going through the motions. This novel is formulaic and re-uses plot points and dialogue from earlier books.
The plot is muddled, padded with pointless distractions and meandering. I found the conclusion trite and unconvincing.
It's lazy writing, in my opinion.
This time detective/wizard Peter Grant, his entire family and his boss - The Nightingale, are in Scotland for a supposed working holiday. They are quickly entangled is a series of interconnected magical mysteries, involving various supernatural Scottish creatures and North Sea oil.
There are many references to the earlier stories in the series, which do nothing to further the plot . It looks like a case of fan service over story telling ( or perhaps an attempt to get readers to buy those other books?)
I wanted to like this book as much as I liked the first novels in the series but I don't feel it delivers anything like value for money.
Aaronovitch has been pumping out a prodigious number of books, short stories and graphic novels in the series ( cashing in). It would be nice if he took a break to give himself time to get back to the quality of story he's capable of writing.
August 5, 2025
Urlaub für Peter
Die Zwillinge von Peter Grant und Beverly sind auch schon zwei Jahre alt. Nicht, dass man meint, Zweijährige hüten wäre einfach. Und so kommt es, dass sich, als ein Schaf in Schottland tot aufgefunden wird, die ganze Familie auf den Weg nach Norden macht. Wegen der seltsamen Umstände erachtet Chief Inspector Thomas Nightingale es für notwendig, dass seine Einheit der in gewisser Weise Übernatürlichen ermittelt. Was für Abenteuer auf den nun schon erfahreneren Zauberlehrling Peter Grant warten, wird sich zeigen. Das es mit seiner nicht mehr ganz kleinen Familie und Anhang aus Eltern und Teammitgliedern turbulent werden wird, versteht sich fast von selbst.
Nun schon zum zehnten Mal bekommt es Peter Grant mit Ereignissen übernatürlichen Ursprungs zu tun. Dass ihn dies in die schottische Hafenstadt Aberdeen führt, lässt tatsächlich den Gedanken aufkommen, dass sich Urlaub und Arbeit auch mal vermischen können. Zumindest kommen Beverly und die Kinder mal raus. Nicht nur Vergnügen bereitet die Sache mit dem toten Schaf, hinter der doch mehr steckt als zunächst angenommen. Sogar im kühlen Norden haben die Wasserwesen etwas zu sagen. Und Beverly ist weit weg von ihrem heimatlichen Fluss.
Dieses Hörbuch wird sehr ansprechend vorgetragen von Sarah Dorsel und Dietmar Wunder. Wenn man die Reihe bisher in gedruckter Form genossen hat, könnte es möglicherweise einer kleinen Gewöhnungsphase bedürfen. Die Anpassung ist aber schnell geschafft.
Der Wechsel der Szenerie gibt der Handlung nicht nur durch die Wahl des Ortes eine gewisse Frische. Schön ist auch die Entwicklung von Peter und Beverly, die sich als Eltern gut eingelebt haben, obwohl ihre quirligen Zwillinge sie ganz schön auf Trab halten. Manchmal wirkt Peter vielleicht etwas abgelenkt, aber wenn es heikel wird bei den Untersuchungen, ist er voll gespannter Aufmerksamkeit. Außerdem sind die Unterschiede zu schottischen Art der Polizeiarbeit kein Hindernis, um mit den Kollegen gut klarzukommen. Es ist spannend zu hören, was Peter und seine Kollegen herausfinden und wie er dabei noch seine Rasselbande im Zaum hält.
Die Zwillinge von Peter Grant und Beverly sind auch schon zwei Jahre alt. Nicht, dass man meint, Zweijährige hüten wäre einfach. Und so kommt es, dass sich, als ein Schaf in Schottland tot aufgefunden wird, die ganze Familie auf den Weg nach Norden macht. Wegen der seltsamen Umstände erachtet Chief Inspector Thomas Nightingale es für notwendig, dass seine Einheit der in gewisser Weise Übernatürlichen ermittelt. Was für Abenteuer auf den nun schon erfahreneren Zauberlehrling Peter Grant warten, wird sich zeigen. Das es mit seiner nicht mehr ganz kleinen Familie und Anhang aus Eltern und Teammitgliedern turbulent werden wird, versteht sich fast von selbst.
Nun schon zum zehnten Mal bekommt es Peter Grant mit Ereignissen übernatürlichen Ursprungs zu tun. Dass ihn dies in die schottische Hafenstadt Aberdeen führt, lässt tatsächlich den Gedanken aufkommen, dass sich Urlaub und Arbeit auch mal vermischen können. Zumindest kommen Beverly und die Kinder mal raus. Nicht nur Vergnügen bereitet die Sache mit dem toten Schaf, hinter der doch mehr steckt als zunächst angenommen. Sogar im kühlen Norden haben die Wasserwesen etwas zu sagen. Und Beverly ist weit weg von ihrem heimatlichen Fluss.
Dieses Hörbuch wird sehr ansprechend vorgetragen von Sarah Dorsel und Dietmar Wunder. Wenn man die Reihe bisher in gedruckter Form genossen hat, könnte es möglicherweise einer kleinen Gewöhnungsphase bedürfen. Die Anpassung ist aber schnell geschafft.
Der Wechsel der Szenerie gibt der Handlung nicht nur durch die Wahl des Ortes eine gewisse Frische. Schön ist auch die Entwicklung von Peter und Beverly, die sich als Eltern gut eingelebt haben, obwohl ihre quirligen Zwillinge sie ganz schön auf Trab halten. Manchmal wirkt Peter vielleicht etwas abgelenkt, aber wenn es heikel wird bei den Untersuchungen, ist er voll gespannter Aufmerksamkeit. Außerdem sind die Unterschiede zu schottischen Art der Polizeiarbeit kein Hindernis, um mit den Kollegen gut klarzukommen. Es ist spannend zu hören, was Peter und seine Kollegen herausfinden und wie er dabei noch seine Rasselbande im Zaum hält.
June 16, 2025
Finished reading: June 14th 2025
"Police Scotland had gone for an all-black uniform design, probably aiming for some of that Scandinavian chic, but had hit low-budget YA dystopia instead."
*** A copy of this book was kindly provided to me by Netgalley and DAW in exchange for an honest review. Thank you! ***
REVIEW
October 5, 2025
The best Rivers of London in at least a few books. Aaronovitch gave us a bit of nostalgia,which should be expected in book 10 but really he gave us a good new story with the perfect blend of Peter's deprecating humor and fantasy mystery.
July 10, 2025
Really disappointed with this long awaited return to Peter and the rest of the regulars.
As usual I listened to the audiobook version with the ebook for reference. When Kobna was narrating it was just fine (I didn't like the use of the 'c' word though), but the parts from Abigail's POV were pretty awful on several levels. Firstly it was written like a bad YA book - honestly, how on earth did nipple licking find a place in the Rivers of London series? Shvorn Marks was fine as the voice of Abigail, but dreadful with the voices of other characters like Nightingale and Peter's Mum. So jarring in the same book as Kobna's voices. Also, sometimes it was hard to work out what Abigail was saying because she was using teen slang as if speaking to friends of her own age down in London - not the usual reader/listener of the series. I don't want to work that hard to decide what she is saying. Another annoying thing was Abigail talking about things that happened in the comic books - I can't read these, so it is like I'm missing out on part of the series.
On the whole this book is just 'off' and I am so glad this was not the first experience of the series because it would probably be a DNF.
As usual I listened to the audiobook version with the ebook for reference. When Kobna was narrating it was just fine (I didn't like the use of the 'c' word though), but the parts from Abigail's POV were pretty awful on several levels. Firstly it was written like a bad YA book - honestly, how on earth did nipple licking find a place in the Rivers of London series? Shvorn Marks was fine as the voice of Abigail, but dreadful with the voices of other characters like Nightingale and Peter's Mum. So jarring in the same book as Kobna's voices. Also, sometimes it was hard to work out what Abigail was saying because she was using teen slang as if speaking to friends of her own age down in London - not the usual reader/listener of the series. I don't want to work that hard to decide what she is saying. Another annoying thing was Abigail talking about things that happened in the comic books - I can't read these, so it is like I'm missing out on part of the series.
On the whole this book is just 'off' and I am so glad this was not the first experience of the series because it would probably be a DNF.
July 14, 2025
2.5 rounded up to 3 for old times’ sake.
This was disappointing in a bunch of ways. The pace was slow, the setup felt contrived, and the shift back and forth between Peter and Abigail as narrators was jarring.
I personally have adored Abigail in the past, but this was some sort of new, “improved” voice for Abigail that didn’t match the clever, snarky voice she’s had in past (albeit briefer) appearances. There was a painful attempt to have her speak in some weird combination of Afro-English patois that sounded more like Peter’s mom, alternating with what a late middle-aged male writer thinks a teen girl sounds like.
And although Abigail gets equal time with Peter here, instead of showing us her growth as a powerful mage and maybe centering her training with Nightingale and Varvara, Aaronovitch focuses to an honestly creepy degree on her lusty romance with a not quite human Scottish babe. I’m going to give him the benefit of the doubt and say maybe he was pressured to try to aim for a slice of the Teen/YA Romantasy market and I’ll pray that doesn’t happen again.
Peter & Bev were cool but saddling them with those twins has definitely boxed them in as far as how many exiting adventures they can get up to. The foxes are always excellent. Nightingale was great when he showed up, but that didn’t happen nearly enough. I’d love to see more prequel stories about him, but I don’t think that’s going to happen.
Anyone who’s made it to ten books in a generally excellent series has earned my respect, but this was definitely the weakest in the series for me.
This was disappointing in a bunch of ways. The pace was slow, the setup felt contrived, and the shift back and forth between Peter and Abigail as narrators was jarring.
I personally have adored Abigail in the past, but this was some sort of new, “improved” voice for Abigail that didn’t match the clever, snarky voice she’s had in past (albeit briefer) appearances. There was a painful attempt to have her speak in some weird combination of Afro-English patois that sounded more like Peter’s mom, alternating with what a late middle-aged male writer thinks a teen girl sounds like.
And although Abigail gets equal time with Peter here, instead of showing us her growth as a powerful mage and maybe centering her training with Nightingale and Varvara, Aaronovitch focuses to an honestly creepy degree on her lusty romance with a not quite human Scottish babe. I’m going to give him the benefit of the doubt and say maybe he was pressured to try to aim for a slice of the Teen/YA Romantasy market and I’ll pray that doesn’t happen again.
Peter & Bev were cool but saddling them with those twins has definitely boxed them in as far as how many exiting adventures they can get up to. The foxes are always excellent. Nightingale was great when he showed up, but that didn’t happen nearly enough. I’d love to see more prequel stories about him, but I don’t think that’s going to happen.
Anyone who’s made it to ten books in a generally excellent series has earned my respect, but this was definitely the weakest in the series for me.
July 12, 2025
Yes, I know. Just slightly less than perfect. I'll get to the reasons in a while.
Stone and Sky is the latest in the Rivers of London series. Thankfully there has been a novella to keep fans going as we waited for this.
This is certainly a story with a difference to the usual fare and a welcome change too. Barely a mention of Lesley or Faceless Men and none of Bev's sisters sneering at Peter. Instead we're off to Aberdeen to check out big cat attacks. Well of course it's not an ordinary big cat and along with the cat there's various other murderous magical creatures.
Peter, Beverly, the (now) 2 year old twins, Peter's mum and dad and Abdul all head up to liaise with the Scottish cops and the shenanigans don't take long to start.
Ben Aaronovitch has thrown the proverbial, magical kitchen sink at this one with shape-shifting families, corporate greed, slavery and even a wyvern thrown in. Peter and his Scottish liaison are put in charge of solving murder and abduction but the powers that be are about as fond of weird bollocks as The Met.
Great things about this are that the old gang is back together, Abigail is along for the ride with Indigo and there's some insanely funny parts.
The downside about it was that I listened to the audio and (no offence to Shvorne Marks who voices Abigail - honestly there's nothing wrong with the narration) Kobna Holdbrook-Smith (he of the perfect voice) doesn't narrate all the parts. This is purely personal preference and doesn't detract from the story.
The other part of personal preference is that Abigail has a love interest and I got extremely bored with Peter's shenanigans earlier in the series before Beverly came along full time. I just find it boring.
Otherwise, it's fun, fast paced, heaps of foxes and there's also some extremely poignant parts which had me in tears.
Excellent. Bring on the next one please. No pressure - honest.
Stone and Sky is the latest in the Rivers of London series. Thankfully there has been a novella to keep fans going as we waited for this.
This is certainly a story with a difference to the usual fare and a welcome change too. Barely a mention of Lesley or Faceless Men and none of Bev's sisters sneering at Peter. Instead we're off to Aberdeen to check out big cat attacks. Well of course it's not an ordinary big cat and along with the cat there's various other murderous magical creatures.
Peter, Beverly, the (now) 2 year old twins, Peter's mum and dad and Abdul all head up to liaise with the Scottish cops and the shenanigans don't take long to start.
Ben Aaronovitch has thrown the proverbial, magical kitchen sink at this one with shape-shifting families, corporate greed, slavery and even a wyvern thrown in. Peter and his Scottish liaison are put in charge of solving murder and abduction but the powers that be are about as fond of weird bollocks as The Met.
Great things about this are that the old gang is back together, Abigail is along for the ride with Indigo and there's some insanely funny parts.
The downside about it was that I listened to the audio and (no offence to Shvorne Marks who voices Abigail - honestly there's nothing wrong with the narration) Kobna Holdbrook-Smith (he of the perfect voice) doesn't narrate all the parts. This is purely personal preference and doesn't detract from the story.
The other part of personal preference is that Abigail has a love interest and I got extremely bored with Peter's shenanigans earlier in the series before Beverly came along full time. I just find it boring.
Otherwise, it's fun, fast paced, heaps of foxes and there's also some extremely poignant parts which had me in tears.
Excellent. Bring on the next one please. No pressure - honest.
July 22, 2025
IN A NUTSHELL
Above average Rivers Of London novel with an engaging plot made more enjoyable by having the storytelling swap between Peter and Abigail, giving Beverley a more active role, setting the story in Aberdeen and, of course, by having talking foxes.
'Stone & Sky' was the Rivers Of London novel that I've been waiting for since I finished 'Amongst Our Weapons' three years ago. This time, Peter Grant goes even further north, all the way to Aberdeen, and he takes his whole family: mum, dad, his river goddess wife Beverly, their toddler twins and his magically gifted niece, Abigail Kamara, with him. It's not entirely a holiday as Nightingale and Dr Walid initiated the trip to look into reports of a black panther ravaging Scottish sheep.
It was fun seeing Peter dealing with the chaos his almost always active and much more mobile than you might expect twins create. It was also good to see Peter outside of London again. To me, he seems more likeable when he loses the home ground advantage and has to put some effort into figuring out who's who and what's up.
The plot takes place not just in the granite streets of Aberdeen but on a North Sea Gas Platform. There's a nicely judged level of menace and mystery that kept me engaged without taking the gloss off the humour. The plot had a strong local flavour and a few unexpected twists. There were a couple of hanging plot threads at the end, for example, what was the final outcome for the marine biologist? But I was sufficiently entertained by all the other things going on that I didn't notice the loose ends until well after I'd finished the book.
One of the things that made the book such fun is that about half the chapters are told from Abigail's point of view. She's my favourite Rivers Of London character. I love her independence and the level of strategic and scientific thought she brings to the use of magic. She was, of course, accompanied by one of her talking foxes who connected her to the local fox operations team. Abigail has come a long way in the four years since the events of 'What Abigail Did That Summer'. Her confidence and her knowledge of magic have both grown. She's embedded herself in the Folly. She's even taught Nightingale how to use emojis. In this book, we get to see her connect with her first girlfriend.
I liked the changing dynamic between Beverley and Peter. Beverley isn't in the background any more. She plays an active, risky and important part in what happens on the gas platform. Not only was it good to see her in action, but it was a clever way of pushing Peter to reassess his attitude to risk now that he's a husband and father.
'Stone & Sky' worked well as an audiobook, especially with Kobna Holdbrook-Smith voicing Peter's chapters nd Shvorne Marks voicing Abigail's chapters. Click on the YouTube link below to hear a sample.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W9Q4o...
Above average Rivers Of London novel with an engaging plot made more enjoyable by having the storytelling swap between Peter and Abigail, giving Beverley a more active role, setting the story in Aberdeen and, of course, by having talking foxes.
'Stone & Sky' was the Rivers Of London novel that I've been waiting for since I finished 'Amongst Our Weapons' three years ago. This time, Peter Grant goes even further north, all the way to Aberdeen, and he takes his whole family: mum, dad, his river goddess wife Beverly, their toddler twins and his magically gifted niece, Abigail Kamara, with him. It's not entirely a holiday as Nightingale and Dr Walid initiated the trip to look into reports of a black panther ravaging Scottish sheep.
It was fun seeing Peter dealing with the chaos his almost always active and much more mobile than you might expect twins create. It was also good to see Peter outside of London again. To me, he seems more likeable when he loses the home ground advantage and has to put some effort into figuring out who's who and what's up.
The plot takes place not just in the granite streets of Aberdeen but on a North Sea Gas Platform. There's a nicely judged level of menace and mystery that kept me engaged without taking the gloss off the humour. The plot had a strong local flavour and a few unexpected twists. There were a couple of hanging plot threads at the end, for example, what was the final outcome for the marine biologist? But I was sufficiently entertained by all the other things going on that I didn't notice the loose ends until well after I'd finished the book.
One of the things that made the book such fun is that about half the chapters are told from Abigail's point of view. She's my favourite Rivers Of London character. I love her independence and the level of strategic and scientific thought she brings to the use of magic. She was, of course, accompanied by one of her talking foxes who connected her to the local fox operations team. Abigail has come a long way in the four years since the events of 'What Abigail Did That Summer'. Her confidence and her knowledge of magic have both grown. She's embedded herself in the Folly. She's even taught Nightingale how to use emojis. In this book, we get to see her connect with her first girlfriend.
I liked the changing dynamic between Beverley and Peter. Beverley isn't in the background any more. She plays an active, risky and important part in what happens on the gas platform. Not only was it good to see her in action, but it was a clever way of pushing Peter to reassess his attitude to risk now that he's a husband and father.
'Stone & Sky' worked well as an audiobook, especially with Kobna Holdbrook-Smith voicing Peter's chapters nd Shvorne Marks voicing Abigail's chapters. Click on the YouTube link below to hear a sample.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W9Q4o...
August 4, 2025
Great holiday read! I love how much the foxes are a part of this now, Indigo is amazing. Abigail was fun to read, I hope she will stay around. In some of the busy scenes I got a bit confused with the names,but all in all it’s one of my favourite RoL novels!
July 10, 2025
Going through the motions!
What a disappointment. This feels like Aaronovitch dialling it in. The story barely hangs together, there’s no sense of risk, characters (Nightingale!) have become inconsistent with actions not in line with previous characterisations. Everyone is to overpowered now.
I genuinely think Aaronovitch doesn’t know what to do since the end of the Faceless man.
Also, the attempts to create a ‘voice’ for Abigail, esp the occasional slang are embarrassingly bad and bumped me out of the story every time.
Finally, I found myself irritated by the regularly timed small progressive right-thinking asides. Nothing wrong with the ideas, but the execution is as jarring as product placement in a film / tv show.
It’s been a while since there’s been a really good Rivers of London book. This definitely isn’t it.
What a disappointment. This feels like Aaronovitch dialling it in. The story barely hangs together, there’s no sense of risk, characters (Nightingale!) have become inconsistent with actions not in line with previous characterisations. Everyone is to overpowered now.
I genuinely think Aaronovitch doesn’t know what to do since the end of the Faceless man.
Also, the attempts to create a ‘voice’ for Abigail, esp the occasional slang are embarrassingly bad and bumped me out of the story every time.
Finally, I found myself irritated by the regularly timed small progressive right-thinking asides. Nothing wrong with the ideas, but the execution is as jarring as product placement in a film / tv show.
It’s been a while since there’s been a really good Rivers of London book. This definitely isn’t it.
November 15, 2025
as close to 4 as possible for the 10th in a series!
I read #1 and 2 a few years ago and never re-investigated, but then this fell into my hands.
Aaronovitch is very inventive and locale-specific and fun. Best described as a police procedural - lots of police work (filling out papers, making sure you don't break any police laws), police details - with magic. Characters represent all the new English and all the old English of all stripes and colours.
Aaronovitch's wizard policeman, Peter Grant, his wife - London river goddess Beverly, and their twins, plus family (in a camper van) and associated colleagues, end up in Aberdeen investigating things very Scottish, including selkies, mermaids and wyverns pulled into nefarious oil platforms and oil $ speculation. Peter and Bev are quite fun, but his cousin Abigail, a brilliant auto-didact wizard/physicist, is a particularly great character with her special group of talking fox spies. Yea, foxes.
Maybe a little hard to catch up with #3-9, but possible. Glad I read it. Hoping that the twins grow up and they have stories too!
I read #1 and 2 a few years ago and never re-investigated, but then this fell into my hands.
Aaronovitch is very inventive and locale-specific and fun. Best described as a police procedural - lots of police work (filling out papers, making sure you don't break any police laws), police details - with magic. Characters represent all the new English and all the old English of all stripes and colours.
Aaronovitch's wizard policeman, Peter Grant, his wife - London river goddess Beverly, and their twins, plus family (in a camper van) and associated colleagues, end up in Aberdeen investigating things very Scottish, including selkies, mermaids and wyverns pulled into nefarious oil platforms and oil $ speculation. Peter and Bev are quite fun, but his cousin Abigail, a brilliant auto-didact wizard/physicist, is a particularly great character with her special group of talking fox spies. Yea, foxes.
Maybe a little hard to catch up with #3-9, but possible. Glad I read it. Hoping that the twins grow up and they have stories too!
July 27, 2025
A new Peter Grant. It‘s been a while. Peter, with more or less his whole family, his dad‘s band, Abigail plus fox, and Nightingale are headed up North in a combination of having a holiday (Peter et al.) and investigating some weird bollocks (Nightingale, etc.).
We alternate between two storylines, told by Peter and Abigail. Here is where my issues started. I found that distracting. I wasn’t exactly underwhelmed, but the story felt disjointed and never gelled into a cohesive, gripping tale. My mind kept wandering off, I could have stopped reading at any time. The plot was ok, the sleuthing as well, although there wasn’t a lot of suspense. It all sort of ambled along in a friendly and comforting way. I never developed much interest. But this is not the fresh and funny Peter Grant of the early books. I think I am pretty much done with the series. I might pick up the next book in the series, if it gets very good reviews by my reading buddies.
What I did like:
The Scottish setting. Peter’s architectural nerdiness is always fun. The visual of the Aquaman ending was appreciated, I won‘t be able to get Jason Momoa out of my head for days now. I enjoyed the foxes and the various pop culture references. The new supernatural people were a good addition.
Audiobook:
Kobna Holdbrook-Smith is very good, as always. He is like comfort food. I also liked that there is an additional female narrator for Abigail. They did a good job with the Scottish accents.
3.5 mermaids, rounded up to 4 for old times sake. 🧜♀️🧜♀️🧜♀️½
I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher or author through NetGalley. All opinions are my own and I was not required to give a positive review.
We alternate between two storylines, told by Peter and Abigail. Here is where my issues started. I found that distracting. I wasn’t exactly underwhelmed, but the story felt disjointed and never gelled into a cohesive, gripping tale. My mind kept wandering off, I could have stopped reading at any time. The plot was ok, the sleuthing as well, although there wasn’t a lot of suspense. It all sort of ambled along in a friendly and comforting way. I never developed much interest. But this is not the fresh and funny Peter Grant of the early books. I think I am pretty much done with the series. I might pick up the next book in the series, if it gets very good reviews by my reading buddies.
What I did like:
The Scottish setting. Peter’s architectural nerdiness is always fun. The visual of the Aquaman ending was appreciated, I won‘t be able to get Jason Momoa out of my head for days now. I enjoyed the foxes and the various pop culture references. The new supernatural people were a good addition.
Audiobook:
Kobna Holdbrook-Smith is very good, as always. He is like comfort food. I also liked that there is an additional female narrator for Abigail. They did a good job with the Scottish accents.
3.5 mermaids, rounded up to 4 for old times sake. 🧜♀️🧜♀️🧜♀️½
I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher or author through NetGalley. All opinions are my own and I was not required to give a positive review.
July 11, 2025
Питер Грант, теперь и в Шотландии - хочет отдохнуть, а приходится работать. Хорошо, что вместе с ним приехали еще и Беверли, Найтингейл, Эбигейл, говорящая лиса Индиго и даже доктор Валид.
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