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The Walking Shadows #1
Night Call
The thrilling debut in the sci-fi noir Walking Shadows series
The year is 1933. Even in a world with free energy, robot labour, and megacorporations, nothing could stop the collapse of the American Dream. As the world-spanning Great Depression rages on, the remaining New York–based mafias clash with police for control of the broken city. Elias Roche, former police officer turned Mafia enforcer, works to maintain a tenuous peace between the two parties.
Accustomed to settling disputes with the business end of a gun, Roche must expand his repertoire after a violent murder is covered up by the FBI. With the Mafia insisting they’re innocent of the crime and the police powerless to help, Roche and his new Automatic partner, Allen, must root out those responsible before the situation sparks a war in the city streets.
The year is 1933. Even in a world with free energy, robot labour, and megacorporations, nothing could stop the collapse of the American Dream. As the world-spanning Great Depression rages on, the remaining New York–based mafias clash with police for control of the broken city. Elias Roche, former police officer turned Mafia enforcer, works to maintain a tenuous peace between the two parties.
Accustomed to settling disputes with the business end of a gun, Roche must expand his repertoire after a violent murder is covered up by the FBI. With the Mafia insisting they’re innocent of the crime and the police powerless to help, Roche and his new Automatic partner, Allen, must root out those responsible before the situation sparks a war in the city streets.
336 pages, Paperback
First published June 27, 2020
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1851 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
April 9, 2021
Night Call has a lovely alt-history setting, infused with steampunk elements, that should provide a rich context to tell atmospheric, noir-ish stories. Sadly the writing is poor and lets the novel down.
It's 1930s New York, which has quite literally been split in two distinct economic parts - a huge platform was built over the city, with all the rich corporations and people now living on top of the Plate, and all the working class people living under it, an artificial day/night cycle being provided by bulbs attached to the underside of the Plate.
There are Automatics, robots that are delineated by the colour of their eye-bulbs - green are the mindless simpletons, blue have their own AI (or Neural Interface) and are heavily distrusted, because they can turn into red-eyes, which means they turn murderous.
Our main character, Elias Roche, is an ex-cop, who somehow still works for the police (the titular 'night calls', which are mentioned at the start of the novel, and only reappear in the last 20 or so pages). Roche hates Automatics. He used to have a blue-eye as a partner.
There's a shoot-out at a bar, cops die, and the red-eyes that gone and done it, don't have Neural Interfaces! No robo-brains, that's impossible!
Of course Roche gets a new robo-partner, a new model Automatic that gets the name Allen. He's your typical robot character, extremely observant except when it comes to human emotions and interactions, etc.
And that's the book's main problem, it all is a bit 'and etc'. You're settling in for a gritty, atmospheric sci-fi-noir, and what you get is a bland, unexciting mystery. The author wastes little time on actually describing anything or anyone. So you have the earlier mentioned Plate - I still have little sense of what it looks like, how it's propped up, how it moves (because it moves!), what it sounds like, does such a huge industrial object not create a constant smell you'd have in the background? Lamps on the Plate simulate day and night, but do they fade on and off? Why even bother with lamps, why not have perpetual night with street lighting, wouldn't that fit the noir part of the setting better? (Another question - why are the robots' eyes colour coded? Can an enterprising gangster not make a seemingly innocent green-eye shoot up a place without it changing bulbs?)
Characters are severely underwritten - Roche barely has a personality, Allen has the standard "what is.. love?" personality. People are described as having an 'average face'. One step away from saying he or she has a human face.
The Roche/Allen relationship should be fun, but they spend an inordinate amount of time apart. Later, another robot friend called Toby helps out - he actually has a personality. Why not use Toby to begin with?
There is exactly one real female character, and she is a background character.
The plot isn't very interesting, which would be fine if I actually cared about the characters. Annoying is that Roche doesn't really solve anything - the antagonists get huge exposition soliloquys, which is especially bad for the main bad guy, who has had no chance to develop a character.
Don't expect any interesting plot twists. The ending holds no surprises.
The plot doesn't even have to be that great, just as long there is a real sense of place, and there are interesting characters. It's always sad to see a good premise go to waste.
(Kindly received an ARC from Dundurn through Edelweiss)
It's 1930s New York, which has quite literally been split in two distinct economic parts - a huge platform was built over the city, with all the rich corporations and people now living on top of the Plate, and all the working class people living under it, an artificial day/night cycle being provided by bulbs attached to the underside of the Plate.
There are Automatics, robots that are delineated by the colour of their eye-bulbs - green are the mindless simpletons, blue have their own AI (or Neural Interface) and are heavily distrusted, because they can turn into red-eyes, which means they turn murderous.
Our main character, Elias Roche, is an ex-cop, who somehow still works for the police (the titular 'night calls', which are mentioned at the start of the novel, and only reappear in the last 20 or so pages). Roche hates Automatics. He used to have a blue-eye as a partner.
There's a shoot-out at a bar, cops die, and the red-eyes that gone and done it, don't have Neural Interfaces! No robo-brains, that's impossible!
Of course Roche gets a new robo-partner, a new model Automatic that gets the name Allen. He's your typical robot character, extremely observant except when it comes to human emotions and interactions, etc.
And that's the book's main problem, it all is a bit 'and etc'. You're settling in for a gritty, atmospheric sci-fi-noir, and what you get is a bland, unexciting mystery. The author wastes little time on actually describing anything or anyone. So you have the earlier mentioned Plate - I still have little sense of what it looks like, how it's propped up, how it moves (because it moves!), what it sounds like, does such a huge industrial object not create a constant smell you'd have in the background? Lamps on the Plate simulate day and night, but do they fade on and off? Why even bother with lamps, why not have perpetual night with street lighting, wouldn't that fit the noir part of the setting better? (Another question - why are the robots' eyes colour coded? Can an enterprising gangster not make a seemingly innocent green-eye shoot up a place without it changing bulbs?)
Characters are severely underwritten - Roche barely has a personality, Allen has the standard "what is.. love?" personality. People are described as having an 'average face'. One step away from saying he or she has a human face.
The Roche/Allen relationship should be fun, but they spend an inordinate amount of time apart. Later, another robot friend called Toby helps out - he actually has a personality. Why not use Toby to begin with?
There is exactly one real female character, and she is a background character.
The plot isn't very interesting, which would be fine if I actually cared about the characters. Annoying is that Roche doesn't really solve anything - the antagonists get huge exposition soliloquys, which is especially bad for the main bad guy, who has had no chance to develop a character.
Don't expect any interesting plot twists. The ending holds no surprises.
The plot doesn't even have to be that great, just as long there is a real sense of place, and there are interesting characters. It's always sad to see a good premise go to waste.
(Kindly received an ARC from Dundurn through Edelweiss)
August 13, 2020
Set in an alternative 1930s New York, a former police officer Roche and his new automatic (robot) partner Allen, need to keep a perilous peace in order to keep war from its streets.
This was a gritty novel. The alternative setting worked quite well, but ultimately it also left me with a lot of questions. Especially about the world above where the super-rich have fled the turmoil that is common New York City. A lot of automatics also to keep track off. Green eye/blue eye/red eye. How autonomous are they? What freedoms do they have?
While the setting was interesting, the noir-ness of the novel didn’t really speak to me, and I don’t think I would read more in the series.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
Find this and other reviews on https://www.urlphantomhive.com
This was a gritty novel. The alternative setting worked quite well, but ultimately it also left me with a lot of questions. Especially about the world above where the super-rich have fled the turmoil that is common New York City. A lot of automatics also to keep track off. Green eye/blue eye/red eye. How autonomous are they? What freedoms do they have?
While the setting was interesting, the noir-ness of the novel didn’t really speak to me, and I don’t think I would read more in the series.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
Find this and other reviews on https://www.urlphantomhive.com
June 24, 2020
I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
DNF'd @ 25%
Night Call by Brenden Carlson sounded like it was going to be great as an alternate 1930s sci-fi noir. I don't know about you, but that should have been exactly up my alley. Unfortunately, I ended up giving this one up. The world-building is very flat, nowhere near as robust as it ought to have been, and the characters voices are the same way. I just wasn't interested in forcing myself to continue on with it.
DNF'd @ 25%
Night Call by Brenden Carlson sounded like it was going to be great as an alternate 1930s sci-fi noir. I don't know about you, but that should have been exactly up my alley. Unfortunately, I ended up giving this one up. The world-building is very flat, nowhere near as robust as it ought to have been, and the characters voices are the same way. I just wasn't interested in forcing myself to continue on with it.
June 24, 2020
Thank you NetGalley for providing me a copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Night Call is a sci-fi murder mystery that takes place in a futuristic version of 1930s New York. The main character, Elias Roche, is an ex-cop turned mafia enforcer. He is called upon when a violent murder is covered by the FBI. He and his new robotic partner, Allen, work together to find who is responsible for the crime.
This book intrigued me for a few reasons:
1. I thought the cover looked very cool.
2. I had never read anything like this before.
So in an attempt to expand my horizons, I picked out this ARC. I had an unsettling feeling in the first few chapters as if I had seen this story before. I soon realized I may have not read anything like Night Call, but I had certainly played a game like this. The plot and themes felt similar to the PlayStation 4 game, Detroit: Become Human. And let me say, I am not fond of that game.
Throughout this book, we see that all of humanity is treated as equals. However, that does not apply to humanity's robotic counterparts. We see themes of racism, classism, and the robots seem to constantly be misgendered in an attempt to dehumanize them. Roche constantly reminds people that the robots are an "It. Not he." The number of times Elias corrected others when they gave pronouns to the robots began to get on my nerves.
I immediately did not like the main character, Elias. While he may have been an ex-cop, the lines were most certainly blurred throughout the book. He was essentially a mercenary hired by the police, but he felt like he was a police officer from the very beginning. There are exhibits of Elias Roche using excessive force and making many other infractions, which is addressed by his partner, Allen. Had I known the main character was like this, I would have definitely not requested this book.
Aside from me not liking Elias Roche, the rest of the characters were very flat and two dimensional. They had little depth and I felt no connection to them at all. Not only was there no connection to the characters, but I barely had a sense of the surroundings. The setting was hardly described throughout the story. Because of this, I had a very hard time being interested in the book. All of these elements made the book forgettable.
Night Call is a sci-fi murder mystery that takes place in a futuristic version of 1930s New York. The main character, Elias Roche, is an ex-cop turned mafia enforcer. He is called upon when a violent murder is covered by the FBI. He and his new robotic partner, Allen, work together to find who is responsible for the crime.
This book intrigued me for a few reasons:
1. I thought the cover looked very cool.
2. I had never read anything like this before.
So in an attempt to expand my horizons, I picked out this ARC. I had an unsettling feeling in the first few chapters as if I had seen this story before. I soon realized I may have not read anything like Night Call, but I had certainly played a game like this. The plot and themes felt similar to the PlayStation 4 game, Detroit: Become Human. And let me say, I am not fond of that game.
Throughout this book, we see that all of humanity is treated as equals. However, that does not apply to humanity's robotic counterparts. We see themes of racism, classism, and the robots seem to constantly be misgendered in an attempt to dehumanize them. Roche constantly reminds people that the robots are an "It. Not he." The number of times Elias corrected others when they gave pronouns to the robots began to get on my nerves.
I immediately did not like the main character, Elias. While he may have been an ex-cop, the lines were most certainly blurred throughout the book. He was essentially a mercenary hired by the police, but he felt like he was a police officer from the very beginning. There are exhibits of Elias Roche using excessive force and making many other infractions, which is addressed by his partner, Allen. Had I known the main character was like this, I would have definitely not requested this book.
Aside from me not liking Elias Roche, the rest of the characters were very flat and two dimensional. They had little depth and I felt no connection to them at all. Not only was there no connection to the characters, but I barely had a sense of the surroundings. The setting was hardly described throughout the story. Because of this, I had a very hard time being interested in the book. All of these elements made the book forgettable.
December 21, 2020
Originally published on my blog: Nonstop Reader.
Night Call is the first in an SF-noir alternate 1930s timeline PI murder mystery series by Brenden Carlson. Released 10th Nov 2020 by Dundurn, it's 336 pages and available in paperback, audio, and ebook formats.
This is an engaging book in a much beloved subgenre. I love the noir vibe. I love the androids and their often fraught interactions with humans. I really enjoyed the darkness (often literal) and desperation of the Lower City of NY. There's a lot of Philip K. Dick and Asimov nuance floating around in the narrative and I really did enjoy reading it. With that being said, the book is not entirely unproblematic. There are several aspects I found myself struggling with. There is -so- much gratuitous violence. The main (human) protagonist Elias Roche murders witnesses, thugs, pretty much everyone, willy nilly. He's a very dangerous guy. I get that it's part of the gritty noir vibe, but in my opinion the author does a superlative job of calling up the mean streets of New York without the superfluous body count. There are very few females mentioned in the entire book (the female director of the FBI makes an appearance), there are some mentions of prostitutes, and various secretaries. Again, the author is adept enough that the omission is certainly intentional to better call up the 1930s noir vibe, but it seemed unnecessary in context.
Other reviewers have done a good job of providing a precis of the plot, so I'll avoid going into details except to say that the denouement was a bit of a letdown given the otherwise generally good buildup. The language is rough overall (and somewhat anachronistic - I'm pretty sure 1930's cops didn't drop the "f" word nearly as often as occurs in this volume).
I enjoyed the characterizations (especially Roche's android partner, Allen). I really really enjoyed the vibe (pitch perfect!). It's not flawless, but it certainly was well written and diverting.
Four stars. I would recommend it unhesitatingly to fans of unredacted Dashiell Hammett, Raymond Chandler, and James M. Cain.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes
Night Call is the first in an SF-noir alternate 1930s timeline PI murder mystery series by Brenden Carlson. Released 10th Nov 2020 by Dundurn, it's 336 pages and available in paperback, audio, and ebook formats.
This is an engaging book in a much beloved subgenre. I love the noir vibe. I love the androids and their often fraught interactions with humans. I really enjoyed the darkness (often literal) and desperation of the Lower City of NY. There's a lot of Philip K. Dick and Asimov nuance floating around in the narrative and I really did enjoy reading it. With that being said, the book is not entirely unproblematic. There are several aspects I found myself struggling with. There is -so- much gratuitous violence. The main (human) protagonist Elias Roche murders witnesses, thugs, pretty much everyone, willy nilly. He's a very dangerous guy. I get that it's part of the gritty noir vibe, but in my opinion the author does a superlative job of calling up the mean streets of New York without the superfluous body count. There are very few females mentioned in the entire book (the female director of the FBI makes an appearance), there are some mentions of prostitutes, and various secretaries. Again, the author is adept enough that the omission is certainly intentional to better call up the 1930s noir vibe, but it seemed unnecessary in context.
Other reviewers have done a good job of providing a precis of the plot, so I'll avoid going into details except to say that the denouement was a bit of a letdown given the otherwise generally good buildup. The language is rough overall (and somewhat anachronistic - I'm pretty sure 1930's cops didn't drop the "f" word nearly as often as occurs in this volume).
I enjoyed the characterizations (especially Roche's android partner, Allen). I really really enjoyed the vibe (pitch perfect!). It's not flawless, but it certainly was well written and diverting.
Four stars. I would recommend it unhesitatingly to fans of unredacted Dashiell Hammett, Raymond Chandler, and James M. Cain.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes
April 20, 2020
Night Call by Brenden Carlson
Summary
Elias Roche is a consulting detective in 1933. He’s been through a world war more partners than he can count. It’s never a good thing when he receives a night call from the police commissioner, and now he’s investigating the slaughter of several police officers by what is called a Red Eye. His new partner is a robot that he has named Allen.
Roche quickly realizes that Allen isn’t your ordinary robot. He is much more intelligent and observant. The two of them quickly realize that this robot who has committed the crime doesn’t have the required neural interface to complete the job. With the help of some of his war buddies, Roche and Allen get to the truth of the matter.
Thoughts
My first thought was that this novel was a perfect combination of an Isaac Asimov novel, a Philip K. Dick novel, and a James Cagney movie. After reading roughly a third of the novel, I contacted the librarian in charge of ordering science fiction and fantasy and insisted she ordered this novel for our shelves.
Elias Roche is not a great person; he doesn’t even like himself. Readers will find themselves cheering Roche on no matter his circumstances, and they will fall in love with his robotic counterpart, Allen, immediately. What’s not to love about a pretentious robot who doesn’t even realize how sassy he is?
This novel was full of well written action and internal conflict. I am already excited for the next installment in this series. I truly applaud Carlson for this beautiful work of fiction he has created.
Thank you to Net Galley for this advanced reading copy.
Summary
Elias Roche is a consulting detective in 1933. He’s been through a world war more partners than he can count. It’s never a good thing when he receives a night call from the police commissioner, and now he’s investigating the slaughter of several police officers by what is called a Red Eye. His new partner is a robot that he has named Allen.
Roche quickly realizes that Allen isn’t your ordinary robot. He is much more intelligent and observant. The two of them quickly realize that this robot who has committed the crime doesn’t have the required neural interface to complete the job. With the help of some of his war buddies, Roche and Allen get to the truth of the matter.
Thoughts
My first thought was that this novel was a perfect combination of an Isaac Asimov novel, a Philip K. Dick novel, and a James Cagney movie. After reading roughly a third of the novel, I contacted the librarian in charge of ordering science fiction and fantasy and insisted she ordered this novel for our shelves.
Elias Roche is not a great person; he doesn’t even like himself. Readers will find themselves cheering Roche on no matter his circumstances, and they will fall in love with his robotic counterpart, Allen, immediately. What’s not to love about a pretentious robot who doesn’t even realize how sassy he is?
This novel was full of well written action and internal conflict. I am already excited for the next installment in this series. I truly applaud Carlson for this beautiful work of fiction he has created.
Thank you to Net Galley for this advanced reading copy.
February 27, 2020
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for hooking me up with an ARC of this!
My Booktube
This is an alternate history science fiction story about the 1930s... but with robots and it is functions basically like a police show. So basically Law & Order: Robot Edition. And it does it very well, as the history was set up in such a way that it felt like everything was explained. Not too far from the divergence that there felt like too much, and so there was enough history that it was basically all recapped to us throughout the story.
That is another thing this book does pretty well, spreading out backstory/world-building throughout the text. It doesn't dump it all on you at once but it is spread out over the course of the story. With certain things being left out so they can be addressed later, which leaves a bit of mystery to certain events until much later. The mechanics behind how/why all this advanced tech works is explained in simple enough terms while still making sense in the grand scheme of things. I never really felt lost which is really impressive for a science fiction novel.
Our MC of Roche felt a bit stereotypical when it comes to detective-esque novels. As he is gruff and does everything his own way and more than a little rough around the edges. BUT, I felt that we are seeing the beginning of character growth for him towards the end. His internal dialogue also does a good enough job of showing us what is beyond his gruff exterior.
My Booktube
This is an alternate history science fiction story about the 1930s... but with robots and it is functions basically like a police show. So basically Law & Order: Robot Edition. And it does it very well, as the history was set up in such a way that it felt like everything was explained. Not too far from the divergence that there felt like too much, and so there was enough history that it was basically all recapped to us throughout the story.
That is another thing this book does pretty well, spreading out backstory/world-building throughout the text. It doesn't dump it all on you at once but it is spread out over the course of the story. With certain things being left out so they can be addressed later, which leaves a bit of mystery to certain events until much later. The mechanics behind how/why all this advanced tech works is explained in simple enough terms while still making sense in the grand scheme of things. I never really felt lost which is really impressive for a science fiction novel.
Our MC of Roche felt a bit stereotypical when it comes to detective-esque novels. As he is gruff and does everything his own way and more than a little rough around the edges. BUT, I felt that we are seeing the beginning of character growth for him towards the end. His internal dialogue also does a good enough job of showing us what is beyond his gruff exterior.
October 21, 2020
This isn't my usual type of book to pick up and read, but I was really happy to get a chance to get to it before everyone else. I really enjoyed the world that was created and the division that is seen. It hit themes that would have been present in that time period but also still relevant today. Throw in some robots and those themes are still there but gives it a special kind of twist.
I really enjoyed the backstory and world that the author created for us. I am very excited to read what happens next!
I really enjoyed the backstory and world that the author created for us. I am very excited to read what happens next!
December 5, 2020
A great read. I bought 2 additional copies for family.
Mr. Carlson has a wicked sense of humour, brilliant writing and great story.
I recommend this to all ages.
This author is definitely one to watch. Hope there are more stories coming!
Good escape.
5 stars
Thank you
Mr. Carlson has a wicked sense of humour, brilliant writing and great story.
I recommend this to all ages.
This author is definitely one to watch. Hope there are more stories coming!
Good escape.
5 stars
Thank you
March 1, 2020
Pretty good overall. The ending was just OK and the main character wasn't very likable. I just didn't stay very engaged with this one. But the author has some talent and hope he continues to write.
Thanks very much for the ARC for review!!
Thanks very much for the ARC for review!!
January 24, 2021
Great read! The world set up is really interesting and has me looking forward to the next books in the series.
April 30, 2020
This one is a sci-fi mystery and crime novel based in the 1930s. Think Men in Black but instead of the Aliens you have the Androids and Robots.
That's what attracted me to the book, it reminded me so much of the In Death series, which In Death series is based in Future, this one is in the Past.
Its 1930s, it's a world of Robot labour and discrimination, free energy, and multicooprations that have all the power. Along with world wide Great Depression going on.
Elias Roche, former police officer turned Mafia enforcer, works to maintain a tenuous peace between the two parties.
"Accustomed to settling disputes with the business end of a gun, Roche must expand his repertoire after a violent murder is covered up by the FBI. With the Mafia insisting they’re innocent of the crime and the police powerless to help, Roche and his new Automatic partner, Allen, must root out those responsible before the situation sparks a war in the city streets."
At first I hated how there was excessive force and undue violence used by Elias. For just about no reason he kills potential witnesses. There is one part where some thugs were trying to rob him and okay he fights them like a pro and all. But he didnt need to kill them. He seems to love breaking the law where it isnt even needed and is very reckless.
All of this btw is later addressed by Allen and we get to know that Elias has some major issues.
The way how Allen takes so much of the stuff literally, brought a little bit of humor into the story. Overall the story was intriguing enough to keep me hooked. The suspense was good enough though the process of the whole reveal caused a bit of confusion.
The world building was very good and I couldn't help but get the Men in Black vibes.
I love the partnership between Elias and Allen. They balance each other perfectly. I'm very curious to know more about Allen and his kind now.
Thank you to the Publisher and Netgalley for providing me with the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
That's what attracted me to the book, it reminded me so much of the In Death series, which In Death series is based in Future, this one is in the Past.
Its 1930s, it's a world of Robot labour and discrimination, free energy, and multicooprations that have all the power. Along with world wide Great Depression going on.
Elias Roche, former police officer turned Mafia enforcer, works to maintain a tenuous peace between the two parties.
"Accustomed to settling disputes with the business end of a gun, Roche must expand his repertoire after a violent murder is covered up by the FBI. With the Mafia insisting they’re innocent of the crime and the police powerless to help, Roche and his new Automatic partner, Allen, must root out those responsible before the situation sparks a war in the city streets."
At first I hated how there was excessive force and undue violence used by Elias. For just about no reason he kills potential witnesses. There is one part where some thugs were trying to rob him and okay he fights them like a pro and all. But he didnt need to kill them. He seems to love breaking the law where it isnt even needed and is very reckless.
All of this btw is later addressed by Allen and we get to know that Elias has some major issues.
The way how Allen takes so much of the stuff literally, brought a little bit of humor into the story. Overall the story was intriguing enough to keep me hooked. The suspense was good enough though the process of the whole reveal caused a bit of confusion.
The world building was very good and I couldn't help but get the Men in Black vibes.
I love the partnership between Elias and Allen. They balance each other perfectly. I'm very curious to know more about Allen and his kind now.
Thank you to the Publisher and Netgalley for providing me with the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
January 5, 2021
This could be the first in a fascinating series but this specific book is lacking that something that makes you say "Wow, great".
It's an entertaining story, i loved the concept and the world building but I think that some more character development would help.
I think there will be more in the next book but this one was an entertaining read but something was missing.
Many thanks to the publisher afor this ARC, all opinions are mine
It's an entertaining story, i loved the concept and the world building but I think that some more character development would help.
I think there will be more in the next book but this one was an entertaining read but something was missing.
Many thanks to the publisher afor this ARC, all opinions are mine
March 25, 2021
Night Call... I read the title and didn’t know what to think. It was one of the new books on my recommended book list and decided to give it a listen too as it was available on the app I listen to my books. (Libby is the app btw.) Night Call isn’t like most of the books I normally read or listen too and was actually really good. I enjoyed it and it was clean besides Roche’s word choice and language at times along with some of his habits but hey who am I to judge a guy (even fictional ones) by their habits. 🤷♀️
Allen was so funny and I loved the guy... errr... robot. He was great and the perfect counter to Roche and his behavior, manners, and ways.
Allen was so funny and I loved the guy... errr... robot. He was great and the perfect counter to Roche and his behavior, manners, and ways.
Read
February 28, 2020I give up, this book has too much testosterone for me. The protagonist has no feelings beside 'love alcohol, guns r cool, I'm tired n hungry'
DNF
DNF
February 23, 2021
Great Read!
September 7, 2022
Nightcall is author Brenden Carslon’s first novel. A chemist in his day job, I met Brenden at a convention where he was discussing aspects of his books. The premise intrigued me and led to the purchase of his first two stories. This is an adult book, but I do not think older teens would have any issues with it. It is a sci-fi film noir tale set in 1933 and I found myself likening it, at least for the setting, to Larry Correia’s Grim Noir adventures. In a lot of ways, this is a classic pulp story with a two-fisted detective out to solve the case but updated for a more sophisticated audience.
The action takes place in New York City, but not the New York we know. Little time is spent on explaining the how, but there is a level of technology that appeared during “The War,” which had morphed into society. There are automatics, robots, of varying levels of ability, there are different energy sources, from Tesla batteries to fuel gels and there are some pretty nasty weapons too. There are augmentations available that turn some people into cyborgs, but all in a 1930s version of the future type of way. Most interesting, is the author making the past a little dystopian. Here, there is a floating upper city directly above the lower city, which has most of its sunlight blocked by the enormous plate overhead. Of course, the haves are topside.
The hero of the piece, Elias Roche, is a war veteran who works both sides of the law. A former cop he now contracts to both a local station, the 51st precinct. It is described as, “Terrible pay, horrible hours, and the constant threat of getting a bullet in the head aside, this precinct is one of the best environments I’ve ever been in.” He also works for the mob. Strangely, neither side seems to mind as he gets the job done. He is a hard-boiled type with dialogue as you would expect: “I arrived, my weapon in my right hand now, and I lifted it as I braced myself against the cool brick. All seven .38 rounds were ready to find places to park themselves. I pulled the hammer back, hearing the mechanisms inside switch. Just like a cowboy gun: single-action, but for speed.”
As he is a shoot first, ask questions later kind of guy, the precinct commander assigns him an automatic as a partner. This one is a “Blue Eyes,” but is special and is far more capable than the normal version. Initially rebelling at the notion, Roche begins to accept his new partner, whom he names Allen. “The machine was sitting the passenger seat. Any other cop who’d come to investigate would’ve booked Jaegar, case closed. If I’d come alone, there would have been a corpse.” They then set out to solve a cop-killing case that soon morphs into much more. I got a kick out of the corporate overlord, GE! They take the old slogan, “GE, we bring good things to life,” to an entirely new level!
This book is a breath of fresh air on a tired genre. For fans of the old pulps, there was lots to like, but they were of a time and often featured one dimensional characters and little in the way of development. Carlson invigorates his world with a lead protagonist plagued with self doubts, who is on a slow process of self-destruction, and with an unresolved issue that manifests as the book moves forward. His assigned conscience, Allen, serves to guide him through these muddied waters while experiencing growth on his own. The science is not overdone, rather it is just there and meshes nicely with the old-world sensibilities. There is a lot of violence and Roche will not be winning any merit badges, but then that is what this type of novel is all about. Gutsy, grimy, and set in a world of grey morals, this book succeeds in what it was trying to do. The two genres, pulp detective and science fiction are blended effortlessly and provide entertainment for lovers of either genre.
The action takes place in New York City, but not the New York we know. Little time is spent on explaining the how, but there is a level of technology that appeared during “The War,” which had morphed into society. There are automatics, robots, of varying levels of ability, there are different energy sources, from Tesla batteries to fuel gels and there are some pretty nasty weapons too. There are augmentations available that turn some people into cyborgs, but all in a 1930s version of the future type of way. Most interesting, is the author making the past a little dystopian. Here, there is a floating upper city directly above the lower city, which has most of its sunlight blocked by the enormous plate overhead. Of course, the haves are topside.
The hero of the piece, Elias Roche, is a war veteran who works both sides of the law. A former cop he now contracts to both a local station, the 51st precinct. It is described as, “Terrible pay, horrible hours, and the constant threat of getting a bullet in the head aside, this precinct is one of the best environments I’ve ever been in.” He also works for the mob. Strangely, neither side seems to mind as he gets the job done. He is a hard-boiled type with dialogue as you would expect: “I arrived, my weapon in my right hand now, and I lifted it as I braced myself against the cool brick. All seven .38 rounds were ready to find places to park themselves. I pulled the hammer back, hearing the mechanisms inside switch. Just like a cowboy gun: single-action, but for speed.”
As he is a shoot first, ask questions later kind of guy, the precinct commander assigns him an automatic as a partner. This one is a “Blue Eyes,” but is special and is far more capable than the normal version. Initially rebelling at the notion, Roche begins to accept his new partner, whom he names Allen. “The machine was sitting the passenger seat. Any other cop who’d come to investigate would’ve booked Jaegar, case closed. If I’d come alone, there would have been a corpse.” They then set out to solve a cop-killing case that soon morphs into much more. I got a kick out of the corporate overlord, GE! They take the old slogan, “GE, we bring good things to life,” to an entirely new level!
This book is a breath of fresh air on a tired genre. For fans of the old pulps, there was lots to like, but they were of a time and often featured one dimensional characters and little in the way of development. Carlson invigorates his world with a lead protagonist plagued with self doubts, who is on a slow process of self-destruction, and with an unresolved issue that manifests as the book moves forward. His assigned conscience, Allen, serves to guide him through these muddied waters while experiencing growth on his own. The science is not overdone, rather it is just there and meshes nicely with the old-world sensibilities. There is a lot of violence and Roche will not be winning any merit badges, but then that is what this type of novel is all about. Gutsy, grimy, and set in a world of grey morals, this book succeeds in what it was trying to do. The two genres, pulp detective and science fiction are blended effortlessly and provide entertainment for lovers of either genre.
May 22, 2020
Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a free e-copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
2.25 stars rounded down to 2.
I'm a big fan of Blade Runner. When I saw Night Call, I thought it would provide me with the same: an action-packed detective noir with androids and morally gray characters. I didn't expect much philosophy, but I thought it would be loads of fun. Gangsters in 1930s alternate New York? You know you've got me.
Unfortunately, the novel quickly loses its charm. The fun is all flash; one moment you're dazzled, and then the next you realize there's nothing concrete behind it. Just smoke.
I really did enjoy the worldbuilding in this novel. It's got a retrofuturistic feel, like it's straight out of the sixties. Things aren't explained too in depth but I liked the ideas. There are different types of robots (Automatics), and the ones with the most advanced AI are shunned because they have a penchant for violence.
In the beginning, I enjoyed the action scenes too. But they also felt... meaningless. What are the deeper stakes? I don't know. Just keep running and shooting. This felt like a B-movie in those aspects.
The plot is your standard murder mystery with a sci-fi twist. A rogue Automatic has killed a restaurant full of people... but wait, his brains were pulled out! That's impossible! Who programmed him into doing such a thing? And even though there were established consequences, I couldn't feel the urgency or gravity of the plotline. Things weren't interesting to make me want to read more. The pacing was super weird too.
Which leads me to my next issue: the characters. I get it, you know. Old-school noir and murder mysteries are often more plot-focused than character-focused, so you get a big chunk of flat characters with super basic motives. But if your plot is boring, then your characters have to at least be interesting to make up for it, and Night Call unfortunately didn't manage that. Does that sound harsh? Well, maybe I'm too used to contemporary thrillers that manage to have twisty mysteries and complex character psychology at the same time.
The protagonist, Elias, is your average tough guy. He's an ex-cop who freelances for the police because he isn't afraid to get his hands dirty. He's biased against Automatics and lives a fast and hard existence of working (shooting and getting shot at), drinking, and gambling. And then one day, he's put on a case where his partner is an Automatic. Gasp! Allen, his robot partner, is hyper-intelligent but naive.
Yeah, you've read this story before. And that's not necessarily a bad thing. But Allen and Elias don't have a fun relationship like you'd expect out of buddy cop flicks. It's just... strained. And forced.
Oh, and there are no significant female characters. So I'm removing a star just for that.
TL;DR No.
2.25 stars rounded down to 2.
I'm a big fan of Blade Runner. When I saw Night Call, I thought it would provide me with the same: an action-packed detective noir with androids and morally gray characters. I didn't expect much philosophy, but I thought it would be loads of fun. Gangsters in 1930s alternate New York? You know you've got me.
Unfortunately, the novel quickly loses its charm. The fun is all flash; one moment you're dazzled, and then the next you realize there's nothing concrete behind it. Just smoke.
I really did enjoy the worldbuilding in this novel. It's got a retrofuturistic feel, like it's straight out of the sixties. Things aren't explained too in depth but I liked the ideas. There are different types of robots (Automatics), and the ones with the most advanced AI are shunned because they have a penchant for violence.
In the beginning, I enjoyed the action scenes too. But they also felt... meaningless. What are the deeper stakes? I don't know. Just keep running and shooting. This felt like a B-movie in those aspects.
The plot is your standard murder mystery with a sci-fi twist. A rogue Automatic has killed a restaurant full of people... but wait, his brains were pulled out! That's impossible! Who programmed him into doing such a thing? And even though there were established consequences, I couldn't feel the urgency or gravity of the plotline. Things weren't interesting to make me want to read more. The pacing was super weird too.
Which leads me to my next issue: the characters. I get it, you know. Old-school noir and murder mysteries are often more plot-focused than character-focused, so you get a big chunk of flat characters with super basic motives. But if your plot is boring, then your characters have to at least be interesting to make up for it, and Night Call unfortunately didn't manage that. Does that sound harsh? Well, maybe I'm too used to contemporary thrillers that manage to have twisty mysteries and complex character psychology at the same time.
The protagonist, Elias, is your average tough guy. He's an ex-cop who freelances for the police because he isn't afraid to get his hands dirty. He's biased against Automatics and lives a fast and hard existence of working (shooting and getting shot at), drinking, and gambling. And then one day, he's put on a case where his partner is an Automatic. Gasp! Allen, his robot partner, is hyper-intelligent but naive.
Yeah, you've read this story before. And that's not necessarily a bad thing. But Allen and Elias don't have a fun relationship like you'd expect out of buddy cop flicks. It's just... strained. And forced.
Oh, and there are no significant female characters. So I'm removing a star just for that.
TL;DR No.
October 17, 2020
This read like a cheesy '80s cop movie. If that's what you're looking for, you will love this. The main character is a swearing drinker who doesn't care if civilians get in the way at a shoot out. I don't think the setting was very accurate, other then occurring after a potential recession/war and speakeasies being littered throughout, there was nothing '30s about this book. There was slang used constantly that reads more like current day, and of course the technology was more advanced.
There is some pretty cool worldbuilding here, but it gets dumped in conversation at the strangest moments. Like we go from one person that is doing something intense that is moving the plot along, then someone else is having a conversation about someone's past or how the world works for a few pages. And it's not like the worldbuilding seemed pertinent at the time either. I was just not a fan of how it was delivered.
Especially because some parts of the world were told to us explicitly, then there was so much that was never really explained. For example, the big bad they have to fight is a type of machine/human that I don't remember getting told about until they are battling it and the main character has to explain what it is to someone else.
The last thing that bothered me, is that there is a lot of discussion in this book with the lowered status of Automatics, and how they are second class citizens. It sort of leads in the direction that the main characters don't really agree with this. Then they have an Automatic kill another Automatic, followed by a human/machine guy, then only get distraught that he killed the human. He was so hung up on the fact that he murdered a person but doesn't even mention that he just as quickly murdered another Automatic. Not to mention the main character's last action is to obliterate the technology powering his old friend to "make sure he was really dead". So I don't know we should actually be feeling bad for second class Automatics because it appears they aren't really humans.
But it was a fun book if I just pushed through these things. Thank you to goodreads giveaways for giving me this book.
There is some pretty cool worldbuilding here, but it gets dumped in conversation at the strangest moments. Like we go from one person that is doing something intense that is moving the plot along, then someone else is having a conversation about someone's past or how the world works for a few pages. And it's not like the worldbuilding seemed pertinent at the time either. I was just not a fan of how it was delivered.
Especially because some parts of the world were told to us explicitly, then there was so much that was never really explained. For example, the big bad they have to fight is a type of machine/human that I don't remember getting told about until they are battling it and the main character has to explain what it is to someone else.
The last thing that bothered me, is that there is a lot of discussion in this book with the lowered status of Automatics, and how they are second class citizens. It sort of leads in the direction that the main characters don't really agree with this. Then they have an Automatic kill another Automatic, followed by a human/machine guy, then only get distraught that he killed the human. He was so hung up on the fact that he murdered a person but doesn't even mention that he just as quickly murdered another Automatic. Not to mention the main character's last action is to obliterate the technology powering his old friend to "make sure he was really dead". So I don't know we should actually be feeling bad for second class Automatics because it appears they aren't really humans.
But it was a fun book if I just pushed through these things. Thank you to goodreads giveaways for giving me this book.
July 7, 2020
**I was provided an electronic ARC from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for honest review.**
Brenden Carlson's Night Call is the start of a series following Elias Roche, former cop now Mafia enforcer. Set in an alternate history 1930s New York where robotics are commonplace assets, Elias is saddled with an Automatic partner as he investigates the murder of multiple cops and why the FBI is covering it up.
I was very much intrigued by this premise of a scifi noir in the 30s Mafia era. I think the characters Carlson introduced were compelling, and the concepts of the way Carlson's alternative New York worked and looked were very intriguing. I actually really liked Elias, Sinclair, Toby, and Allen.
What worked against this novel was the pacing. I was expecting something high-octane and fast-paced, but found the entirety of the novel to be consistently slow going. Especially for a murder mystery with near-constant danger, I was surprised and a little disappointed that I never felt that edge-of-your-seat anticipation that I had been hoping for.
Overall, there is a lot of room for Carlson to expand this world and I would be interested in continuing the series.
Brenden Carlson's Night Call is the start of a series following Elias Roche, former cop now Mafia enforcer. Set in an alternate history 1930s New York where robotics are commonplace assets, Elias is saddled with an Automatic partner as he investigates the murder of multiple cops and why the FBI is covering it up.
I was very much intrigued by this premise of a scifi noir in the 30s Mafia era. I think the characters Carlson introduced were compelling, and the concepts of the way Carlson's alternative New York worked and looked were very intriguing. I actually really liked Elias, Sinclair, Toby, and Allen.
What worked against this novel was the pacing. I was expecting something high-octane and fast-paced, but found the entirety of the novel to be consistently slow going. Especially for a murder mystery with near-constant danger, I was surprised and a little disappointed that I never felt that edge-of-your-seat anticipation that I had been hoping for.
Overall, there is a lot of room for Carlson to expand this world and I would be interested in continuing the series.
June 29, 2021
There's too much going on in this novel; it was making my head spin. Carlson has created a world in the 'noir' style 1930's, but with robots (and with 5 different kinds too - it was hard to fully distinguish between them). There's also a bit of social commentary woven through the story. For instance, the "haves" live on the Plate and the "have nots" live under it; much of the city is run by a very large (and familiar) corporation; the robots have levels of conscienceness that determines how they are treated and the jobs they do.
Add to that a Noir-ish mystery involving the murder of several policeofficers and couple of robots that may or may not involve the mob.
Add to that a missing component in the robot at the scene of the murders that is another mystery.
It's a complex, interesting and compelling world Carlson has built. I know the sequel is due next month and I'll read that one to see where he's going with the characters.
Add to that a Noir-ish mystery involving the murder of several policeofficers and couple of robots that may or may not involve the mob.
Add to that a missing component in the robot at the scene of the murders that is another mystery.
It's a complex, interesting and compelling world Carlson has built. I know the sequel is due next month and I'll read that one to see where he's going with the characters.
January 10, 2021
In an alternate reality where technology has advanced much more quickly than in our own (due in part, at least, to Tesla winning the energy wars), a hardened detective works freelance for the NYPD with an synthetic (a robot of new design). The case they’re investigating has them scratching their heads when automatics (scaled down and pacified versions of the machines built to help win the First World War) take the lives of some cops on the take.
This book was slightly derivative of Asimov’s Robot Series (which is a bit synchronicitous as I just finished those books) but had the gritty backdrop of the 1930s and all its hardships. The alternate reality was rich and the evolution of metal men was interesting.
I may not finish the series, but I enjoyed this one.
This book was slightly derivative of Asimov’s Robot Series (which is a bit synchronicitous as I just finished those books) but had the gritty backdrop of the 1930s and all its hardships. The alternate reality was rich and the evolution of metal men was interesting.
I may not finish the series, but I enjoyed this one.
February 1, 2021
This book is a cross between classic early 1900 detective novels and futuristic science fiction. It is a story about a a detective and his robot partner who are trying to prevent a war between the NYPD and the mafia after a murder occurs. While the concept is an interesting twist on your standard detective story fare I was not able to get that far into the story, as I had a hard time with the writing style of the book. The flow of the writing did not work for me and that made it impossible to follow the characters or immerse myself in the story. I eventually had to put the book down and walk about about two chapters in. If it sounds like a story you might enjoy I would definitely recommend giving it a try since my inability to read it is due to a personal preference in writing style!
February 22, 2023
Content Warnings: Murder, Injury, Racism, PTSD flashbacks, Loss of a close friend, blackmail, manipulation
Theming and societal issues are almost identical to the video game Detroit Become Human.
EDIT AFTER READING BOOK 2: I do have additional notes to say about book 1 now I've finished book 2. They will be at the bottom of this review.
So this was just more adventures from Hank and Connor from Detroit Become Human lmao. Exactly the same kinda characters (just if Hank was a fair bit more asshole-ish and arrogant), same character arcs, and same overall society mostly. But surprisingly this didn't really detract from the book? I kinda quite enjoyed imagining this was just Hank and Connor honestly, more adventures with the 2 of 'em.
The character of Roache (aka Hank) though could do with being a tad less aggressive and confrontational and for the love of god he obsesses over pronouns more than damn TERFs lmao. After the first couple "corrections" to the robots' pronouns, I started to physically roll my eyes and audibly sigh because of how stupid it was.
Allen was fun though. A different kind of robot, one who is a lot more human than many others in the world. More Connor-type robots in this setting is always nice, someone level-headed, smart but sarcastic and has great chemistry.
I'd heard this book mentioned as steam punk, but despite some vague elements of that I'm not sure I'd file it under that. It's a bit more electronic than steam, but it's a fun setting regardless. The classism of how the city is separated, how it became separated in the first place, etc is quite interesting.
Writing style isn't my favourite, very gun detail orientated, not too descriptive, very "main character" energy from Roache and his constant correcting people and "above thou" attitude. Pacing is not bad though and the ending ties up enough for this to stand on its own, but leaves enough for a want to read the next one.
But yeah, if you liked Hank and Connor from Detroit, you'll like this.
EDIT AFTER READING BOOK 2: Please, give this book a chance as essentially every single negative I had here was perfectly cleared up in book 2. This book attempted to find it's footing, book 2 absolutely found it and gripped in damn hard. Characters are so much well rounded, the world building was wonderful and I grew to love the cast of characters SO much. Please, give this series a chance if the premise is at all interesting to you.
Theming and societal issues are almost identical to the video game Detroit Become Human.
EDIT AFTER READING BOOK 2: I do have additional notes to say about book 1 now I've finished book 2. They will be at the bottom of this review.
So this was just more adventures from Hank and Connor from Detroit Become Human lmao. Exactly the same kinda characters (just if Hank was a fair bit more asshole-ish and arrogant), same character arcs, and same overall society mostly. But surprisingly this didn't really detract from the book? I kinda quite enjoyed imagining this was just Hank and Connor honestly, more adventures with the 2 of 'em.
The character of Roache (aka Hank) though could do with being a tad less aggressive and confrontational and for the love of god he obsesses over pronouns more than damn TERFs lmao. After the first couple "corrections" to the robots' pronouns, I started to physically roll my eyes and audibly sigh because of how stupid it was.
Allen was fun though. A different kind of robot, one who is a lot more human than many others in the world. More Connor-type robots in this setting is always nice, someone level-headed, smart but sarcastic and has great chemistry.
I'd heard this book mentioned as steam punk, but despite some vague elements of that I'm not sure I'd file it under that. It's a bit more electronic than steam, but it's a fun setting regardless. The classism of how the city is separated, how it became separated in the first place, etc is quite interesting.
Writing style isn't my favourite, very gun detail orientated, not too descriptive, very "main character" energy from Roache and his constant correcting people and "above thou" attitude. Pacing is not bad though and the ending ties up enough for this to stand on its own, but leaves enough for a want to read the next one.
But yeah, if you liked Hank and Connor from Detroit, you'll like this.
EDIT AFTER READING BOOK 2: Please, give this book a chance as essentially every single negative I had here was perfectly cleared up in book 2. This book attempted to find it's footing, book 2 absolutely found it and gripped in damn hard. Characters are so much well rounded, the world building was wonderful and I grew to love the cast of characters SO much. Please, give this series a chance if the premise is at all interesting to you.
October 4, 2020
*Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a free copy in exchange of an honest review.*
It's a solid 3 stars, maybe 3 and 1/3.
Let's begin by saying this was not my cup of tea. I thought it would have been more scifi than a cop book, and the constant use of overplayed cop-show clichés was a bit off putting: oh, the never-heard-of trope of the tired cop, who's a good cop with loose morals and methods who is so not like the bad cops and has a tragic past.
Nevertheless, the world-building was very interesting and the story compelling.
It's a solid 3 stars, maybe 3 and 1/3.
Let's begin by saying this was not my cup of tea. I thought it would have been more scifi than a cop book, and the constant use of overplayed cop-show clichés was a bit off putting: oh, the never-heard-of trope of the tired cop, who's a good cop with loose morals and methods who is so not like the bad cops and has a tragic past.
Nevertheless, the world-building was very interesting and the story compelling.
January 26, 2021
An interesting altered history. We're back in the great depression, but all the science fiction androids we saw as fiction in our reality have been written as actual. I enjoyed that part of the book.
The rest was kind of ordinary. A crabby older cop gets stuck with a partner (android) he doesn't want but who turns out to be good for him.
The rest was kind of ordinary. A crabby older cop gets stuck with a partner (android) he doesn't want but who turns out to be good for him.
August 31, 2022
Nearly didn't finish. I liked the idea of the 'world' of Night Call but was confused at first by jumping into it with little explanation or world building. I decided to give it a chance and did finish but it really never grabbed me. There was so much left unexplained that I never really cared about who did it or why.
October 25, 2020
Strange book. Wanted to put it down many times but decided to keep reading to see how it all came together.
Should have put it down when I had wanted to. Poor writing and difficult to follow. Watch out for the robots!
Should have put it down when I had wanted to. Poor writing and difficult to follow. Watch out for the robots!
April 3, 2023
A very interesting setting, and I like that the author is willing to let us work some things out by ourselves with out feeding us the answers for everything. also there are still questions i'd like thr answers for that I hope we get to find out in later books.
September 20, 2025
I enjoyed this book about a detective who works alongside robots. It feels like it should be sent in the future, but it was actually set in the early 1900s. This is the first thing a series of three and I would enjoy reading the other two if they were along the same lines.
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