Matthew Swift is a sorcerer of the streets, killed and resurrected in his debut novel A Madness of Angels, he is now more than what he once was. At the outset of the second novel featuring Swift – The Midnight Mayor – Swift is the number one suspect in the murder of the titular character. The Midnight Mayor, you see, is something Swift didn’t believe existed. Unfortunately for Swift, the Mayor is real and more of a title and, as a result of the Midnight Mayor’s death, the title was passed onto Swift. Things proceed to get worse for our sorcerous protagonist.
Although this is the second novel in the series, Griffin provides an inviting enough entrance to the world for this novel to work on its own. Background about Swift’s trials and tribulations in the first installment come through the narrative, which was great for me because five years (!) have passed since I read A Madness of Angels.
Much of the narrative in The Midnight Mayor involves Swift running from dark supernatural creatures, like specters, while trying to figure out the how, why, and who of the creature responsible for his predicament. As the newly anointed Mayor, Swift finds himself with new, uncomfortable allies – the Aldermen who functioned as foils when we first met Matthew in the previous volume. The primary reason for the Mayor and Alderman’s existence is to protect the city from all dark and supernatural creatures who prey along its streets. For most of his existence prior to the novel, the Alderman thought of Swift as a creature against whom London needed protecting. With the chaos thrown into life as a result of Swift’s Mayoral ascension, the time is perfect for a monstrosity bearing the title of Death of Cities to manifest and take advantage of the situation. So, as Mayor, it is Swift’s duty to quell this threat.
Unfortunately for Swift, he is not alone on this quest to save the city and solve the mystery of his situation. A woman named Oda is also seeking to vanquish the Death of Cities, but that serves more of her overall goal of quashing any and all things magic/supernatural. Swift and Oda make for an uneasy alliance, but much of their banter (for lack of a better term) made for some strong, humorous exchanges throughout the novel which counterbalanced the pending sense of doom at the heart of their “mission.” This lent a bit of a “buddy cop feel” feel to the story and made for a fairly well-paced novel.
Building on the magical elements in the previous installment, Griffin continues to flesh out a world of Urban Magic whose power can be evoked with the right words, said after the correct fashion. In a sense, her magic is through a language of power, giving the sorcerer control over his surroundings. It is a logical posit Griffin evokes in her magic and the simplicity of her magical conceit is, dare I say, elegant?
While I think The Midnight Mayor is a worthy sequel as Griffin builds the story of Matthew Swift, I found myself unable to connect with the narrative consistently from beginning to end. Based on how much I enjoyed the first novel, I’m chalking that un-connectivity to something on my part. Sometimes the reader is at fault when the book doesn’t work. On the surface of the book and what Griffin is laying out for this character and her world of Urban Magic, this is a successful sequel and worthy of recommendation.
© 2014 Rob H. Bedford
Matthew Swift #2
http://www.kategriffin.net/
Orbit Books, February 2011
Mass Market Paperback ISBN: 978-0-316-04123-2
Review copy purchased
Review of A Madness of Angels
Was it the delay between reading the books, maybe?
I don’t think it was the delay, Griffin did a very good job of catching me up with the situation. I think it was a combination of it being the book I read after finishing one that left a very strong impression on me and perhaps anticipating my next read.
I’ve found that to be the case with a lot of books I read, which is why I often have to wait so long between books. That whole book-hangover thing.