Something from the Nightside

Something from the Nightside introduces John Taylor, private eye, who left the strange supernatural version of London known as the Nightside five years ago where he was constantly avoiding assassination attempts, for some mysterious reason. Now he is back to find a missing teenager for a client,and in typical knight errant private eye style risks his life in very dangerous places to locate the girl using his mystical talent as a Finder. Good fun,often gruesome (he goes through time to a place where there are nothing but revolting insects. I wont describe what they are doing to the last supernatural being, or what John Taylor has to do.... (shudder)....) The writing tends to be a bit awkward with large chunks of exposition to explain the setting etc, but the Nightside, where it is always 3 am and all sorts of creatures go for pleasure and entertaintment however perverse, is an interesting concept. Allusions to Taylor's mother who disappeared from his life as a child and, it is whispered,isnt human, lures the reader on to read more in the series since people seem to want to kill him to prevent him searching for her,and there are dire warnings about the catastrophy that will occur in the world if he does look for her Engaging light fun. I always enjoy this subgenre of noir detectives with a supernatural twist. Not as well written as Jim Butcher, Mike Carey, Ben Aaronovitch, but still a pleasant read.