The Disappearance of Adele Bedeau, by Raymond Brunet, trans. By Graeme Macrae Burnet. Arcade Publishing, 2017

Obviously this is a work of fiction, but it goes further than you’d think at first glance. The translator’s afterword states that Brunet (how close to Burnet that is!) wrote the book in 1982 and it became a cult hit and later, a film. Brunet’s life is given in short form. But this is illusion; there was never any Brunet. He is as fictitious as Adele Bedeau and the others in the story.

Adele is on the stage very little in this short novel. The two main characters are Manfred Baumann, a banker, and Inspector Gorski, of the local PD. Baumann is a regular customer at the café where Adele works. When she disappears, Gorski at first does not suspect Baumann. But Baumann, an introvert with no social aptitude, no love life, no hobbies, and no friends, lies about having seen her the night she was last seen. It’s a harmless lie; he has nothing to do with her vanishing. But once he’s lied, he finds himself getting deeper and deeper into a web of falsehood, until his nerves give way. Inspector Gorski, meanwhile, discovers information about a case that’s haunted him for 20 years. The ending has a couple of twists.

It’s a bleak story, set in a small town that’s not doing well. No one is happy. It’s an interesting story, but one that gave me a bad feeling. It’s not a fun read, but it is a well done one. What’s weird is that I had the feeling that I’d read some version of this before- many years before. No idea where that idea came from! Four stars out of five.

The above is an affiliate link. If you click through and buy something- anything- from Amazon, they will give me a few cents. 

I received this book free from the Amazon Vine program in return for an unbiased review. 

Neither of these things influenced my review.  

 

Black City Saint, by Richard A. Knaak. Pyr, 2016

You could call this book historical urban fantasy noir. Set in Chicago in the 1920s, the narrator is a sort of exorcist. He puts ads in papers that only those who need him can see, then goes and removes the ghosts and demons that are haunting them. His unusualness goes beyond this, though; his body is host to the dragon that he slew 1,600 years ago- he is, in fact, Saint George. He and the dragon share an uneasy alliance. Also, he is the guardian of the gate that separates our world from that of Feirie. His companion is a shapeshifter who can no longer shift, trapped in his canine form.

The hero finds himself set up against Oberon, long exiled from Feirie. Oberon plans on taking over again, conquering his former mate Titania. This will drag our world into the the fight, something Nick, the protagonist, must stop at all costs. He finds himself fighting demons, speaking with the ghost of the Emperor who ordered his execution, trying to avoid bootleggers and Al Capone’s gang members, trying to protect a woman from his past who won’t agree to stay where it’s supposed to be safe, and battling with magically enhanced goons before actually getting into it with Oberon.

Nick narrates almost like your typical hard-boiled noir detective, except he’s frequently talking about magical things. The pace moves quickly and never lets up; Nick can’t even sit down to rest without the house turning into something else or demons coming to the door. There is a lot we don’t find out about Nick, Claryce- she really doesn’t get a chance to develop her character-, Fetch, and the ghost of the Emperor Deocletian; the ending leaves it possible that there will be a sequel. I would definitely read a sequel; I liked the characters (particularly Fetch the shapeshifter) and like the era. It’s fast and fun. 

The above is an affiliate link. If you click through and buy something- anything- Amazon will give me a few cents. 

I received this book free from the Amazon Vine program in return for a review. 

Neither of these things influenced my review.