Book Review: The Masquerades of Spring by Ben Aaronovich

The Masquerades of Spring
Author: Ben Aaronovich
Series: Rivers of London
Publication: Subterranean Pr; Deluxe edition (September 30, 2024)

Description: Meet Augustus Berrycloth-Young—fop, flaneur, and Englishman abroad—as he chronicles the Jazz Age from his perch atop the city that never sleeps.

That is, until his old friend Thomas Nightingale arrives, pursuing a rather mysterious affair concerning an old saxophone—which will take Gussie from his warm bed, to the cold shores of Long Island, and down to the jazz clubs where music, magic, and madness haunt the shadows…

My Thoughts: This was a fun novella. Related to the Rivers of London series by protagonist Thomas Nightingale, it takes place in New York in the 1920s.

The narrator of the story is Augustus Berrycloth-Young. He's a graduate of the Folly. He used magic mainly for practical jokes which caused him to live England and relocate to New York City. He's a homosexual having a relationship with a Black reporter. He's a jazz fan. He's a sharp dresser. 

His comfortable lifestyle is interrupted by the arrival of Thomas Nightingale who has come to do a favor for a friend. A cursed saxophone leads to an imprisoned member of the fae and her daughter who are in need of rescue. 

Gussie, his beau Lucy, and Thomas tour lots of jazz age sites and events in their quest to rescue the imprisoned. 

I enjoyed the setting and I really liked Gussie as the story was told from his point of view. 

I bought this one January 17. You can buy your copy here.