Winter's Gifts: The Brand New Rivers Of London Novella

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Damit ist sie in ihrem Büro in New Orleans nun eine der anerkannten Spezialist*innen und als ein Ex-Agent einen Fall mit möglichen magischen Komponenten meldet, begibt sie sich zur Sondierung nach Eloise, wo sie mitten in den Nachwehen eines unerwarteten Tornados landet, der unter anderem die Polizeistation vernichtet hat. Und der fragliche Ex-Kollege scheint von seltsam verkleideten Unbekannten entführt worden zu sein. But probably it was the audiobook format. For some reason, audio was the only format I could get this (recently-published) book in my US library system. Audio is my least favorite medium for books, so it had that going against it with me. Schnell führen ihre Ermittlungen Kimberley auf die Spur einer vor mehr als einem Jahrhundert verschwundenen Expedition amerikanischer Praktizierender - und eines genius loci. It didn't seem to me that there was enough to Kimberly Reynolds to lift the story up. Part of the problem is that she has no magical abilities of her own to call on so she can't do the things that Peter or even Abigail might do in London. We learn very little about her as an individual except that she avoids swearing and she is a practising Christian who has accepted Jesus Christ as her saviour. What we don't learn is how she squares her religious beliefs with her experiences with magic users. Unlike Peter Grant, she seems incurious about what magic is and how it works. Interacting with various Genus Loci at home and abroad has left her unfazed but I kept wondering why that was. It reminded me of an Avengers meme: Improper use of American English. It’s a parka not a parker, it’s a handgun not a pistol, etc. The mistakes are obvious and jarring. Part of this is on the sub-par audiobook narrator, but not all.

Alternatively, he'll love the DOIY Designer Cheese Board Set. It's got everything he needs to set up a tasty antipasto platter, except for the cheeses, meats, anchovies, and olives. What are some good gifts for people who are always cold? Humour based on social commentary or self-deprecation? Nah - it's a novella. We don't have the space. And besides, this is America, their humour is different. Although FBI Agent Kimberley Reynolds has worked with Peter Grant from time to time since she helped him investigate the fatal stabbing of a US Senator's son in 'Whispers Under Ground', 'Winter's Gifts' is the first book with her as the main character. For example, she constantly starts preachy sentences with “My mama says” and complains about blasphemy (her word) when people around her swear. It’s grating, especially since nobody over the age of 9 and under the age of 75 talks like that. Make that 95. Seriously, if I met this person on a first date, I’d make an excuse and escape through the bathroom window - what adult talks that much about their mother outside of therapy?

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Something terrible is awakening. As the clues lead to the coldest of cold cases – a cursed expedition into the frozen wilderness – Reynolds follows a trail from the start of the American nightmare, to the horror that still lives on today… Accents aside, the narration was fine, but... it could have been better. (I just read a review saying that all the male characters sounded like Barney Rubble for some reason. Ha.) I guess Kimberly is supposed to be from the midwest (wait, or Oklahoma? Does Aaronovitch think that Oklahoma is the Midwest? And wouldn't someone from the state with such a large Native population maybe, you know, know more about the stories of Native Peoples in this country? It kind of helps with the use of "momma" though.) And the British narrator apparently grew up in the US? It's funny how much these details matter, and yes I think there SHOULD have been a beta reader. That person is FBI Special Agent Kimberley Reynolds. Leaving Quantico for snowbound Northern Wisconsin, she finds that a tornado has flattened half the town - and there’s no sign of Henderson. Ben Aaronovitch’s Rivers of London crosses the Atlantic with Winter’s Gifts, the fourth novella in this hugely popular series. Not only is this the first time the series has ventured to America though, with FBI agent Kimberley Reynolds stepping into the spotlight for her own story, but it’s also the first time the series has really delved into the realm of the horror story. It’s a classic horror setup – a small town in Wisconsin, snow blanketing the ground and cutting off access, a missing man, locals hiding secrets, and a lone FBI agent trying to piece together a mystery which might involve a lost 19th century expedition, while dealing with the inimical weather and a lurking darkness (which inevitably steps out of the shadows soon enough). I have to say, though, that compared to the Peter Grant books, this one feels muted to me, as if while writing Aaronovitch constantly had the worry, "Can I write this without bringing hordes of rabid Americans down on my head?" I grew up in the USA, und zwar, in the northern USA near the Great Lakes, so I too had a thought like that in mind as I read. And I am here to say that Aaronovitch gets it mostly right -- nothing really feels off. (But remember, I'm reading a German translation.) Now, this caution is very different from the feel of the books set in London. London is Aaronovitch's patch, and he knows when he can and should transgress. I surmise that he doesn't dare transgress in an American story.

Something spooky is going down in Wisconsin of all places. As seemingly the only X-Files-y operative, Reynolds has to parka up and straighten it out. And it seems architectural mayhem follows her the same way it does for Peter Grant. And is romance inevitable? As for the story and environment, there were few places where I, as a longtime inhabitant of the Great Frozen North, said, to myself, "That's all wrong", but there was also no place where I thought, "That's an insightful, original way to describe how it feels, or how it looks." If you're looking for an answer to a question about winter gifts, read on. We've compiled a list of the most popular winter gift questions and answered them below. What should you gift someone in winter? I was looking forward to this 'Spin Off' story but I was disappointed at how thin the story felt. The book had that Series 1 Episode 1 feel to it, where you can see the potential but you can also see that the series hasn't hit its stride yet.At one point, Karen asks someone where they’re *really* from - see also “I’m not racist but” in the dictionary of unsympathetic literary characters. Aaronovitch's choice to make Kimberly be a person raised as an Evangelical Christian who calls her mom "Momma" has always grated on me a bit, as it's a stereotype of Americans that's not my favorite. I will say that she got a lot more human here, and I think that might be his intent, but... still not my favorite.

It's not Reynold's faith that bothers me but the absence of any need to reframe that faith in the light of her experience. Of course, I'm looking at this through my atheist eyes so I may be missing something.

Seriously, this type of “I don’t need to know about winter to tell you all about winter” hubris is the reason the Franklin expedition failed.

So, let me get one thing out of the way. Die schlafenden Geister des Lake Superior is a German translation of the novella Winter's Gifts, originally written in English by London author Ben Aaronovitch. It is the first book-length work in the Rivers of London series to be set in the USA. I am a US citizen and a native English speaker. So why did I read this book in German, and why am I writing my review in English? Help her dial up the cosiness and stay warm this winter with our Mint Camellias Linen Heat Pillow. She can heat this pillow up in the microwave, and it will keep her nice and toasty. It's also great for easing period cramps, aches, and pains. If you're looking to pair it with something, we recommend the hand-poured Daybreak Luxury Soy Wax Candle. It offers 30 hours of burn time and emits the scent of mineral salts with vanilla blossom. Do you offer any women’s winter gifts?

Hmmm...this was...just okay. Let's say a 3.5, but that is really scraping the bottom of the barrel for me on these books. Aaronovitch was also treading a chancy line with his portrayal of Native American (Ojibwe) spiritual life. He did a decent job (William takes Kimberly to task for asking about "legends" and he's like, "It's a religion. Is the bible about "legends" to you?") but there are so many ways it could have gone badly. If it (understandably) doesn’t quite have the full familiar joy of the main range novels – Peter is such a strong character that it’s always tempting to just want more of him – Winter’s Gifts nevertheless manages to ably demonstrate (much like The October Man) that there’s more to this series than just British wizardry. Indeed there’s plenty of scope for exploring magic in different places and different forms, and this sort of supernatural horror(ish) story fits in perfectly with the series as a whole and works well in the shorter novella format. With her gentle humour, sharp observation skills and amusing intolerance for bad language, agent Reynolds joins the ranks of Tobias and Abigail as thoroughly entertaining viewpoint characters who offer an interesting new perspective on this world, adding depth and variety to a series which continues to entertain and satisfy. Meh. Part of my dissatisfaction might be with the audiobook itself, but it was only like five hours long and it took me three weeks to finish it. First, Kimberly has never been my favorite character, though she grew on me a bit here chasing paranormal activity in a snowed-in Wisconsin lake town. Second, she kept meeting people once and that was it, though a few made a brief second appearance. The story was a lot of disconnected events that only began to come together at the very end, and it was hard to latch on to.