Review: The Last Smile in Sunder City

Title: The Last Smile in Sunder City

Author: Luke Arnold

Publisher: 6th February 2020 by Hachette Australia

Pages: 352 pages

How I Read It: ARC book

Genre: urban fantasy, paranormal, mystery

My Rating: 3 cups

Synopsis:

A former soldier turned PI tries to help the fantasy creatures whose lives he ruined in a world that's lost its magic in a compelling debut fantasy by Black Sails actor Luke Arnold. Welcome to Sunder City. The magic is gone but the monsters remain.I'm Fetch Phillips, just like it says on the window. There are a few things you should know before you hire me:1. Sobriety costs extra.2. My services are confidential.3. I don't work for humans. It's nothing personal--I'm human myself. But after what happened, to the magic, it's not the humans who need my help. Walk the streets of Sunder City and meet Fetch, his magical clients, and a darkly imagined world perfect for readers of Ben Aaronovitch and Jim Butcher.

My Thoughts

The Last Smile in Sunder City is Luke Arnold’s debut novel and the first in an urban fantasy series titled Fetch Phillips Archives. This is a dystopian work featuring ‘Sunder City’, a dark place holding a noir tale concerning the loss of magic post war.

The story features two timelines in its narrative - the present where Fetch is investigating a missing vampire and his flashbacks during the war and an event that still haunts him. For a debut novel, the world building here is pretty impressive, Luke’s writing quite good (if somewhat generic in places) and the characters held potential (although a little cliched at times).  

There is much to work with here given the concept of magic having disappeared and previously supernatural beings are struggling to survive. It’s dark and down with many a seedy person and place described. Whilst the plot has potential it is just a bit too slow and repetitive in places for me. All up, however, this was an interesting urban fantasy that had some interesting moments.

"I stepped back out into the main room to catch my breath. I couldn’t yet tell what it was that was bubbling up inside me, but something had snapped. I didn’t actually believe it yet. The hope was too dangerous. But just the idea ... What if we could fix it? What if, somehow, I could undo all those terrible things I’d done?  Emotion swelled in my chest. It was something unfamiliar. Hope. Just a bit of hope. That’s all. I’d forgotten what it felt like.”

This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher and provided through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The quoted material may have changed in the final release.