#Blogtour - Cursed Under London by Gabby Hutchinson Crouch

Cursed Under London
Gabby Hutchinson Crouch
Farrago Books, 11 July 2024
Available as: HB, 255pp, audio, e   
Source: Advance copy
ISBN(HB): 9781788425032

I'm grateful to Black Crow for sending me a copy of Cursed Under London to consider for review, and for inviting me to join the book's blogtour.

Cursed Under London is an engaging and entertaining urban fantasy, with a real subcurrent of romance. It's also one of the oddest books - in a good way - that I've read in ages.

In an alternate Tudor London, under Good Queen Bess's rule, a separate realm has been established underground, and more widely, under England, for magical creatures - fae, vampires, werewolves and a host more. There the undead mingle with creatures from myth and legend, following their own laws (human meat definitely ON the menu).

The outcome of a past war, this state of affairs is delicate and it needs continual diplomatic effort to keep it working and prevent fresh conflict. So when a deadly consignment is stolen from the Fae by surface gangs, Her Majesty's guards become involved in the investigation. Frustrating them at every turn, however, are the renegades Fang (a distant traveller from the Ming empire) and Lazare de Quitte-Beuf (a flailing, not to say failing, actor). Both have come under a strange curse which they attribute to Deep London. All roads lead, it seems, down the Tubes...

I loved this book for its verve - the story just keeps rolling on, throwing wonders and moments of terror off in all directions - its characters - Fang and Lazare develop a delightful, will-they, won't-they relationship whose bitterness and joy turns on some real emotional knots and awful experiences in their pasts - and its sly humour (simply too many examples to be able to quote, the story had me giggling on my commute). The busy, detailed view of a different London is always great fun and it's incredible how the author makes some seemingly bizarre ideas work: Christopher Marlowe as a zombie? You'll believe he was! A swan as Elizabeth R's jaded, hard bitten head of guards? Meet Captain Dame Isobel Honkensby! It's all gloriously inventive, rather convincing, and, well, a lot of fun.

Opening, I hope, a series, Cursed Under London draws on knowing references to London and Londoners, genre fiction, romance, crime politics, culture and a myriad other themes to paint its world - the darkness as well as the light. Because, don't be mistaken, there is darkness here - the wonders of Upper and Deep London are wonders, but they can be misused and real harm caused. Behind the fun and games, there's somebody trying to do just that.

I'd strongly recommend this book, and can't wait to see where the story goes next.

For more information about Cursed Under London, see the publisher's website here - and of course the other stops on the blogtour which you can see listed on the poster below. 

You can buy Cursed Under London from your local high street bookshop or online from Bookshop UK, Hive Books, Blackwell's, Foyle's, WH Smith, Waterstones or Amazon.