Changes

Now, I should start by saying that I'm a big fan of Paul Cornell - his book ''British Summertime'' remains one of my favourite Sci-Fi novels, his writing for comics includes a spell writing my favourite character brilliantly (Pete Wisdom, in case anyone was wondering...), and his writing for Doctor Who resulted in some of the show's greatest episodes since it returned (''Human Nature'' and ''Family of Blood''). I had previously enjoyed the two earlier books in the ''Shadow Police'' series, so I was excited for this one - although slightly apprehensive when I learnt that Cornell would be tackling Sherlock Holmes - in the current ''Holmes Renaissance'' we seem to be having at the moment, thanks to Misters Cumberbatch, Downer Jr and Miller. Tons of books featuring Holmes have been popping up in recent years - some good, some not so.

The urban fantasy market is one that has been flooded in recent years - so it may be hard to tell what's great and what isn't when browsing the shelves. Rest assured that Cornell has crafted a series that is at the very top of it's genre. Blending crime and fantasy superbly, Cornell does so whilst providing humour and witticisms, and a three dimensional cast with a hell of lot of heart - making these tense, fun reads. Many thanks to the publishers for the copy.