I’m embarrassed to admit I had never read anything in Ben Aaronovitch’s Rivers of London series. His urban fantasy series has at least ten books and novellas, multiple comics, and even a role-playing game. It was honestly a little intimidating to jump in the series at this point when it’s so late in the game. However, I’m happy to report that Aaronovitch’s newly published novella, Winter’s Gift, is a perfectly acceptable and enjoyable way to enter this popular series. As a plus, Winter’s Gift is set in a mysteriously weird and snowy Wisconsin town, making it a perfect read for this winter.

The Blurb:

“With this long new novella, bestselling author Ben Aaronovitch has crafted yet another wickedly funny and surprisingly affecting chapter in his beloved Rivers of London series. 

WE DO THINGS DIFFERENTLY OVER HERE

When retired FBI Agent Patrick Henderson calls in an ‘X-Ray Sierra India’ incident, the operator doesn’t understand. He tells them to pass it up the chain till someone does.

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.

Things soon go from weird to worse, as neighbors report unsettling sightings, key evidence goes missing, and the snow keeps rising—cutting off the town, with no way in or out…

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…”

Review:

While Rivers of London and a great deal of the subsequent works in the series are from the point of view of Londoner Peter Grant, the main character in Winter’s Gift is FBI Special Agent Kimberley Reynolds. Kimberley isn’t just any special agent because this is an urban fantasy. She’s an agent specialized in the otherworldly, be that witches, wizards, shades, magic practitioners, evil spirits, local traditions, and the like.

When the FBI gets an odd call from a retired agent in a small town in Wisconsin, Kimberley is the agent sent to check it out. Kimberley arrives in Wisconsin to find ripped body parts, strange zombie snow monsters, unusual weather patterns, and an inconveniently attractive meteorologist in town. Kimberley also discovers that these happenings are tied to the hundred-year-old cold case of a failed expedition into the nearby snowy landscape.

I enjoyed the plot of this novella a lot. The snow monsters were fun, and the Indigenous/Native American connection to the story was intriguing. While I can’t speak to the authenticity of the Indigenous representation, it appeared well done and thoughtful. I liked Kimberley, I really liked Bill, and I adored their mysterious middle-school friend in the woods. However, I do have several bones to pick with this story.

First, one character is described as having “an educated Southern accent.” As someone born and raised in the Deep South, I can tell you that there are a lot of different Southern accents, but not one of them is an “educated Southern accent.” To say that someone has an educated Southern accent is to infer that a typical Southern accent is uneducated; this was likely not meant, but it is still a tired and old stereotype nonetheless.

Secondly, throughout the book, it was apparent that the writer was a British man writing from the point of view of a small-town American Christian woman. Kimberley made choices that were odd for a woman in her position. For example, I don’t know many women who would choose to wash their bra after one day, especially when in the middle of solving a century-old magical mystery. And I know Kimberley is supposed to be a good Christian woman, but would she actually cringe when people swear in front of her? That seems extreme. Also, Americans do not use the word parka nearly as frequently as Aaronovitch thinks we do. While I would love for Aaronovitch to take Kimberley, and even Bill, to New Orleans next, as is hinted, I hope he spends time with NOLA culture, language, and traditions because the South is a very different beast.

Rating: 3.75 out of 5 stars. I quite enjoyed the snowy romp and the snow zombies twist.

You can find Winter’s Gift on Goodreads. Subterranean Press has limited amounts of leather-bound and signed, numbered hardcover copies of Winter’s Gift releasing on December 31, 2023, so set your alarms this New Year’s Eve to snag your copy. I’ve missed more Sub Press special edition hardbacks than I care to count (RIP Mira Grant’s Rolling in the Deep). Check out Ben Aaronovitch’s website for more in the Rivers of London series.

Thanks to Subterranean Press for a review copy of the book! All the above thoughts are my own.