Broken Homes

A Rivers of London Novel

By: Ben Aaronovitch

Narrated by: Kobna Holdbrook-Smith

Length: 10 hrs and 1 min

Publisher's summary

My name is Peter Grant, and I am a keeper of the secret flame - whatever that is.

Truth be told, there's a lot I still don't know. My superior Nightingale, previously the last of England's wizardly governmental force, is trying to teach me proper schooling for a magician's apprentice. But even he doesn't have all the answers. Mostly I'm just a constable sworn to enforce the Queen’s Peace, with the occasional help from some unusual friends and a well-placed fire blast. With the new year, I have three main objectives: a) pass the detective exam so I can officially become a DC, b) work out what the hell my relationship with Lesley Mai, an old friend from the force and now fellow apprentice, is supposed to be, and, most importantly, c) get through the year without destroying a major landmark.

Two out of three isn’t bad, right?

A mutilated body in Crawley means another murderer is on the loose. The prime suspect is one Robert Weil, who may either be a common serial killer or an associate of the twisted magician known as the Faceless Man - a man whose previous encounters I've barely survived. I've also got a case about a town planner going under a tube train and another about a stolen grimoire.

But then I get word of something very odd happening in Elephant and Castle, on a housing estate designed by a nutter, built by charlatans, and inhabited by the truly desperate. If there's a connection to the Crawley case, I'll be entering some tricky waters of juristiction with the local river spirits. We have a prickly history, to say the least.

Just the typical day for a magician constable.

©2014 Ben Aaronovitch (P)2014 Penguin Audio

Another good one

Just wanted to say that the narrators voice seemed more hoarse and scratchy for this title and I enjoyed it a bit less than the previous books.

Fun Series - Narrator is PERFECT

If you could sum up Broken Homes in three words, what would they be?

Fast moving, clever, irreverent

Who was your favorite character and why?

Peter Grant. You have this young policeman who sees a ghost (Midnight Riot - the first of the series), gets pulled into a secret branch of the Metropolitan Police that deals with magic and supernatural occurrences and his reactions are spot on through the whole series. I love how he slides in oblique references to modern culture.

What about Kobna Holdbrook-Smith’s performance did you like?

Peter Grant is the child of a jazz musician and an immigrant from Sierra Leone. He was born in London, loves London and Kobna Holbrook-Smith nails him (at least for me). He sounds exactly like I pictured him while first reading the books. He also manages to change his voice just enough not to sound silly while doing the women characters. I never get lost trying to figure out who is talking

Any additional comments?

Midnight Riot, Moon Over Soho, Whispers Under Ground and now Broken Homes make up a wonderful series of books. They are very English. Sometimes I have to stop and look up words in the Urban Dictionary but it doesn't really detract. The narrator is fantastic - he is to Peter Grant as James Marsters is to Harry Dresden. If you like police dramas with an urban fantasy twist - you will likely enjoy these books.

So engrossing!

I LOVE the narrator and the series. His delivery is so natural, it feels like an old friend speaking directly to me. Completely enthralling!

Great Series Getting Even Better!

Somehow, I missed the release of Broken Homes, and just happened to see it when browsing a few days ago. I instantly snapped it up and began listening immediately. As you will see from my previous reviews, I love the Peter Grant series, and I think Ben Aaronovitch is the most creative, imaginative and entertaining writer I have run into in a long time.

I see from the current reviews of this book that there is some difference of opinion about the story of Broken Homes. I am one of those who think this book is as good as the first in the series, and that's saying a lot. This story is different from the previous books, which had pretty linear stories. In Broken Homes, there are numerous story lines going on at the same time, and the reader can't be certain which of those stories (if any) have anything to do with what emerges as the main storyline. So, you are taken along on several roller coasters at once, having to trust that things will come together in the end (at least some things).

Ordinarily, books like that drive me crazy, but in this case each separate storyline is so amusing and so much fun that I forget to worry about the end. Many characters from previous books in the series appear in Broken Homes, both friend and foe, and not many new characters are presented for you to keep track of. The members of the Folly seem to be getting more settled and together, and are actually able to work together without having huge fights. Arch-villain The Faceless Man remains the primary evil opponent, and is suitably vile both in person and through representatives.

Then, near the end, there is a huge twist in the plot which puts everything you think you know about this story at a new angle, and I, for one, was left in shock, mouth hanging open.

As with the previous books, I will say: READ THIS BOOK! But only after you have read the previous books in the Peter Grant series. That is really necessary to get the real flavor of the characters and their relationships.

Excellent Escapism

Would you listen to Broken Homes again? Why?

Part police procedural, part magical fantasy, part social architecture polemic and all told in a sardonic London voice, Broken Homes is a joy to listen to. Listening to it for a second time was even more enjoyable than the first.

Broken Homes is the best Rivers of London yet!

What made the experience of listening to Broken Homes the most enjoyable?

The story and Kobna Holdbrook-Smith were made for each other!

What did you like best about this story?

The roof scene.

What does Kobna Holdbrook-Smith bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Super wide range of voices, the accuracy of the accents and his perfect expression of what the written words were meant to convey. Bravo!

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes! And I am still enjoying it for the third time!

Any additional comments?

Cannot wait until the release of Foxglove Summer in November!

Not the best in the series for me

This was my least favourite of the series so far. As some others have said, it was rather meandering, and I had trouble keeping my attention on the plot at times, which I haven't experienced with the series so far. I still enjoyed it - just not as much. The ending was...well...yes, very unexpected.

Kobna H-S is a great narrator as always.

Can’t get enough

The writing is unexpected, unpredictable, and full of tongue in cheek humor (and outright British sarcasm). But performance is what really makes these come to life. Holdbrook-Smith has an extraordinary talent for performing regional accents without making them sound like a parody (ok maybe the American ones in the previous books - but I’m pretty sure those were intended as parody!) and bringing to life characters of different genders, ages and even species, making us forget it’s just one person performing. I think I’d listen to him read a phone book if he agreed to make it “interesting.” Just pure pleasure listen.

The chase continues

I love the story line but the plot was a little challenging to follow. But that won’t get in the way of reading the next book in the series. The narrator is outstanding and brings the book to life.

Narrator 5 Stars as Before Story a Bit Wonky

I've bought and loved all of the prior Peter Grant. Even in one case when I had been given an ARC of Midnight Riot (the US title for the first Peter Grant book) I also bought the Audible download because of the excellent narration by Kobna Holdbrook-Smith. Therefore it pains me a great deal to have to say that I do not think this story is quite up to the standard of the first three.

There's a lack of cohesion to the plot which bounces around from story line to story line without settling down. Then I didn't find the ending particularly satisfying. There's a big unanswered question at the end. If you need to be spoiled before starting the book look at the Amazon reviews. Look for the review that Tells All.

Quite liked the title given the theme of the novel and Peter gets to display his architectural background as well as some fascinating tidbits about London. Numerous characters from past books make appearances. Although the story line about the Faceless Man moves forward a bit, it also started to feel like there were too many characters.

New readers go back to the first book and start there. You need to be invested in the characters and the story before you can really appreciate this one.

I also saw where the series has been optioned for television. I would be really pleased if it did go into production.