False Value

When the dedication of this book was to all the cubicle workers who keep things running, and the intro for the first chapter was a quote of a letter written by Ada Lovelace, I knew I was going to enjoy this.

At the end of the last book, our hero Peter Grant had an explosive encounter with our big bad and his apprentice. Things didn't go as expected, and at the open of False Value, Peter is on his first day at a new job - security for a new tech startup run by a Silicon Valley tech-bro. But Peter can never leave magic behind, and he's now caught up in a web of tech, AI, magic, and the inventions of Lovelace and Babbage.

You can tell in Peter’s quiet, droll British way that he's been deeply affected prior events, and he's having a bit show more of trouble finding his footing. But our Peter is a curious sort, and he's soon investigating the secretive doings at his new job. We get a look at the intersection of magic and tech, seeing how they can interact, and what the consequences are.

We’re teased with more revelations about other dimensions the Fae inhabit, with an eldritch, Lovecraftian vibe. It's been a slow drip of info over the course of several books, and I'm hoping it’s a set up for something big. I'm also loving the further worldbuilding, with the introduction of an American secret magical society, the Librarians (OF COURSE) and how they differ dramatically from their British practitioner counterparts.

I enjoyed this, but not quite as much as previous books. I also felt the prose was a tiny bit repetitive; at one point it felt like Peter used the phrase "bog standard" every other page. Despite that it was still easily a 4 star book for me and I'm looking forward to the next book and hoping it's not the last, because this is a world I want to keep exploring. show less

This was so much fun, and yes, I love this series and am completely biased but even so.

I really liked that this was largely a stand-alone mystery, sort of a breather between the arc that wrapped in the last book, and whatever’s coming next. I say largely because there are callbacks to past books, and fulfillment of some past foreshadowing, all of which were gloriously paid off. None of which are necessary to enjoyment, I don’t think, so it makes a decent entry point, or refresher on how things work in Peter’s world.

And Aaronovitch’s inventiveness was so much fun! Not just the tech company, which is as wonderfully weird as you’d expect, and the magical stuff within the case, but the new characters! The twists and misdirects! show more The fleshing out of the world and deepening of a few key characters. And, of course, the absolute glee he clearly had inserting as many Douglas Adams references as possible.

Really, I only have minor grumbles, most of which relate to what I assume the next story arc will be so I won’t go into detail. Basically, I wanted some things to have been clarified or elaborated on, and didn’t get that—but hey, Aaronovitch has to set the stage somehow. My other grumble is, I think, a typo or editing error that had me confused for a good chunk of the book. So again, no big deal.

I don’t have much else to say, except that I liked seeing Peter investigate a case largely solo, and liked seeing the glimpses of life at the Folly. This was refreshing and enjoyable, and pretty much exactly what it needed to be. And now, alas, I need to wait for a new book again.
8/10

Contains: a whole lot of Hitchhiker’s Guide references, canon-typical property damage, snark show less

Perfectly readable, but a bit tension free. Given the book's premise, and Peter's long-established interest in the interactions between science and magic, I expected a bit more curiosity, more oddity, more "whoa" moments. A satire about soulless big tech corporations doesn't work if it itself is also a bit, well, soulless, and if your tech billionaire antagonist has even less personality than Mark Zuckerberg, that's a problem. My sense is that maybe Aaronovitch is setting up an arc for a new big bad (now that the Faceless Man is out of the way), but I think it could have been done with a bit more panache than this.

I loved the idea of the NYPL being home to a group of badass magical practitioners, but Aaronovitch doesn't have a good ear show more when it comes to American dialogue. I'm not keen on how the pregnancy seems to have reduced Bev to a magical baby incubator (and that ending gave me a Bad Feeling), or the way that Aaronovitch is framing the Peter/Beverley relationship. Honestly, it mightn't be a bad idea for Aaronovitch to shake things up in the next installment of the series by having a narrator who isn't Peter: Molly or Sahra or Lady Ty, or even a flashback to Nightingale in the '30s and '40s. A new perspective on the Rivers of London world would be welcome, especially since Peter... well, he's a good person, and often a charming protagonist, but he neither changes much over time nor lets himself feel very much. Over eight books, that's starting to feel less like a character quirk and a bit more superficial. show less

I reserved 'False Value' at the library before it was published and watched sadly as its status remained In Transit for more than six months during the library closures. Having finally been able to retrieve it, I spent an enjoyable weekend in magical London following Peter Grant around. Mixing things up a bit, he's working at a tech firm that really overdoes the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy references. Of course, this does not mean he has left magic behind. An intriguing mystery unfolds, seemingly unrelated to the whole Faceless Man plot arc of previous installments. It's fun to see Peter in a new milieu, although it does mean a bit less time with the rest of the usual suspects. Nonetheless, I found the tech-based mystery plot show more involving and enjoyed the glimpses into magic overseas. In this case, a duo of American librarians representing a magical librarian secret society (very [b:The Magicians|6101718|The Magicians (The Magicians, #1)|Lev Grossman|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1313772941l/6101718._SY75_.jpg|6278977]). The pace is sustained well, with a good combination of exciting drama and cosy domesticity. The Folly gets the builders in; Beverley makes new friends; a few more pieces of Nightingale's tragic backstory emerge. Peter has clearly benefited from therapy and manages not to endanger himself excessively despite encountering evil magic drones, angry ghosts, knife-wielding miscreants, and what appears to be a hellmouth. I liked the detail that Nightingale found him taking to undercover work unsettling. Peter's concern about Beverly's goddess powers was also handled well. Beverley takes it easy throughout the book, as she's busy being pregnant with twins. Guleed and Abigail have excellent cameo appearances. Molly bakes tiny cakes and Foxglove paints (magical?) portraits of anyone who will sit still for long enough.

While 'False Value' didn't delight me as much as [b:Lies Sleeping|36534574|Lies Sleeping (Rivers of London, #7)|Ben Aaronovitch|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1517326409l/36534574._SY75_.jpg|58260751], it was still a really good time. I liked the skeptical angle on tech hype and juxtapositions of technology and magic. Peter's empirical approach to magic, as well as certain ingenious use of batteries, suggest the two can work together. The world-building of this series continues to develop in very interesting ways and the characters are endearing. The [b:Rivers of London|9317452|Rivers of London (Rivers of London, #1)|Ben Aaronovitch|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1401385034l/9317452._SY75_.jpg|13552476] series provides high quality escapism, which is particularly valuable at the moment. show less

Peter Grant goes undercover at the Serious Cybernetics Company which is owned by American Terrence Skinner. He is working to discover if Skinner is doing something illegal - maybe money laundering. What he finds in much more and much more magical.

He finds a mystery that perhaps starts with Ada Lovelace and Charles Babbage and has to do with an independent artificial intelligence. Only this intelligence is tangled up with magic. Also looking for this magical thing are a couple of librarians from New York City. Apparently, the New York Public Library is a hub for magic in the United States.

While Peter is trying to figure out what is going on, he is also getting used to the idea that he is soon to be a father of twins. Beverly Brook is show more pregnant. Given that she is a goddess on a river planning their future together has some complications.

I loved this addition to the Rivers of London series. I really enjoy Peter's snarky and irreverent personality. The story is fast-paced and the mystery was well-developed. Fans of the series won't want to miss this episode. show less

Book number eight in the Rivers of London series sees wizard cop Peter Grant going undercover at a tech company, and participating in a little bit of a heist along the way. I have to say, I don't necessarily find the plots in these books all that satisfying, and this one is no exception to that, leaving a lot of things vague and a lot of questions unanswered. It does have some really interesting story elements, though, and blends magic and technology in some creative ways. Mind you, I think aspects of it would have come across a little differently in 2020 when it was published than they do now in the age of rampaging LLMs.

Also, Aaronovitch is having way too much fun with the geeky references this time out. I think there are more Douglas show more Adams references here than in an actual Douglas Adams novel. I'm not at all sure how I feel about that, but that's probably mostly because the overlap between geek culture (which I love) and tech bro culture (which I do not) makes me uncomfortable, and boy is it portrayed here in all its cringe-worthy glory. show less

Ooops. the series has reached the point where the protagonist is so on top of his shit he's being smug about it, so he gets to show off how canny and clever and capable and competent he is, using a couple of US magicians who snuck in to London to nab a mechanical artifact that could be very bad news indeed. Ok, it's not VERY smug, but the tendency is there and needs to be held in check. Finding the right balance between so gormless enough he's a complete idiot and super-competent enough to run rings around everyone else such that they look like complete idiots is tricky, unless you're going the tormented brilliance route like a Lymond character, and that's not Peter. This does not distract unduly from Peter going to work as security at show more a cringingly with-it tech firm with something weird in its attic. The usual solid policing with added magic and the usual solid London setting made numinous with magic round the edges and in the shadows. Aaronovitch needs to watch it, though. Peter is becoming The Establishment, and while his prosaic law-enforcement point of view is undercut with self-aware references to abuses of power, they're always kept offstage, risking this series becoming cheeky friendly face of magic copaganda. show less