An Omnibus of Redheads, Blonds, Brunettes, Goddesses, Ratgirls...

I recently finished reading Glen Cook’s Garret Investigates an SFBC omnibus edition containing Deadly Quicksilver Lies, Petty Pewter Gods, and Faded Steel Heat. These novels are part of that fairly rare genre, the fantasy mystery.

These mysteries are set in the city of Tun Faire. The main character, Garrett, is one of those hard boiled detective types. He tends to not want to work, preferring to drink beer, chase redheads, and sleep in till noon. His partner is called the Dead Man, who is a sort of psychic, non-human corpse. He spends much of his time with beautiful women—who always seem to fall for his charms—and with an assortment of oddball friends.

In Deadly Quicksilver Lies, Garret battles a cross-dressing crime boss. In Petty Pewter Gods, the gods of Tun Faire are fighting over the last available temple, and Gerret is right in the middle of it. Faded Steel Heat is the story of various human0rightist groups and a bunch of shape shifters.

All of these Garrett stories are great. The setting is wonderfully though out. Garrett is a remarkable character, who does an admirable job of narrating his adventures. Overall, I’m not sure whether I like this series or Randall Garrett’s Lord Darcy series better. I also wonder if Cook named his character after Randall Garrett. But that’s really beside the point.

The Garrett series is a really great, engrossing read. I give these volumes a 4.5 yo-yos. Up next, Orson Scott Card’s Magic Street.