The Unnatural Inquirer (Nightside #8)
by Simon R. Green
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other reviews (showing 1-20 of 230)
Read in January, 2008
recommends it for:
Anyone into the oddity of city life.
This is book 8 in Simon R. Green's Nightside series and like the rest of the Nightside books, you will have to have read them in order to understand what is going on. I have always enjoyed the books, since they delve into dark fantasy and pulp. All of Green's Nightside books feel like a walk through a modern representation of Lovecraft without all the verbose descriptions that Lovecraft was always so fond of. The only problem I've ever had with Green's Nightside books is that they can get a bit ...more
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Read in April, 2008
THE UNNATURAL INQUIRER (Para. Mystery-John Taylor-Nightside) – G
Green, Simon R – 8th in series
Ace, 2008, US Hardcover – ISBN: 9780441015580
First Sentence: One of the many problems with working as a private eye, not counting all the many people who want to kill you, often for perfectly good reasons, is that you have to wait for the work to come to you.
PI John Taylor has been hired by Nightside’s gossip newpaper, The Unnatural Inquirer. Pen Donavon, who claims to have receiv...more
Green, Simon R – 8th in series
Ace, 2008, US Hardcover – ISBN: 9780441015580
First Sentence: One of the many problems with working as a private eye, not counting all the many people who want to kill you, often for perfectly good reasons, is that you have to wait for the work to come to you.
PI John Taylor has been hired by Nightside’s gossip newpaper, The Unnatural Inquirer. Pen Donavon, who claims to have receiv...more
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Read in February, 2008
I enjoyed this book. Like most of the Nightside books it's nearly impossible to figure out the solution to the mystery beforehand because the mysteries and the characters are unconventional. But the point of these books is not to figure out the mystery anyway.
It's interesting to see what's going on in the wake the Angel and Lilith Wars. As usual we're introduced to some new Major Players who often don't survive until the end of the book. John Taylor continues to be John Taylor.
This ...more
It's interesting to see what's going on in the wake the Angel and Lilith Wars. As usual we're introduced to some new Major Players who often don't survive until the end of the book. John Taylor continues to be John Taylor.
This ...more
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Read in November, 2008
Following John about the Nightside is always a good bit of fun. This easily peeved detective takes the in-between road and finds often comic ways to overcome obstacles that seem pretty darn insurmountable, and when that obstacle gets darted around and the next bad-guy-pulling-strings-while-waiting-in-the-wings steps out, it too gets a snarky response from John, and then a goodly dash of pepper in the face. Never underestimate the judicious use of condiments.
In this foray, we get to follow ...more
In this foray, we get to follow ...more
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Read in January, 2008
I'm only giving this one four stars, rather than Green's usual five, but only because he has set the bar so high. The Nightside series is great, and this was a good one, just not my favorite of his.
There's something in the Nightside that is causing a great stir, namely a supposed Recording from either Heaven or Hell, and some poor schlub accidentally recorded it on his souped-up TV. He's running around the Nightside, hiding from everyone who wants to get it and use it for their own ends....more
There's something in the Nightside that is causing a great stir, namely a supposed Recording from either Heaven or Hell, and some poor schlub accidentally recorded it on his souped-up TV. He's running around the Nightside, hiding from everyone who wants to get it and use it for their own ends....more
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Read in January, 2008
recommends it for:
fans of the series. Don't start here.
As another review mentioned, this is not the best book in the series. Things haven't really been the same in the Nightside since the Lilith war. That said, I thought the addition of the character of Bettie, a tabloid reporter, gave some interesting perspective. You get so used to John being John, snarky and sarcastic and maybe all-powerful or maybe not, you forget not everyone there moves in the same circles. Bettie's sort of "I've heard it all but never seen it" view was well done. ...more
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Read in July, 2008
This, along with Butcher's Dresden Files, got me started on this kick. This is book #8 in the series, still excellent. Noir, some humor, and very quick reads (4 hrs for this one).
I used to take the bus to the nearby mall on weekends when I was in Hawaii. In the afternoons, it rained - no beach. So, I would go into the bookstore there, buy the next nightside book, and read it while I ate pizza in the food court as a lunch / dinner. It really only took 1 meal for the early books. This one felt...more
I used to take the bus to the nearby mall on weekends when I was in Hawaii. In the afternoons, it rained - no beach. So, I would go into the bookstore there, buy the next nightside book, and read it while I ate pizza in the food court as a lunch / dinner. It really only took 1 meal for the early books. This one felt...more
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Read in January, 2008
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Read in April, 2008
I hate to say it, but he shot the load with the Lillith wars. I love the Nightside, but this book and the next most recent feel sort of anticlimactic. Unless SRG is planning a new major storyline, I think the Nightside is over. And I hate to say that about a series I love with a great setting and characters, even if the hero always makes me think of Duran Duran. The middle books were EPIC....this was too short, not meaty enough....maybe the Loa will be back in Black next time?
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If you have yet to read any of "The Nightside" books, what are you waiting for?! These books follow the life of a private detective who works in the Nightside, a seedy place where you can buy anything you can imagine for a price and where gods wander the streets among men and other monstrosities. These books are short and sweet, filled with creative characters, quickly paced, and often hilarious. Great summer reads.
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Read in February, 2008
recommends it for:
anyone who has read the others
If you liked the earlier Nightside books, this one is more of the same and you'll enjoy it. The plot has a few good twists and John Taylor follows his usual method of investigation - questioning various Nightside personalities and stirring things up until a break in the case drops in his lap. It's a mostly self-contained, the only real developments in the ongoing storyline are relationship-oriented.
A fast, fun read.
A fast, fun read.
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Read in August, 2008
Not one of the better installments of the Nightside. I wanted to "love" it because I'm a fan of the sick, senseless gore that takes place in the Nightside. Maybe it's because some force put a block on Taylor's "talents" and he had to use normal detecting methods or maybe there wasn't enough of his sidekick, Shotgun Suzie. Either way, I like it but wasn't overwhelmed. Maybe #9 will have him back on track.
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Read in January, 2008
This books is set in a fantasy world with no rules. A lack of rules lets the author create friends/allies who can get the hero out of problems that he couldn't otherwise solve. Or the author can create a bigger villain who can challenge the hero to a bigger battle. Simon Green uses both these devices too often in book for my taste. There are better fantasies out there.
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Read in January, 2008
I think these books are so much fun. This is (I believe) the 8th in the series. They are a mix of gumshoe, fantasy, and horror with some humor thrown in.
They are also a quick read, short and to the point, without any unnecessary language and plot. Good story, good characters, and original, you will get it all.
They are also a quick read, short and to the point, without any unnecessary language and plot. Good story, good characters, and original, you will get it all.
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Read in October, 2008
Another winner from Simon R. Green, if not all that original. This one takes the infamous John Taylor through another adventure trying to find a man who claims to have evidence of the Afterlife - and burned into onto DVD. But nothing is as it seems, which is a way of life for those of the Nightside.
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This book rocked! I love John Taylor, I love the Nightside, and I adore his hal demon reported companion. Rumours are swirling that someone managed to capture a live feed from the Afterlife on DVD, and John's been hired by the Nightside Inquirer to retrieve it.
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Read in January, 2008
simon r. greene is one of my favorite urban fantasy authors. he loves this style and it is obvious. i love his books. this one focuses on the nightside rag the unnatural inquirer. totally awesome! enjoy the fun.
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I think this novel is just as good as the others in the series.John Taylor still caues death and destruction. There's a good mystery and a surprise shack-up plot twist.I liked the book.
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I thought this series might be more appealing once he got rid of the mommy issues, but I think it's still not quite my cup of tea. Also, John is such a Mary Sue.
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Very good for a series novel; not too redundant and had something new to say about the characters (character development). I loved the ending.
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