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Vicious Circle (Felix Castor #2)

by Mike Carey (Goodreads Author)

4.0 of 5 stars 4.00 · rating details · 2,535 ratings · 193 reviews

Felix Castor has reluctantly returned to exorcism after a successful case convinces him that he really can do some good with his abilities---"good," of course, being a relative term when dealing with the undead. His friend Rafi is still possessed, the succubus Ajulutsikael (Juliet to her friends) still technically has a contract on him, and he's still dirt poor.
Doing som...more

Paperback, 549 pages

Published July 1st 2009 by Grand Central Publishing (first published October 5th 2006)

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Mar 01, 2009 Ceridwen rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Ceridwen by: Trilby Busch

Shelves: fantasy, mystery, urban-fantasy, zombies, rule-britannia, alternate-history, baying-at-the-moon

There's a lot that could have gone wrong with this book. There seems to be a burgeoning sub-genre of magic noir, some of which ~~totally sucks~~ is not to my taste (I'm looking at you, Harry Dresden), some of which ~~doesn't~~ is (hello John Constantine.) Carey wrote for Hellblazer, so it's not a huge surprise where he got the idea for this novel. Also, this is a sequel. I didn't read the first book, and I wasn't lost or anything. I have a feeling that if I had read the first book, I would be kind of bo...more

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Oct 27, 2009 Stephanie rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: paranormal, mystery, urban-fantasy, read-in-2009

I really like the the blend of mystery/noir and paranormal/occult in the Felix (Fix) Castor series. The mystery element is the real meat of the story, not just a sub-plot to carry the paranormal elements along. In some ways Felix reminds of my favorite P.I. Jack Taylor who is the lead in a series by Ken Bruen. Although his backstory is a lot less tragic than Jack's, Felix regularly gets his ass kicked and somehow manages to get himself strapped up with enough banadages, booze, prescription drugs...more

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Mar 03, 2013 Carly rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: detective-noir, urban-fantasy, fantasy, cover-love

Something very bad is happening in London, and the rising of the dead is only the start of it. The ghost of a child has been stolen from her parents' home. A man ridden by a demon has become even more disturbingly violent. A local church seems to have been invaded by a dark presence. Ordinary Londoners have suddenly succumbed to bouts of horrific violence.
The end is nigh and the demons have come out to play.
It isn't long before Felix Castor is right in the middle of the game.

Carey's books make f...more Something very bad is happening in London, and the rising of the dead is only the start of it. The ghost of a child has been stolen from her parents' home. A man ridden by a demon has become even more disturbingly violent. A local church seems to have been invaded by a dark presence. Ordinary Londoners have suddenly succumbed to bouts of horrific violence.
The end is nigh and the demons have come out to play.
It isn't long before Felix Castor is right in the middle of the game.

Carey's books make for fantastic urban fantasy pulp: strong plots, vivid action, and an engaging narrator. But while this series may be hardboiled urban fantasy, but I would not necessarily recommend it to Dresden Files fans. Castor's world is significantly darker than the Dresdenverse. While Dresden tends towards lightly hardboiled, Castor is pure noir: isolation, moral greys, a cruel world, and a bleak future. While the plot involves demons, it mainly centres around man's inhumanity to man(and /women/children/ghosts) in sickeningly graphic and extremely disturbing detail. Neither the protagonist nor his associates have the sort of clear moral certainty that Dresden usually assumes, and while Butcher's books portray Christianity and the Catholic church positively, Carey's vitriolic hatred of religion fairly drips off the page. The writing is terse and wry and the wordplay is often humorous, but even considering that our dauntless hero is a Liverpudlian who looks like a used car salesman and whose weapon of choice is a bright green recorder, it's amazing how unfunny I find these books. That's not a complaint; I actually suspect I have difficulty seeing the funny side because I quickly became absorbed in the world and plot.

Perhaps the most depressing aspect of the book for me was Fix's isolation. Considering that his closest confidant is the demonic succubus who owns his soul, Castor won't be winning any popularity contests. He goes out of his way to antagonise everyone he encounters, from his supposed friend Nicky to potential information sources to the suspicious policewoman investigating him. He even has the potential to alienate the reader--I found his tendency to boast about his own ignorance while scorning the beliefs of others to be grating, and I suspect it is even more trying for readers of faith. Although I find his actions frustrating, I think Fix's pugnacious attitude can be seen as a masochistic, guilt-ridden attempt to punish himself and keep himself isolated from people that he fears he will fail.

But even if Fix made an abrupt personality shift into placating cooperation, his world would hardly be less dismal: there are simply too few decent human beings in it. I love that all of Carey's characters are complex mixtures of selfishness, altruism, bravery, and cowardice, but I feel that all of them veer far closer to the monster than the angel. I can count only two human characters who are significant enough to be faced with difficult choices and still seem to make reasonably humane decisions--and that's if you let me use the technically undead Nicky and you let me discount Matthew Castor's hard, unfeeling, holier-than-thou actions from the last book. Castor's (human and still living) "friends" are especially problematic. Fix's cop acquaintance simultaneously calls him "friend" and spinelessly betrays him. I never liked Rafi, Castor's demon-ridden friend, but in this book, we learn more about how he ended up sharing headspace with Asmodeous, and his actions do not reflect well on him. I also revised my opinion of Pen, Castor's (unrequited) love interest: she's not just a vapid, shallow, bimbo; it turns out she's also a selfish, self-righteous, myopic [expletive] as well. All of this goes to create a very dark world; while this was obviously Carey's intention, I tend to shy away from books where the characters are so flawed that they are difficult to empathise with.

Despite my reservations about the characters, I quickly found myself engrossed in the story. Carey's writing is incredibly visual. Maybe his ability to create such vivid scenes stems from his experiences writing for comics and graphic novels, but all of it, especially the demon scenes, go to create a story that is simply crying for someone to take on the movie rights. Carey also shows considerable skill in creating a mystery--I guarantee that you will figure out two parts of it about 100-200 pages before Fix does, which is admittedly frustrating, but there are some marvellous twists and turns at the end that will certainly surprise you. (view spoiler) Carey's worldbuilding continues to delight me; his particular supernatural setup is both incredibly creative and solidly thought out.

Overall, the book is a fine example of dark, gritty, urban fantasy pulp: it is imaginative, suspenseful, often heart-wrenching. If you're in the mood for a world of moral greys, vivid action, and a page-turning plot, Felix Castor is the protagonist for you.(less)

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May 15, 2012 Kelly Maybedog Hawkins rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: what-modern-fantasy, what-male-protagonist

Better than the first book with more action, more characters, and a more intense plot. This time the protagonist isn't quite as alone, he has a couple of friends but he still needs more. He needs someone giving him encouragement when he's feeling guilty about his friend. (Which I don't even get--he tried to save him and the friend was just a narcissistic asshole who thought the normal rules didn't apply to him.) I was never really enamored of his friend/landlady and now I don't like her at all....more

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Jul 31, 2012 Lightreads rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, fantasy, urban-fantasy

Eh, you know, this is perfectly competent urban fantasy. Better than, in several respects. The writing, in particular, is several cuts above the pack. But it’s doing that thing where the lone hero wanders around London alternately getting beat up and snarking at people. Which is entertaining enough, but when it comes right down to it that’s all you’ve got because this guy is a lone hero, doncha know, so he has no real community or support system. And what he does have will be stripped away by th...more

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Jan 01, 2012 Sara rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: urban-fantasy

I was sort of luke warm about the first in this Fix Castor Series. I enjoyed this book more.

This plot is definitely tighter than the first, but its not overly clean in that it contains quite a few gaps as regards police technique and some faulty logic in the mystery itself. But I don't let those details bother me too much if I'm enjoying the story. And normally, I don't notice them, so since I did, they're gonna be glaring to those of you who are sticklers about that sort of thing.

Somewhat dis...more

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Mar 09, 2011 Amanda rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, horror

Kudos to Mike Carey for his cleverly-written and highly original urban noir novel Vicious Circle. Set in alternate London where the dead coexist with the living, exorcism is no longer the sole province of the Catholic church, and pesky ghosts (and the occasional demon) require the services of men like Felix "Fix" Castor--a likeable bloke who's slightly down-on-his luck after suffering a few professional and personal hits--to eradicate them.

For those like me who missed the first Felix Castor nov...more Kudos to Mike Carey for his cleverly-written and highly original urban noir novel Vicious Circle. Set in alternate London where the dead coexist with the living, exorcism is no longer the sole province of the Catholic church, and pesky ghosts (and the occasional demon) require the services of men like Felix "Fix" Castor--a likeable bloke who's slightly down-on-his luck after suffering a few professional and personal hits--to eradicate them.

For those like me who missed the first Felix Castor novel, your understanding of Vicious Circle will by no means be compromised. The book is an independent albeit slightly complicated story that requires no introduction with its predecessor (The Devil You Know).

Think of the title as a metaphor for the three-fold plot, a Vicious Circle that keeps Castor guessing about who the real villains are. When the book opens, Castor is making ends meet by assisting the police to interrogate the ghosts of murder victims, but an unexpected commission comes his way when a well-to-do couple visit Castor's office to request his help in locating their missing daughter Abbie Torrington, who just-so-happens to be a ghost. This intriguing premise sets the scene for a suspenseful journey through London's darker dens as Castor attempts to locate a fellow exorcist who may or may not be Abbie's kidnapper, her father, and/or her murderer. The trail leads him to a group of satanic worshippers and the Anathemata--a fanatical and militant organization excommunicated from the Catholic church bent on exorcising any and all threat to God's will. Agents of this organization include two particularly nasty loup-garous (humans spirits who possess animal bodies) with violent propensities who trail Castor around town and always seem to turn up at the worst possible moments. Meanwhile, succubus-turned-exorcist Ajulutsikael (Juliet for short) requests Castor's professional opinion about exorcising a church that appears to be possessed by a malevolent presence who infects an entire congregation.

As these investigations begin to overlap, Castor's friend Rafi--long possessed by the demon Asmodeus--displays a spontaneous recovery of sorts, prompting the mental institution where he's been housed to petition for his release. Pamela "Pen" Elizabeth Bruckner, Castor's landlady and Rafi's old flame, are thrilled about this development, though Castor is uneasy over the sudden silence of Asmodeus whose spirit has been irrevocably entwined with Rafi's due to Castor's ill-fated mistake in attempting to exorcise the demon. The pacing of the story, while suspenseful, stalls occasionally as plot threads are juggled just when progress is made regarding one of the three primary storylines: the missing ghost, the possessed church, and Rafi's lucidity. The payoff occurs as these events overlap each other, but the steady shift in focus makes it somewhat challenging to follow Castor's revelations throughout his investigation. During the suspenseful dénouement, Castor is faced with the difficult choice of saving thousands of innocent lives at the expense of sacrificing his friends.

Readers of noir fiction will appreciate Felix Castor's clever and often creative use of dialogue. Some of the Britishisms occasionally threw me, but overall, the narrative language of the first-person novel adds to the story's originality. Though the author can be a bit verbose when describing insignificant details (i.e. using blueprint-specific descriptions of buildings he's exploring) Castor's droll and often witty observations serve double duty as colorful metaphors. The author's painstaking construction of London is abundant with many scenes taking place at notable London locales, but the primary appeal of the story lies with Felix Castor himself--a somewhat sarcastic yet ethical private exorcist who uses a tin whistle to "banish" ghosts through the use of music. Castor is not above manipulation, lies, and even illegal breaking and entering to get what he wants, but his loyalty to his friends and his willingness to sacrifice himself rather than place them in danger is sure to win legions of fans. I look forward to reading the rest of this series.
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Jan 22, 2011 Mason Jones rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I haven't read the first book in the series, but my wife said that I didn't need to in order to enjoy this one, and she's quite correct. Carey's very adept in introducing characters with enough backstory to make them seamless but not so much that it slows things down. Castor makes an appealing protagonist; he's a bit of an anti-hero, but not in any stereotypical way. He's a good guy whose heart is in the right place, but sometimes he has to make the difficult decision, as he does at the climax h...more

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Jul 11, 2009 Joshua rated it 2 of 5 stars Recommends it for: More and less of the same from the first book

Shelves: sci-fi-and-fantasy, mystery-thrillers

Second book in the Felix Castor series.

So I'm a big Mike Carey fan- been reading his work for over a decade now, his comicbook work still amazing me to this day, so even though I thought the first book in the series, The Devil You Know was average,I'll still read anything the man writes. I should also state that I'm a huge urban fantasy fan, so yeah, two birds with one stone here.

I think this, while better written than the first book in the series, is far weaker. It's still an interesting read...more Second book in the Felix Castor series.

So I'm a big Mike Carey fan- been reading his work for over a decade now, his comicbook work still amazing me to this day, so even though I thought the first book in the series, The Devil You Know was average,I'll still read anything the man writes. I should also state that I'm a huge urban fantasy fan, so yeah, two birds with one stone here.

I think this, while better written than the first book in the series, is far weaker. It's still an interesting read, but more interesting than fun. Vicious Circle consists of Felix Castor looking for information, getting beat up, finding said information, then rinse and repeat. He spends the entire novel heavily bruised, tired (a walking shell) and only finds out information after getting beat up and then learning something from getting beat up. Description after description leading nowhere. Instead of describing every little detail of every street, I would have preferred more character development in the side characters because they feel almost ancillary, especially the villain.

There's really nothing to this story, and for a hero, for the main character of a series, Felix is pretty damn terrible. I mean I have no problem if he gets beat up, but that's all he does in Vicious Circle . Man up!!

I will say this, the world and characters that The Devil You Know introduced get a boost with this story. The succubus Juliet gets more character development, we learn more about the demon inhabiting Castor's friend Rafi, and more about the concept of exorcism and how it works/relates in this world. However, none of this can hide how weak Castor is as a main protagonist and I found myself really wishing some other character would take over the lead role. I know the third novel of this has already been released in the UK with a US release I'm sure soon to follow, but even if it's Mike Carey I have very little interest in reading anymore in this series. Simply reading this series, pardon the pun, does indeed feel like a Vicious Circle .(less)

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Jan 06, 2013 K. Bird rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

4.5 stars, actually.

Are you a fan of Harry Dresden and Kevin Hearne's Atticus Series? Ready for some thoughtful Urban Fantasy with a wise-cracking protagonist across the pond? You may have already run into Ben Aaronovitch's Peter Grant (if not, I highly recommend the series starting with Midnight Riot).

If you've gone through all of those and want more, pick up Mike Carey's Castor Felix series (starting with The Devil You Know.) Trust me, you'll like it.

Vicious Circle is the second in this series...more 4.5 stars, actually.

Are you a fan of Harry Dresden and Kevin Hearne's Atticus Series? Ready for some thoughtful Urban Fantasy with a wise-cracking protagonist across the pond? You may have already run into Ben Aaronovitch's Peter Grant (if not, I highly recommend the series starting with Midnight Riot).

If you've gone through all of those and want more, pick up Mike Carey's Castor Felix series (starting with The Devil You Know.) Trust me, you'll like it.

Vicious Circle is the second in this series about an tin-whistle playing exorcist in a London where the dead are starting to come back in record numbers. There are ghosts, reanimated bodies, and spirits who take over animal bodies (loup-garou).

Castor Felix is no knight in shining armor, he's mostly on the path of least resistance, just looking to make enough money to survive. But he made a big mistake with an exorcism involving a friend, and he is loyal. In this second book, "Fix" is called in because his friend Rafi has a terrible episode (he's posessed by a demon) and then grieving parents ask him to find their dead daughter's ghost.

Only the parents aren't exactly telling the truth, and it's possible Rafi and his rider are mixed up in all of it. Throw in some rogue Catholic ghost-hunters and their pet loup-garou going after anyone slightly mixed up in the mystery, and you've got one action-packed tale.

Vicious Circle develops more between Fix and the succubus who tried to eat him in the prior book, as well as his complicated relationship with Rafi and his friend Pen. Investigating the central mystery also gives us more of the history behind how exorcists developed in this alternate London world, as well as giving us dark hints about possible future conflict. Felix is more self-serving than Dresden, and less of a do-gooder than Atticus. He wise-cracks even when it means an extra fist to the face, and although he mostly tries to avoid friendships, the ones he has he is extremely loyal to.

Definitely worth your time if you're a fan of male-protagonist, magic-wielding Urban Fantasy.

This Book's Snack Rating: Sour Cream and Chive Kettle Chips for the creamy-sour duality of Felix's character on a solid crunch of a well-developed alternate London(less)

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Apr 30, 2011 Andres rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction

I enjoyed this second book in the series as much as the first, for the most part...

As with the first book, I find this world (and the characters who live there) to be fascinating, not just with the people having to deal with ghosts and such but with the politics that they engender: there is a faction that believes that those who have 'returned' have their own rights. For the most part this is background information but it adds to the realism and complexity of the story (as realistic as ghosts, d...more I enjoyed this second book in the series as much as the first, for the most part...

As with the first book, I find this world (and the characters who live there) to be fascinating, not just with the people having to deal with ghosts and such but with the politics that they engender: there is a faction that believes that those who have 'returned' have their own rights. For the most part this is background information but it adds to the realism and complexity of the story (as realistic as ghosts, demons, and the 'were' kind can be). Add to this an excommunicated sect of the Catholic Church and a ghost that has been kidnapped and you know the further adventures of Felix Castor et al will be as intriguing as last time.

And yet there's only a couple of things that didn't sit well, one big, one small.

The biggest problem I had was with Basquiat, the cop that fingers Castor for the murder of the little girl. This accusation comes out of nowhere, really, resting on barely a wisp of evidence (ignoring a score of other people, including an entire Satanic cult!) to pin it all on him, no matter how implausible. This detective completely fixates on Castor for no discernible reason other than for what I call "fake drama": the artificial application of crises on the character for no other reason than to make it a high stakes situation. It's totally unbelievable, terribly cliché, and out of place is this otherwise intricately and organically plotted mystery. It's a sore thumb, and character, that sticks out something awful.

The smaller problem has to do with continuity: lots and lots of time is spent on the small details of things, so when Castor doesn't have his whistle it becomes a plot point because it makes it harder for him to do his job or protect himself from ghosts. During the book's showdown climax (and the events leading up to it), a point is made of him not having his whistle. Right after the big showdown, he uses his whistle quickly to help out another character, then in the VERY NEXT SCENE, he makes an attempt to get back his whistle from the people who took it. He only has the one whistle at this point, so it's a pretty big mistake to make. It may not sound like such a big deal but when everything else is so tightly written and consistent, this was darn sloppy.

But I still enjoyed the hell out of this book, and look forward to the next one!(less)

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Jun 23, 2012 Nicholas Karpuk rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I don't know about you, but when I feel a formula creeping up too loudly, I get a bit irritable. I prefer my formula up front, not sneaking up like a child with a watergun who thinks they're crafty even though loudly giggling.

So when the multiple cases in the second Felix Castor book started syncing up into the same case, I found myself slightly annoyed. It left me with the feeling that this is going to be a habit for Carey, that each installment will lack a distinctly independent B story to cal...more

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Mar 12, 2013 Beefgir rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

im starting to enjoy this series a little more.
it has a solid history and background, so it feels like you are really dropped into the middle of this characters world. it has definite rules that everything sticks to, and it knows what they are. so no pulling unknown skills out of your ass in this. but the mystery is very well written. no hints are dropped to help you figure things out. you are along for the ride. you can take guesses, but really, you just have to keep going to find out what happ...more

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Oct 10, 2011 William Thomas rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: bland

I'm tired of trying to draw hard lines around what is considered hardboiled or noir fiction and what isn't. But this isn't it. At all.

This book, although comparable to Jim Butcher's Harry Dresden, is like the Miss Marples of urban fantasy. (Note: Harry Dresden is also not noir fiction with magic, but is a pulp book more likened to softboiled pulp like Ed McBain). Mike Carey is the Agatha Christie of urban fantasy.

Carey used to write for Vertigo comics on the series Hellblazer, and was, in my op...more

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Jul 30, 2011 CD rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This novel rocks. It is much better than the first one which suffered from that appallingly long exposition by the murderer of why he did what he did. This time around, Carey keeps the action rolling. I don't know how Felix survives all the physical abuse, but he does. One part of the mystery is a bit easy to figure out, but even if you do, the rest is surprising. The magic is hot and heavy. I would have loved to see a bit more interaction and tension between Juliet and Felix. There does seem to...more

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Jan 01, 2011 Beausephus rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: pulp-noir, scifi-nerd-fun

Avoiding a sophomore slump, Mike Carey brings back his self-styled neo-noir exorcist and troublemaker Felix Castor back for another go around in a world where the unearthly have become all too commonplace. Carey follows up the good intentions and strong ideas that made the first book of the series almost hit the mark. VICIOUS CIRCLE, the second in the series, is leagues better with cleaner writing and more consistent and definite tone. More cynical than smarmy, and with more hard edged attitude...more

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Feb 20, 2013 victoria.p rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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May 19, 2011 Karissa rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is the second book in the Felix Castor series by Carey. If you liked the first book, you will most likely enjoy this book as it is very similar in tone. Last I heard there were 6 books planned for this series. The fifth book, The Naming of the Beasts, came out in Jan 2011. I listened to this on audio book and the audio book was well done (so please excuse name mispellings).

Felix Castor has changed from doing spirit extermination to spirit counseling and shortly thereafter he is approached b...more This is the second book in the Felix Castor series by Carey. If you liked the first book, you will most likely enjoy this book as it is very similar in tone. Last I heard there were 6 books planned for this series. The fifth book, The Naming of the Beasts, came out in Jan 2011. I listened to this on audio book and the audio book was well done (so please excuse name mispellings).

Felix Castor has changed from doing spirit extermination to spirit counseling and shortly thereafter he is approached by a couple who say that their daughter's ghost has been kidnapped. At the same time a rash of violent crimes is plaguing the city and Juliet, has a strange case involving possessed church that she needs Felix's consult on. Felix again ends up over his head and embroiled in events that both threaten the whole city and his life.

This book stands alone well, so you wouldn't have to read the previous book to understand what is going on here. This is good for people that like to pick up a series in the middle. The only thing I don't like about this is that there isn't an over-arcing story or goal that ties this series together. I usually like my urban fantasies to have something resolved within one book, but also a broader story or purpose that is all-encompassing and you don't get that with this series...at least not so far.

Felix is still as much of a smart-ass as he was in the first book. This makes the book fun to read at times but can also be frustrating. Felix withholds information that could prevent horrible situations with no real rhyme or reason. Sometimes it is like he wants to be beat up. Felix doesn't seem to really grow or change as a character at all. He is just as dense, stupid, and determined as in the first book and makes a lot of really bad decisions. I was disappointed that he hasn't really learned anything and that his ghost summoning powers remain somewhat lame.

Having Juliet play a bigger part in the book was nice; she is a more interesting character than Felix and actually does seem to be changing and learning. Juliet can actually kick some butt, rather than constantly getting her own butt kicked (like Felix). I hope she plays a large role in future books. I also enjoyed learning more about Raffe and Asmodeus. Pen remains a somewhat underdeveloped character and is discussed a lot but not present very much.

The other thing I found frustrating was the predictable plot. Right at the beginning of the book Asmodeus leaves Raffe and violence breaks out in the city. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that the two are connected somehow, but it took Felix the whole book to realize it. I mean really it is a bit contrived that Felix was so completely blind to what was going on around him.

I did enjoy the writing style and the story was tied up well.

Overall while there were some things I enjoyed about this book, there were more things that frustrated me. I enjoyed the humor and love how supernaturals are all forms of ghosts, I like the idea of music summoning ghosts, and I liked that Juliet played a bigger role. I was frustrated with how predictable the story was and how dense Felix was, I was also frustrated by Felix's sameness throughout the novel (he never learns anything and withholds information for strange reasons, he always gets beat up and looses). I am on the fence about whether or not I will read the next book in the series, Dead Men's Boots. There are some things I like about this series but I am worried the third book will just be more of the same.(less)

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Feb 24, 2012 Katherine rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

After reading a second book by Mike Carey, I love his work every bit as much as I did the first time, and I love his skill even more! Felix Castor keeps his signature snide, self-deprecating attitude, but the story doesn't feel anything like the first one. I was a little concerned that a sequel to such a spectacular book would fall into a rut and feel more like a repeat than a continuation, but it didn't even come close.

Fix reluctantly takes on a new job when he's approached by the parents of a...more

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Oct 13, 2011 Matthew rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

It's been a while since I read this now, but I think it's worth mentioning why this second book in the Felix Castor series is probably the last one I'll bother to read, despite my general enjoyment of the writing:
towards the end of the book, the protagonist suddenly stops and gives the reader an explanation as to why he's totally neglected to investigate the most obvious suspects up until now, giving an exceptionally lame excuse along the lines of 'I'm forgetful and oblivious to the obvious', wh...more

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May 20, 2011 Carol rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Carey fans

Shelves: urban-fantasy, male-lead, supernatural-mystery

Mixed feelings about the book overall. Fix gets interested in a missing person case which opens up into a multi-pronged mystery. The mystery had a couple of twists which I enjoyed.I did think there was improvement on the pacing of the book, but there was a point mid-book where it bogged and I started to skim.

My trouble with Fix's emotional state continues. He often realizes he could cooperate or play along, but obstinately decides not to--even when it's usually to his detriment. Often, he antag...more

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Jul 13, 2012 Chris rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A fine example of urban fantasy. Felix Castor (the protagonist) is quick-witted, sarcastic and has a delightful problem with authority. He lives in a contemporary london where the paranormal is a begrudgingly allowed to become a fact of life. You get a pretty good measure of the man in relatively few pages, a sense of familiarity with the protagonist keeps you hooked on the story.

In this book, Felix faces satanists and their natural enemies (won't reveal due to spoilage), while desperately tryi...more

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Jan 09, 2011 Loren rated it 4 of 5 stars

Much better than the first book! Castor's sympathy for the missing girl ghost humanized him; Carey illustrated that deftly, without providing some dumb back story that would water the sympathy down. Castor felt sympathy, even though he didn't have a reason to. That, my friends, is good characterization.

The mystery got a little twisty-turny near the end. Castor continues to blunder along, more a pawn than player, but here that worked much better than in The Devil You Know. He doesn't think big be...more

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Jun 07, 2011 Eric Suter rated it 4 of 5 stars

After finishing The Devil You Know, I suspected Felix Castor was going to become a favorite and perhaps supplant Harry Dresden at the top of the urban fantasy heap. Vicious Circle confirmed the suspicion in spades. I rarely read the same author more than once every six or so months but I make exceptions for those that tell a truly gripping tale. Mike Carey was worthy of the exception and I have chewed through the first three of five existing installments, this being the second. Fix is terrific a...more

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Sep 12, 2009 Summer rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: urban-fantasy

The second installation from the Felix Castor series...

I'm not sure which one I read faster--this one or the first!

Another gritty, spooky tale from foggy London, complete with ghosts, weres, and a few demons, Vicious Circle ratcheted up the noir, pulp, and intensity from the debut novel.

Even more eloquently, Carey dips into heavy spiritual territory without alienating the audience, and continues to pose us with the same questions that plague Felix.

It was nice to see Juliet coming into the for...more

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Apr 04, 2009 Nikki rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The first half of "The Devil You Know" put me off a little. The language was a little to clever, like it was trying too hard to imitate a gritty crime novel from the 40s. But I got past that, and ended up enjoying the book despite it all. With "Vicious Circle" I didn't have to spend half the book wondering whether I was wasting my time. I liked it from the beginning, and was late coming back from lunch all week because I didn't want to put it down. Sure, the language is still too clever, but I f...more

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May 11, 2011 Tammykirk rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The second entry in the Felix Castor series has Felix, a.k.a. Fix, trying to incorporate his newfound beliefs into his business model. He is hired by bereaved parents to find the kidnapped ghost of their daughter. The plot of this book is launched by an unbelievable amount of trust and lack of due diligence on the part of Felix and has a few too many of obvious coincidences overlooked until the denoument but, overall, the story moves along nicely. Felix is required to take actions in support of...more

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Feb 27, 2009 Mary rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: sf-f, mystery-crime-fiction

This was a fantastic follow up to "The Devil You Know." All the characters that Carey established so well in "The Devil" come in to play again in new and interesting ways. This time, professional exorcist Felix is hired by a young girls' distraught parents to locate her ghost, who has been stolen by the wife's ex-lover. As Felix searches for the young ghost, he becomes involved in a mystery that involves an ancient demon, two secret societies and a father who only wants to save his daughter. Thi...more

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Feb 01, 2012 Morgan rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I really enjoyed the first Felix Castor book. I came to these books from loving Mike Carey's work in comics. I searched around, looking for urban fantasy that didn't make me throw the book down in frustration, so I decided to go with a name I trusted.

The first book was a nice simple hard-boiled mystery with some fun supernatural elements. This book embraces the supernatural more and the protagonists is forced to confront larger ramifications of his actions. He spends more time exploring the worl...more

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May 09, 2011 Julie rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is the second Fix Castor novel I have read. I didn't like it as much as the first one, but it was still pretty darn good. Lots of twist and surprises. Returning characters which I like. It read at times like a graphic novel which is understandable since the author writes X-men and Fantastic four. But, there were times when the story veered off somewhere that I didn't really think had that much to do with the story and could have been left out. Also, the chapters were long, without too many...more

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About Mike Carey

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
Mike Carey was born in Liverpool in 1959. He worked as a teacher for fifteen years, before starting to write comics. When he started to receive regular commissions from DC Comics, he gave up the day job.

Since then, he has worked for both DC and Marvel Comics, writing storyli...more

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Books by Mike Carey

The Unwritten, Vol. 1: Tommy Taylor and the Bogus Identity

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Quotes from Vicious Circle

“Words are the birds that break cover and show your enemy where you're hiding.” — 3 people liked it

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Vicious Circle (Felix Castor #2)

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