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Finn Fancy Necromancy

(Finn Fancy Necromancy #1)

Randy Henderson (Goodreads Author)

3.62 · Rating details · 1,226 ratings · 241 reviews

Writers of the Future grand prize winner Randy Henderson presents a dark and quirky debut in Finn Fancy Necromancy.

Finn Gramaraye was framed for the crime of dark necromancy at the age of 15, and exiled to the Other Realm for twenty five years. But now that he's free, someone-probably the same someone-is trying to get him sent back. Finn has only a few days to discover who ...more

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Hardcover, 366 pages

Published February 10th 2015 by Tor Books

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Start your review of Finn Fancy Necromancy (Finn Fancy Necromancy, #1)

Nov 01, 2015 carol. rated it really liked it

Recommends it for: fans of UF, Pratchett, that other wizard

Shelves: fast-and-fun, humor, urban-fantasy, male-lead

Finn is about to breathe free air after twenty-five years imprisonment for a crime he didn’t commit, but instead of eating carb-heavy meals while trapped in a 68 cell, he has been living a non-corporeal existence in the land of Fae. His punishment has been reliving memories from his first fifteen years of life for their entertainment while his body has been on loan, used by a Fae in the mundane world.

“Just seeing those shapes and colors without having to manifest them from my own memory was Finn is about to breathe free air after twenty-five years imprisonment for a crime he didn’t commit, but instead of eating carb-heavy meals while trapped in a 6×8 cell, he has been living a non-corporeal existence in the land of Fae. His punishment has been reliving memories from his first fifteen years of life for their entertainment while his body has been on loan, used by a Fae in the mundane world.

“Just seeing those shapes and colors without having to manifest them from my own memory was enough to bring tears to my eyes. Actually, it caused butterflies to leak from the jewel-like lights that floated in the blob that served as my head, but the point is, it was damn good to see Earth again.”

In the midst of transfer to his now forty-year old body, something attacks the party, killing his warden and possibly a fellow parolee. Shortly after, Finn discovers a dead body in the trailer his body’s been living in.

“Perhaps I should have been more shocked by the body, but I wasn’t. Maybe because I still felt numb from the events of the transfer… Or maybe I really was just stunned by the gaudy awfulness of the changling’s tastes. It was like Rainbow Brite had been given a BeDazzler, a flock of shedding peacocks, and a credit card and told to go crazy.”

When he discovers the identity of the body, he realizes he’s being framed. He heads home to the family residence and business, certain that he’ll find help–as well as the person responsible for his imprisonment. Magical law enforcement finds him at home and gives him three days before they’ll take him in and scour his memories.

Urban fantasy can be hit or miss for me, but Henderson has something good going. Given the three day frame, the plot moves quickly. Although the focus is discovering who framed Finn, it’s more a journey of self-discovery/growth than supernatural mystery. Finn is distracted by catching up with friends and family, but perseverance pays off. Regarding plot, I might have seen a double-cross coming from Mt. Rainier, but it was only a small piece of the overall plot. Essentially a modern setting with magic that the “mundies” know nothing about, world-building is nicely integrated with the story line.

Characterization is engaging, if somewhat preoccupied with the self-discovery arc. Finn admits he is immature in many ways. But he’s also gained some insight, so he’s an interesting mix of fifteen and forty. Adjusting to his aged father and siblings, as well as his new niece, gives a chance to observe others as an outsider, comparing memories to the new reality. It feels nicely real, with the exception of his somewhat simple brother Petey, who is convinced he’s a waerwolf. Still, their relationship is sweet.

“After all the things about my life and the world that I’d found changed in the last few hours, all the things I’d realized were lost to me during my exile, Pete’s trust in me as his big brother was comforting, and I found myself wiping tears from my cheeks.”

As should be evident from the quotes, there’s also a lot of humor, as well as more than a few 1980s references. As a confused, shocked, sort-of teenager who is magically and physically underpowered, I thought it was a lot more appropriate than many other lead characters, say, for instance, a forty year-old urban wizard. Worth noting for those who are detail-oriented--I tend to not be overly hung up on logistics--but as I was re-reading, it occurred to me that a few of Finn’s comments are inappropriately current. A character who takes after Mr. T and overuses the word “fool” grows a little tiresome, but otherwise it should entertain those who feel a little 80s nostalgia.

“Zeke conked Mort on the head with the baton, not hard enough to cause any bleeding or sleepy time, but damn, that must have hurt anyway. ‘OW!’ Mort shouted, confirming the hurtiness.”

There’s something about it that just misses me. Could be a plot issue, could be a mood issue. I'm fonder of the police procedural than the self-discovery arc. There’s definitely re-read potential, but I’ll likely be focused on the next book. Tone reminds me of Huff’s Enchantment Emporium. I’d highly recommend this for fans of urban fantasy.

Plus, that title! So lyrical–I can’t tell you how often I started chanting, “Finn Fancy Necromancy.” ...more

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Jan 29, 2015 seak rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2015, audio, arc-review

Finn Fancy Necromancy is exactly as fun as its title suggests. From the second sentence, "We were like a couple of floating melted gummy bears made of unicorn snot and dreams..." I knew I was in good hands. In fact, even before that, in the acknowledgments when Henderson talks about his "butt-slapping doctor" I knew Henderson's humor was going to click with me, and it did.

Finn Gramaraye is a necromancer who's just come back from exile to the "Other Realm," aka the fairy world. He was sent there Finn Fancy Necromancy is exactly as fun as its title suggests. From the second sentence, "We were like a couple of floating melted gummy bears made of unicorn snot and dreams..." I knew I was in good hands. In fact, even before that, in the acknowledgments when Henderson talks about his "butt-slapping doctor" I knew Henderson's humor was going to click with me, and it did.

Finn Gramaraye is a necromancer who's just come back from exile to the "Other Realm," aka the fairy world. He was sent there in 1986 and spent 25 years as punishment for a crime he didn't commit. Coming back, the problems already begin to add up and he's already to blame for just about everything under the sun.

Told from the first person, we have no reason to disbelieve him, though his memories have been a source of many of the problems he encounters, whether it's the fairies sifting his memories (good and bad) and making him relive them, or the changeling's lack of memories with a botched spirit transfer.

Other than a small overuse of Star Trek references at the beginning, this book hit my funny bone quite nicely. Because Finn has been away since the 80s and this is first person, there are loads of 80s references, including, and I can't say I recognized every single one, all the chapter titles are 80s song titles.

It's definitely urban fantasy, but not your tween, new-age kind what with all its 80s focus. And it's urban fantasy that really worked for me (I'm an on-off fan). The magic was interesting and the different sources make for a well-thought-out world.

The only thing, and I realize I might be the only one on this since I've seen it so much, is the incorporation of famous people (like Elvis, etc.) who were actually magic-users/magic creatures whose mysterious factual stories play well into a story like this. Like I said, I'm probably the only one and it wasn't enough to really throw me out of the story, it was only a couple instances.

One thing I'm torn on is that the "twist" at the end was almost blatantly obvious about midway through the book. I don't know if it was just the audio narration, or maybe on page would have been more obvious. I enjoyed the book regardless, because it wasn't really all that big a deal and the major mysteries still needed solving.

Finn Fancy Necromancy is tons of fun and highly readable. I listened to the audio version and Todd Haberkorn did an excellent job. Just vulnerable enough to pull off Finn and nailing all the jokes and off-hand remarks in between voicing Sasquatches and gnomes.

Which reminds me, I highly enjoyed the magical creatures in this one. Not your typical ones, but they played into the story nicely. Read Finn Fancy Necromancy when you're in the mood for some light-hearted fun with a fast-paced story that will keep you turning pages. Not your typical urban fantasy in the best possible way.

4 out of 5 Stars (highly recommended) ...more

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Apr 04, 2017 Lauren (Shakespeare & Whisky) rated it liked it

Shelves: 3-and-4-star-books, fantasy

A fun mystery set in a fantasy world. The dialogue and language could be a little rough but overall this book was a great little gem.

Tons of fun, an interesting premise, clever world building.

The 3 stars isn't because there was anything majorly flawed about it. It just wasn't the sort of book that inspires intense feelings. It is occasionally funny, sometimes sweet but ultimately forgettable.

A good palate- cleanser between meatier reads. :)

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Nov 07, 2017 Olivia "So many books--so little time."" rated it did not like it

This book didn't thrill me so I didn't finish it. I just couldn't get into it.

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Apr 03, 2015 Nikki rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy

The cover, with the classic gaming-like characters on it, suggests something… I don’t know, playful and referential. A fantasy equivalent to Ready Player One, perhaps. And a lot of people seem to have found that in it, calling it “dark and quirky”, noting the humour and the originality of it. I didn’t find it to be so; I could predict each turn of the story, and the characters didn’t endear themselves to me. The set-up is okay: guy has been imprisoned in an alternate realm for years for a crime ...more

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Dec 18, 2014 Briar's Reviews rated it really liked it

Shelves: magic, fiction, crime-mystery-suspense, first-reads-giveaways, fantasy-supernatural, guilty-pleasure, series, drama, first-reads-giveaways-2015

My novel is an uncorrected advance reading copy, so be aware some of the novel may have changed by the time it was published.

Finn Fancy Necromancy was a great fantasy read that kept me interested for most of the book! I did seem to think it was 100 pages to long, since I got bored by page 300, but it was still a good read!

Finn Gramaraye is a necromancer who was framed for dark necromancy when he was fifteen. Now he is out of the Other Realm jail and is free, but it's twenty-five years later. My novel is an uncorrected advance reading copy, so be aware some of the novel may have changed by the time it was published.

Finn Fancy Necromancy was a great fantasy read that kept me interested for most of the book! I did seem to think it was 100 pages to long, since I got bored by page 300, but it was still a good read!

Finn Gramaraye is a necromancer who was framed for dark necromancy when he was fifteen. Now he is out of the Other Realm jail and is free, but it's twenty-five years later. Despite all this time passing, someone is still trying to frame him, and even send him back!

His family is quite strange, since his brother Mort runs the family business, his brother Pete thinks he's a werewolf, his sister is allergic to magic, and now he's met some new friends like a fellow exiled man, and two women he might have had crushes on in the past. Finn still has his fifteen year old memories, but nothing of what has changed since. This adds to a lot of the drama!

The group have to try to figure out who is framing Finn and the family, and trying to hurt everyone.

The novel starts out very slowly, and it took about 100 pages for me to get into the story. Once I got through the boring retelling of everything that happened to Finn's family when he was gone, and the boring stories about the past, I got attached to the story. After about two hundred pages of good action, drama and a pinch of romance, the story becomes repetitive and boring. Rehearing Finn having a crush on someone, and the retelling of the past yet again, I felt like some of the novel could have been deleted to make it a very addicting and fast read.

The plot itself is well planned, and the character development was great! I liked how Finn matured over the novel from a fifteen year old to an adult. I also enjoyed the plot twists and whacky characters!

Overall, I felt like the novel retold aspects of the story to much. I could have lived without the retelling of the past over and over.

Four out of five stars!

I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads. ...more

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Jun 28, 2017 wishforagiraffe rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2017, audiobooks

This book is deliciously hilarious.

Finn, the protagonist, has been out of the world, stuck in exile in fairyland, for 25 years. He's a great fish out of water character when he returns, because the world has changed so much without him, and he's kind of a giant nerd.

It's a great big mystery story, wrapped up in an urban fantasy, set in the Pacific Northwest. The cast of characters is really diverse, both in temperament and the traditional meaning of the word, and there are plenty of shades of ...more

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Dec 15, 2014 Tabitha rated it really liked it

Shelves: magic, fantasy, for-review-received-from-publisher, own, debut, comedy, urban-fantasy, tor

Finn Fancy Necromancy was a delightful read complete with humor, heart and 80s pop references. It’s a book plenty of urban fantasy fans will enjoy.

I’m old and have hair…everywhere

Finn was exiled to the fey realm for something he didn’t do (attempted murder) when he was 15 years old. While there he was forced to relive all of his memories over and over again so the fey could feed off of his emotions. Now 25 years later his exile is over, he’s back home and he’s, oh jeez, old – and eegads…hairy! Finn Fancy Necromancy was a delightful read complete with humor, heart and 80s pop references. It’s a book plenty of urban fantasy fans will enjoy.

I’m old and have hair…everywhere

Finn was exiled to the fey realm for something he didn’t do (attempted murder) when he was 15 years old. While there he was forced to relive all of his memories over and over again so the fey could feed off of his emotions. Now 25 years later his exile is over, he’s back home and he’s, oh jeez, old – and eegads…hairy! Ok 40 isn’t really old – he does have a hairy back though. Eww. haha Imagine that as the reaction of a 15 year old. Anyways…those particular circumstances of the age he was exiled at and the age he is now gave his character and this book a very unique feel. Because Finn still very much has the emotional mentality of a teenager at times. He just feels young but he’s an adult and he’s trying to balance that out. There is SOO much that he has missed. It really gave the book a comedic feel at times what with his naive behavior and awe at things he encounters now that he is back. I enjoyed the effect this had on the character’s narrative, plus I love all things 80s and there were enough references and some slang that hit my sweet spot.

Finn is from a family of necromancers that run a mortuary business. I know cool right. And he has the rare ability to Talk to the dead. The downside…when you do that it eats some of your life away. So maybe not so cool after all. The way the supernatural community and fey creatures exist in this world was really cool. A unique and yet familiar setup for an urban fantasy. There are all sorts of creatures and a number of which I hadn’t yet encountered in other urban fantasy books yet.

Let’s crash this party

What a fun cast of characters! Seriously Finn’s family brings a whole new level of WTF to the phrase dysfunctional family. His father talks in nothing but rhymes and riddles. His brother Mort is a power hungry jerk, his sister Sammy is allergic to magic, his mother is dead but her ghost still haunts the house and his younger brother Petey thinks he’s a werewolf (because of a prank Finn and Mort played on him when he was a kid.) Throw in an outrageous best friend / neighbor, an old high school flame, a mohawked enforcer with the habit of ending sentences with “fool” and his waer sister – and you quite the interesting mix of folks that go together just right. I had so much fun with all of them and was pleased to find each very well developed.

What else is in store for readers

(view spoiler)

Really there isn’t any reason you shouldn’t be reading Finn Fancy Necromancy. It was heaps of fun and I was surprised to find at the end it tugged at my heartstrings. I can’t wait to see what else is in store for Finn and company. ...more

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Apr 23, 2015 Heidi rated it really liked it

Four stars: An original, quirky and funny Urban Fantasy full of 1980's humor.

Finn is eagerly looking forward to returning to the living realm. In 1986 when Finn was fifteen years old, he was accused and framed for a murder he supposedly committed with dark necromancy. Finn's spirit was exiled to the Other Realm, the land of the fey. Meanwhile, a fey changeling inhabited his human body. Upon his return, the changeling will transfer his memories of the last twenty five years to Finn. ...more

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Jan 13, 2015 Judy Lesley rated it really liked it

Shelves: fantasy, humor, mystery

There was a tasty tidbit of this novel offered on NetGalley so I did the download to my Kindle and was just going to take a little peek to see what it was all about. Well......as book lovers everywhere can confirm, that was just me playing tricks on myself. No way could I stop reading once I had begun. There are eight chapters in this excerpt which is a healthy amount. Definitely enough to let me know I want to read the remainder of the book.

Our hero, Finn, was sent away to the Other Realm ...more

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Feb 13, 2015 Blodeuedd Finland rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: urban-fantasy

Poor Finn, at 15 he was exiled for 25 years. 25 years of being nothing and getting sucked dry of memories by the Fey. 25 years for a murder he did not commit.

But now he is back. Something went wrong and he has no idea how the world has changed. He still wonders who framed him and now someone is after him.

This was a urban fantasy that felt..dunno, just different. Finn comes home to his strange necromancy family. His sister without powers, his brother who thinks he is a were (though there are ...more

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Apr 02, 2018 Roy marked it as did-not-finish

Not going to rate this. I just found it very mediocre as compared to other UF novels. I also found the humour too repetitive. Kinda became annoying. Got to page 101 but couldnt go further on. Better books to read.

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Mar 19, 2016 Jason rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: read-2016, e-books

4 Stars

Finn Fancy Necromancy by Randy Henderson is a fun urban fantasy and coming of age story. The plot and the characters are fun and make this an easy read. This is a story that is appropriate for the young adult crowd while not feeling like it was written for them.

This book is filled with 80's references, heck every chapter title is an 80's song title. These references fit with our main character and add to the flavor and fun of the book without being an homage that is shoved down our ...more

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Jan 14, 2015 Alysa H. rated it liked it

Shelves: netgalley

ETA, 30 April 2015:
Well, I've read the whole book! I feel pretty similarly towards the whole as I did towards the first 1/3 of it. It's very funny, with great pop cultural references and jokes. I still wish the magical system was a bit more consistent and a bit better explained (preferably earlier on). I have to admit that I enjoyed the humor and the family dynamics a lot more than the ostensible "mystery" plot, the romance(s) made Finn seem a little Marty Stuish, and some of the characters' ...more

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Jan 13, 2015 Spencer Ellsworth rated it it was amazing

Funny, fun quirky fantasy full of 80s in-jokes, Pacific Northwest locations, (including the fey equivalent of World War II fought at Port Townsend's Fort Worden) and great character moments. This is one for a nice afternoon off when you want to smile and laugh and love a fantasy book. However, the ending does have a good barb in it that takes the characters seriously, making this a true character story and not just a satire.

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Feb 01, 2015 Kimberly [Come Hither Books] rated it it was amazing

Shelves: fantasy, urban-fantasy, light-and-funny, series-to-continue, 2015, reviewed-on-blog

Finn Fancy Necromancy will make you laugh, with:
* oddball humor and a wise-cracking sarcastic narrator
* a world of deadly gnomes and assassin sasquatches
* 80s pop culture nostalgia in a quirky urban fantasy

4.5 stars. Not absolutely perfect, but wow did I enjoy it. I'm not sure if it will be a standalone or a series, but if there are more, I'm in.

Read the full review at Come Hither Books

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Apr 04, 2017 Jennifer Wheeler rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: urban-fantasy, home-library, paranormal

I wasn't terribly impressed by the first 1/3 of this book. It did perk my interest after that, but it still wasn't super "gripping". The title is what drew me in, and I really wanted to love it, but it fell a bit short of my expectations. I did enjoy the inclusion of various magical creatures/beings, and the unique spin on Necromancy magic.

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Feb 23, 2015 Mir rated it liked it

Shelves: fantasy

Hmm, this sounds a bit like a more Bizarro version of Hold Me Closer, Necromancer. Sign me up!

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Mar 12, 2018 Unwisely rated it liked it

Shelves: 2018, urban-fantasy

I wanted to like this book more than I did. But ... man. It wasn't bad, I just didn't love it as much as I wanted to.

Part of my problem was a 15 year old in a 40 year old's body. 15 year olds are - as you may recall from your own experience - not anything like 40 year olds. And expecting him to be able to interact with his peers who had actually lived the missing 25 year seems like it would be worse. (I have this problem when a 100+ year old vampire is hitting on a teenager. Whyyyyyyyyy?)

...more

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Mar 11, 2018 Marko Simunovic rated it really liked it

A fun amalgamation of pretty much whatever you can think of in terms of fantasy and sci fi. Fast paced and often times hilarious it provides a much appreciated change of pace for fantasy material.

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Jan 17, 2015 Sabs rated it really liked it

Shelves: setting-alternate-parallel-univers, powers-of-some-sort, urban-fantasy

(I received a preview of this from Macmillan-Tor/Forge via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review)

Okay, I'm going to be honest with you: when I saw the title of this book and read the blurb, I wasn't really expecting much. I was bored, so I decided to read it anyway. Hell, I thought, it might even be good.

Turns out, it was great. Tor, I shouldn't have doubted you. You would never publish a dud book.

The main character is a guy named Finn, a wise-cracking, sarcastic necromancer who has a (I received a preview of this from Macmillan-Tor/Forge via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review)

Okay, I'm going to be honest with you: when I saw the title of this book and read the blurb, I wasn't really expecting much. I was bored, so I decided to read it anyway. Hell, I thought, it might even be good.

Turns out, it was great. Tor, I shouldn't have doubted you. You would never publish a dud book.

The main character is a guy named Finn, a wise-cracking, sarcastic necromancer who has a hell of a lot of problems piling up and up. This guys luck, or lack of it, had me wincing in sympathy. I mean, come on! The day you get released from 25 years of exile with mind-fucking Fey, some dude decides to fuck you over and frame you for murder! Tough, man. There's a good sense of mystery in this as well; you kind of suspect everyone from Mort to Jimmy to Pete of being the bad guy. We haven't really seen much of the other characters so far, aside from Mort. The mystery offered to us is pretty shrouded in obscurity, as well as being shady as heck. Who could've framed Finn? And why? What happened with Felicity all those years ago? Will there be all-out war with the Fey?

The world building in this is pretty good as well. Fey and Arcana, magi and ARC, enforcers and mundanes. We even get a glimpse of social justice activism from Finn's sister, Sammy. The waerwolf support group bit got me chuckling. There seems to be a pretty solid world in the story that is built upon by the author. I liked the little insight into the politics of the ARC and the magi, a series of checks and balances. The Miami Vice references were entertaining as well.

So far, what we've been offered is the story of a man trying to get back on his feet and recover from the trauma of being exiled for a quarter of a century, plus clear his name and try not to get killed. Also, a murder mystery and assassin sasquatches! Yeahhhh.

The preview offered merely a tantalising glimpse into the story, a tease, a lure to get us to read the rest of the book when it comes out. And it works. ...more

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Dec 20, 2014 C. Hardwick rated it it was amazing

Randy Henderson has hit the proverbial toboggan out of the wallrus park with this one, and that takes some doing as you might imagine.

I bought this book because I know Randy. I finished it because it's good. Really good. He's written a sassy main character who's a little bit retro, a little bit lost puppy, and a little bit superhero sunflower waiting to bloom. Finn's a teenager who's just about to confess his first love when who gets framed for dark magic and sent into spirit exile. On the day ...more

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Jan 12, 2015 Nyarlathotep Twelfth Month The Haunted Reading Room rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: a1-netgalley, 2015_reads, february_2015_reads, all-sci-fi-my-challenge, armchair-pacificnw-us, a1-i-own-books

Review: FINN FANCY NECROMANCY [preview] by Randy Henderson

Imprisoned in Fae for a quarter-century for Necromancy he did NOT commit, poor Finn's set-up continues: at the moment of his release to Earth, an enforcer appears in an assassination attempt on Finn's changeling, who has taken his place for the past twenty-five years. As the portal is closing, Finn must barrel through without recovering the changeling's memories of Finn's life; or remain in Fae, perhaps forever. Someone really means to ...more

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Dec 18, 2014 Felix rated it it was amazing

I really enjoyed this! The story moves fast & has the whole time travel/ amnesia twist going. The only problem is the cliff-hanger ending. I'm really looking forward to the next story! I almost didn't read this because of the book's title - I'm so glad i did!

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Dec 26, 2014 Bruce Deming rated it really liked it

What is Finn's Fancy?

Finn has been denied existence, exiled to the Other Realm for 25 years when a teen thereby losing contact with his friends, family and potential significant other or mate during this whole time.

Finn has a lot of catching up to do when he returns to existence as changeling
and tries to resurrect all he cares for as an older adult with a twenty five year gap in what's been happening while gone.

His family has the appearance in the human world of being Morticians, but it the ...more

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Sep 17, 2014 Misha rated it it was amazing

Shelves: doorway-plot, doorway-place, nw-author, doorway-people, friendship, family-secrets, fantasy, funny, ghost, debut

I loved this! A fun, witty urban fantasy debut set in Washington State. Finn is exiled in the Fey's Other Realm for 25 years at the age of 15 when he is accused of a murder. He returns to his family after he is released from exile to the family necrotorium in Port Townsend. Finn makes constant references to the 80s, as he missed 25 years of updates, and each chapter is named after another classic 80s song. Since I am a total sucker for anything 80s, the Goonies references and more were music to ...more

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Feb 28, 2018 CA rated it really liked it

Shelves: read-in-2018, cute

I loved this book, it's silly and fun, pretty much like the title suggests! The story is interesting and you have a whole bunch of characters to like or dislike. A lovely story that I've now suggested to a few people to read. It's just a fun book with a whole bunch of ridiculousness to brighten up your day!

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Dec 18, 2015 Jon Schafle rated it really liked it

Shelves: fantasy, humor

This was a fun read, I enjoyed the humor and abundance of 80's references! Although there were some continuity issues and some other slight complaints I thought it was an awesome first book for the series and I'm interested to see where it goes from here.

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Mar 29, 2018 Georgie rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

This is a wonderful kind of lighthearted urban fantasy novel. It's set in the world pretty much as we know it only magic is real. There are humans with magical abilities called 'arcana'. Arcana humans have particular abilities which they use both for magical purposes and sometimes to enhance their mundane-world jobs. Then there are the Fey, magical beings who inhabit the Other Realm. Most arcana hate the Fey and view them as inferior at best and dangerous at worst.

Our hero, Finn, is a ...more

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Mar 03, 2015 Jasper rated it it was amazing

Shelves: read-in-2015, fairytale, epic-fantasy, tor, titan-books, urban-fantasy, supernatural

originally posted at: http://thebookplank.blogspot.com/2015...

Sometimes I want to read a book just due to it's title. If you hear the title Finn Fancy Necromancy, it already should pull on you interest, it sound pretty cool in my opinion. Add the synopsis of the book and you should be totally taken! Finn Fancy Necromancy is Randy Henderson's debut, and to be honest, the with the level of skill in writing that he shows you wouldn't say that at all. Granted he has written several short fiction originally posted at: http://thebookplank.blogspot.com/2015...

Sometimes I want to read a book just due to it's title. If you hear the title Finn Fancy Necromancy, it already should pull on you interest, it sound pretty cool in my opinion. Add the synopsis of the book and you should be totally taken! Finn Fancy Necromancy is Randy Henderson's debut, and to be honest, the with the level of skill in writing that he shows you wouldn't say that at all. Granted he has written several short fiction stories prior to Finn Fancy Necromancy, that still is different than a full length novel. There are a lot of books published withing the Urban Fantasy genre but I have to say that Finn Fancy (I am going to shorten it) is a truly unique addition to it, having many dark influences but also plenty of humorous additions keeping the storyline highly enjoyable to read, some of the scenes will definitely make you laugh out loud.

Randy Henderson starts of the story of Finn Fancy in a most interesting way. It starts with Finn returning from his twenty five year long exile in the Other Realm, for a crime he didn't commit. He was exiled in person and not in-person. When you get exiled to the Other Realm, you concious gets exiled and a changeling takes over your body in real life. How COOL is that? So, Finn has aged, the changeling made memories for him. These memories get merged when Finn gets out of exile, however, when the transfer is made there is an interference, well more of an attack on Finn, and something goes wrong. Finn does manage to get back to his body but without the memories made by the changeling... Now being back in his actually body but in a completely different time zone Finn is presented with a terrible culture shock. Added to this comes the fact that this attack on him has raised Finn's own alarms. He was framed twenty five years ago and what could the coincidence be of an attack on him as soon as he sets foot once again in the mortal world? Luckily, even with his long exile, Finn isn't alone, he still has a big family to go to. Just as with Finn, his family also likes to dabble in the dark arts, all his family members has some relation to magic. His brother Mort for one kept up running the family necrotorium. Necromancy in the current world is considered a magical practice of less savory means, it's dabbling with the dead. Finn is the only living person of the Gramaraye family who still has one legal gift, that of being a Talker. Yes Finn is able to communicate with the dead. Could this gift have brought him in trouble? From Finn's return to the current world it is one heck of a wild goosechase for Finn to find out precisely who is out to get him. He has to avoid Fae, changelings, gnomes and Sasquatches on the go. Very eventful!

All that I mention here does point into a dark direction, do trust me when I say that there is enough humor added to it. Somehow it reminds me a bit of the dark humor that Steven Erikson has in his Bauchelain books, though in a more contemporary setting though. As I already mentioned there are a lot of humorous moments in this book, most are owed to the unique world in which this book takes place but also due to the main protagonist, Finn. He has a unique view on the world and lets not forget the culture shock of being imprisoned twenty five years in the Fae world. Somethings do not change though like g-mail. Now don't go thinking of the popular Google mail, no, in the olden days mail was sent via gnomes. (Do you get it Gnome mail = g-mail. there are a lot more of these jokes riddled throughout the book. Come to think of it there is funny moment on every page of the book.

Now as for the characters. Finn is a terrific character, I loved the guy! He casual approach to certain problems, the issues that he has with women, like the first situation with Dawn and Heather and the follow, it was funny to read but the way that Finn reacted was most manly. Finn also has a lot on his plate. A dysfunctional family, he is hunted by someone or something he doesn't know (which he collectively called "Legion" you have to give it a name don't you?), and a BIG cultural shock, he only knows stuff from the 80's and tries to relate to it, like the Commodore and how he played games on it when he was 15. Next to FInn there is also a nice highlight on several family members of him. Like Pete for example. Pete thinks he is a waerwolf, well he believes it more because his family made him, it goes wayback, but boils down to that Pete still takes a potion to suppress his waer rages. Mort, Finn's brother is also an interesting addition, they have a very brotherly relation, Mort also gave Finn his nickname Finn Fancy Necromancy Pants, so you can see that there is some rapscallion behavior between the two I could clearly see them wrestling on the ground. However Finn doesn't really trust Morts motives at the moment, which adds a nice layer to their relation. Next up there are two women in Finn's live Dawn and Heather. If you met both of them you will seriously stick to that women only bring trouble... All in all a very lively character cast that completely finishes the whole story.

As I mentioned above Randy Henderson's debut is cool. It's unique, though provoking and a whole lot of fun to read. I read some humorous fiction before by Christopher Moore and Tom Holt, who play into a contemporary setting with fantasy elements and I am happy to add Finn Fancy to the succeeded list. Finn Fancy has everything you could have wished for in such a book. But compared with the others it does has a bit of a darker setting, owing to the necromancy influence. The world that Randy Henderson managed to create is always in motion and luckily Finn never runs out of breath. There are a lot of big and bold ideas hidden within the storyline that for me all worked out. You could clearly see the enthusiasm of Randy Henderson dripping of the pages, though I can imagine that for some it might be to much. My opinion does remain unchanged: Finn Fancy Necromancy is a terrific read, it's dark and gritty and funny at the same time, I had a blast reading it. And I am still smirking about some of the jokes made by Finn! ...more

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About Randy Henderson

Randy Henderson

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Randy Henderson's "dark and quirky" contemporary fantasy series from TOR (US) and Titan (UK) includes Finn Fancy Necromancy, Bigfootloose & Finn Fancy Free, and Smells Like Finn Spirit.

Randy's short fiction has been spotted frolicking in places like Penumbra, Escape Pod, Realms of Fantasy, Every Day Fiction, and anthologies.

He is a grand prize winner of Writers of the Future, a Clarion West ...more

Other books in the series

Finn Fancy Necromancy (3 books)

Books by Randy Henderson

Bigfootloose and Finn Fancy Free (Finn Fancy Necromancy, #2)

Smells Like Finn Spirit (Finn Fancy Necromancy #3)

L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future Volume 30

The Usual Path to Publication: 27 stories about 27 ways in

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Quotes from Finn Fancy Necrom...

“Gipetto decided he wanted the company of a young mundy maiden in his village. But he'd been lying to her about many thyings to hide the fact that he wan an arcana, and she'd begun to distrust him. So he made her a simple puppet out of wood that could talk, and if made to tell a lie, it's bulbous nose would grow long. He took the puppet to her, demonstrated its use, and had her ask the puppet if Gipetto loved her and if he would care for her always. These were not lies, not that a wooden puppet could tell, and Gipetto was wealth from selling his inventions, so they were married with her family's eager encouragement. But on those nights when Gipetto was away traveling and selling his wares, the neighbors swear they would hear the young woman telling the puppet to lie, and then tell the truth, over and over and over again. Because, you see, sometimes a girl wants the truth and sometimes she doesn't, as long as it makes her feel good." Mother laughed and patted my head, or at least she made the motions. "Someday, you'll understand, Finn.” — 1 likes

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