Review: Urban Fantasy - Rogue Wizard Division - New York City Section
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 03 27, 2014
Michel Wibert is a special kind of New Yorker.  It seems he has the gift to see the gods, demons and jinn that walk unrecognized thorough the streets of New York.See, that hot bartender?  She's actually the withered crone nature goddess Baba Yaga.And if you had the ability, you could hear the wail of the jinn has he passes from body to body without end.Because of his ability, Michel has become a trader of favors and enchanted objects, which he puts to good use in keeping track of the supernatural in New York.I thought this was a generally fun book. It's mode of stitching together short stories reminded me of Manly Wade Wellman's "Silver John" stories - a quick dip into a problem, a clever resolution, and out for the next story.  In fact, though, the story make up a story arc and are interconnected. So, in some ways it reads like a choppy novel.I liked Michel best in his role of purely-human trader of favors.  When he started acquiring too much power, such as extending his will to work different kinds of magics through his supernatural fetishes, which he keeps under his jacket along with his Desert Eagle pistols, I thought he was following the trite convention of a character who keep accumulating random powers until he's "nigh invincible."  I thought that would take him from his "trader of favors" role, which would make the story less interesting.Nonetheless, the writing is crisp, the stories are inventive and the characters are engaging.  "The New York Magician" is well worth the price and time for a little reading diversion.