Rivers of London: Night Witch #3 continues to make it abundantly apparent that, should you go to the trouble to try kidnapping a witch, you should listen to her advice. Now, the would-be kidnappers are digging themselves even deeper into trouble, supernatural and otherwise. The family of a stolen child has turned to the Faceless Man and Peter’s former partner, Lesley May. Their advice has led to them taking Nightingale prisoner and angering the entire London police force, plus one or two supernatural creatures. The little girl is still missing, and this issue finds Peter looking for her as well as Nightingale. The matter is now a tangle of police, witches, the unknown power of the Faceless Man, personal ties, and perhaps a leshy. To tell the truth, this kind of excitement is pretty normal in the Rivers of London tales, that’s what makes them so interesting.
Ben Aaronovitch, writing with Andrew Cartmel, has produced a comic book that fits easily in the canon. The events, character responses, and world are entirely recognizable. Also, it is plain exciting, with a multi-layered case and plenty of strong personalities involved.
Sullivan’s art is solid, giving a good impression if individuals and actions, though picking up less of the emotional work than it could. It is good to see Peter’s London and to get a glimpse of a River goddess at work.
Rivers of London: Night Witch is very firmly part of the Rivers of London series. Readers unfamiliar with the books will be able to follow the arc of this particular case, but there are appearances and points of view that will resonate more deeply with those who have read the series.
Rivers of London: Night Witch takes place between Foxglove Summer (already out) and The Hanging Tree (now scheduled for October 2016). I recommend the comic book and novels both to lovers of mystery, magic, and police work.
Writers: Ben Aaronovitch & Andrew Cartmel
Artist: Lee Sullivan
Colors: Luis Guerrero
