The Last Smile in Sunder City

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What to expect

The Last Smile in Sunder City is a brilliantly voiced contemporary fantasy for fans of Ben Aaronovitch, Rotherweird or Terry Pratchett's Discworld, and the debut novel from high-profile actor Luke Arnold.

Fetch Phillips fought on the wrong side of a war between humans and magical creatures, and his actions helped to drain the world of enchantment. Now he works on the streets of Sunder City, taking what odd jobs he can while trying to help those whose lives he ruined.

His first case is to find a missing teacher. Professor Rye is a four-hundred-year-old vampire with a heart of gold in a husk of a body. In a world without magic, most vamps have already crumbled into dust, but Fetch is happy to go looking for some dirt with pointed teeth if it gets him his drinking money. Then, when a young siren disappears, Fetch finds out that this dark world still hides some monsters - and he'd better clean up his act before they come into the light.

Critics Review

This off-piste detective story set in a magical world, now in meltdown, has verve and charm in abundance and a rough diamond hero with quite a story to tell.In short, an actor's dramatic voice has found a pen which can write
Andrew Caldecott, author of ROTHERWEIRD
Sunder City [is] an evocative creation, it has echoes of Ankh-Morpork, but also a broken melancholy all of its own
This book was a marvellous noir voice; Luke Arnold has captured the spirit of the genre perfectly and wrapped it around a fantasy setting with consummate skill
Peter McLean, author of PRIEST OF BONES
[A] standout debut . . . winningly combining the grit of Chinatown with the quirky charm of Harry Potter, this series opener is sure to have readers coming back for more
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The first instalment of an effortlessly readable series that could be the illegitimate love child of Terry Pratchett and Dashiell Hammett
Kirkus

User Reviews

Book 4.0
Narration 4.5
4.0
4.0
erstwhiley 28/10/2025
4.0
5.0
mia_josie 01/01/2025

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