Tales from the Folly: A Rivers of London Short Story Collection

First of all let me say I LOVE this series. Each of the full length books is a delight in its own way. (I might add, though it is better to read them in order, if any newcomers happen to read this.). I was sooooooo excited to see that Tales of the Folly was finally out. I bought it immediately without reading any reviews. The Good things: The introduction before each entry in Tales is very helpful and puts the entry in the chronological order. 2). For the most part, the entries are about the characters/world that River people have come to know and love. The VERY BAD: These entries, for the most part, read like editing out takes from the full length books. or 2) The entries were idea drafts for other books that didn''t go. This is not to say that they are badly written, its just that the story just. . . stops abruptly when you KNOW there should be more!

This is not a short story collection, it’s a collection of teases. The author starts what seems like it would be the beginning of something interesting and then just stops! Annoying. Don’t waste your money.

I was heartened by author Ben Aaronovitch’s closing note on page 135, which—during this horrible pandemic in the States—I greatly appreciate. See below.“Until then, good luck, stay safe and keep the faith. —Ben Aaronovitch June 2020Thank you, Ben A! I wish you the same.I love having the Peter Grant stories together, especially the Kindle version of “A Rare Book of Cunning Device,” which was an Audible special. I enjoyed the stories about the Rivers of London’s secondary characters. There’s toddler god Lugg’s introduction to Dominic, Victor, and the three Teme goddesses. There are many good stories, but also a few I skimmed, including “A Dedicated Follower of Fashion.” It features disreputable people called the Deplorables, a name with a different and yet a similar sorta flavor here in the States. On the lighter side, this fashion story introduces Wanda, a baby genius locorum of the River Wandle, a tributary of the River Thames.I skimmed The Moments, which are very short, short stories. I’m looking forward to hearing Kobna Holbrook-Smith narrate this audiobook. I’m re-reading Ben A’s introductions to the stories—and his hints of books, novellas, etc. to come.

This is a collection of short stories from Aaronovitch's marvelous Rivers of London, a series that blends urban fantasy and detective work. I love the series. I loved spending more time with the characters as I read this collection. I do not, however, think that it's the best introduction to Rivers of London. My preexisting fondness for the characters is part of why I liked these stories. Plus I think new readers might be mildly confused about the set up. Instead I'd highly recommend beginning with the first novel, variously titled "Midnight Riot" and "Rivers of London."The first half of the book consists of stories narrated by Peter Grant, the main protagonist of the series. The second half contains stories from the perspective of the supporting cast. My favorite Peter Grant story was "The Cockpit" -- it would have been hard for me not to love a Peter Grant story that centers on bookshops and reading. My favorite of the remaining stories was "Favourite Uncle," a story that made me even fonder of Abigail than I already was, Abigail being a high schooler who wormed her way into a position as an apprentice magical practioner. With the single exception of "A Dedicated Follower of Fashion," I enjoyed every story. I wish there were more. Highly recommended for fans of Rivers of London. For those not already fans, I repeat my recommendation to begin the series at book one.About my reviews: I try to review every book I read, including those that I don't end up enjoying. The reviews are not scholarly, but just indicate my reaction as a reader, reading being my addiction. I am miserly with 5-star reviews; 4 stars means I liked a book very much; 3 stars means I liked it; 2 stars means I didn't like it (though often the 2-star books are very popular with other readers and/or are by authors whose other work I've loved).

I read this collection in one go and thoroughly enjoyed Aaronovitch's introduction of new characters and locations. Am really looking forward to the extension of his numinous London into new areas involving these fascinating characters and concepts.

It’s always a joy when a new Rivers book comes out. These short stories fill in holes, pose new questions, and make you want more. My only quibble is one of the stories (“King of Rats”) ends abruptly with the plot dangling. I don’t know if that was intentional, an oversight, or a Kindle problem.Note that this collection includes new work, stories included as special additions to print volumes, and “Moments” from Ben Aaronovitch’s website. Regardless, it’s well worth having.

A great companion piece to the Peter Grant/ Rivers of London series, fleshing out the world he lives and works in. It was great to get some background on the ever expanding cast of characters. I particularly enjoyed the Christmas tale about Abigail and can't wait to hear more in her novella. An enjoyable read !

This was a fun, breezy little stroll through some of Aaronovitch’s musings on his Rivers of London characters. Some stories were fleshed out, others not so much. On some stories, I felt like I was being teased, with the goods being held just out of my grasp. Some stories ended far too abruptly, and maybe I’m a wee thick, but I needed them to reach a satisfying conclusion. But they didn’t. Nevertheless, any Rivers of London is better than no Rivers of London!

This is a slender book, with big print, and very big margins... to make you think you're getting something good.Quite a disappointment: the stories are not really stories, they are more like detailed author notes, which were never quite developed into proper stories.Worst of all, the author cheerfully tells us, in the various introductions to each story (more padding) that he's already been paid for most of them - so it's a damned cheek to charge £10.99 for a collection of stuff that has, in the most part, already earned it's keep for the author and the publisher.£3.99 = good value.£10.99 = rip off.

Not enough stories! Need another 50 or so! Oh well....Some of these are from the ‘Waterstones’ editions, some are from other special editions, some (I think) have not been printed before. Most are about Peter, but not all. Many relate to a specific book, but they don’t have spoilers, so don’t have to be read in order with the books. Enjoyed them all. BUT not recommended if you haven’t read at least the first ‘Rivers of London’ book.Brought out quickly, to brighten our days during the Covid crisis, so the Kindle edition came first, they say audible and print editions will follow eventually (but not soon enough)

This is a great light summer read. I like the additional insights into different characters. I did feel a couple of the stories ended in an "!", where if they were a bit longer we would have a slightly more rounded ending. A Rare Book of Cunning Device being one with a more rounded ending - I too look forward to hearing more about Hatbox Winstanley.It made me think I would like the graphic novels to be presented in non-graphic form (sorry graphic novel aficionados) as well.

I hoped this book might have the graphic novels in written form so I was both sad ( it doesn't) and happy (these stories were new to me) I therefore feel a bit spoiled by the good , funny and thoroughly enjoyable book and deprived please please put the graphic novels into written form.

How to describe this anthology? First, if you are new to the world of Peter Grant and the Rivers of London series I DO NOT recommend reading this to see if you like the premise. This is a mixture of short stories, vignettes and tantalising ideas featuring Peter and some of the minor characters from the novels, some written at the request of the British bookshop Waterstones, others for specific purposes like the London 2012 Olympics (although I believe that may also have been at the request of Waterstones).Some stories I had read before, others were new to me. At the current reduced price of £1.99 I thought it was very good value but I think I would balk at paying the full price for something which is only 227 pages long and includes some material which is already available FOC on Ben's website.Having had my obligatory moan about the price of e-books, if you love the Rivers of London then I think you will enjoy meeting stroppy ghosts, a Christmas spirit, seeing the 'birth' of two rivers, and meeting the original Dedicated Follower of Fashion.