TL;DR Review: Urban fantasy murder mystery, but with a cozy twist and lovely insights into the wonders of being human.
Synopsis:
Adair Finch, the most powerful warlock in the world, is back in business!
But first he must complete his pact with a mischief spirit by finding her a human body. Seemingly no easy task, as the mischief spirit is beyond picky about her future body. But on his way to Oakland, Finch stumbles upon the dead body of a social media star—both a solution and a major problem.
Oakland is teeming with werewolves, full moon witches, vampires, and redwood elves, most of whom aren’t on good terms with Finch. Navigating the supernatural world to gather clues about the murder is hard enough, but now Finch must also dodge old enemies and rivals. And to make matters worse, the murderer just might be trailing Finch, now that he’s found the body.
Good thing Finch has a pact with Chronos. With time on his side, perhaps he can do the impossible…
Full Review:
It was such a delight to be back in Adair Finch’s world!
Time-Marked Warlock gave me a Dresden-esque adventure, but with such a cozy twist, thanks to the addition of twelve-year-old Bree. In Chronos Warlock, the Dresden flavor remains, but the tone takes a slight shift—less cozy, more insightful into human nature.
This time, Adair is investigating the murders of young women, including famous influencer Fox-Pistol. There’s just one problem: Fox-Pistol’s body has been taken over by Kull, the mischief spirit who helped him in the first book, and she wants to experience everything the world has to offer—while trying not to get murdered again.
Kull’s enjoyment of the world is so naïve and genuine that you can’t help laughing and loving everything along with her. Whether it’s the taste of everybody’s favorite foods (pizza and hamburgers), her hunt for the perfect outfit, or her quest to find true love, her wide-eyed innocence is refreshing and such a great contrast to Adair’s brooding nature.
I loved being along for the ride as Kull bounced and tripped her way through the world that sees her as a high-powered, wealthy influencer. I found it a really enjoyable exploration of the reality behind the entire world of social media, how what we see portrayed on camera is so often far from the truth. But Kull using that influence and wealth to help Adair on his investigation helps him get into places he might never have otherwise, which makes everything flow more smoothly.
And about that investigation…
With Time-Marked Warlock, it felt like the hunt for the murderer took more center-stage, with the cozy moments with Bree fit in around them. In Chronos Warlock, the murder investigation kind of meandered, with Adair and Kull moving in a new direction nearly every time he rewinds time.
And I didn’t mind that at all, because it drove home the truth of this story: the murder of it all is just window dressing for the very human experience that the author is portraying through these stories. It adds just enough suspense and danger to keep things interesting, but as with Book 1, it’s the characters and their respective evolutions that really make this a story to love.
The addition of other characters promise fun and intriguing things for future installments, and I for one can’t wait to see who next drags Adair Finch off to some murder—and what new, human adventure he’ll go along on the way.
If you are looking for an urban fantasy murder mystery with a cozy twist and wonderful insights into the human experience, you’re going to love Chronos Warlock as much as I did.
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