Synopsis
“A fascinating merging of oppressive imperialism and disconcerting alienation.”—Adrian Tchaikovsky, award-winning author of Children of Time, Alien Clay & Shards of Earth
SPFBO X 2nd place. Shortlisted for the British Fantasy Award for Best Newcomer. Winner of the FanFiAddict Award for Best Indie Debut, the Literary Titan Gold Book Award, and the Next Generation Indie Book Award.
Blade Runner, True Detective, and District 9 meld with the weird worlds of Jeff VanderMeer, Philip K. Dick, and China Miéville in Adrian M. Gibson’s award-winning fungalpunk noir debut, now with a foreword from acclaimed author Nicholas Eames and six pieces of original interior artwork.
Two years after a devastating defeat in the decade-long Spore War, the island nation of Hōppon and its capital city of Neo Kinoko are occupied by invading Coprinian forces. Its fungal citizens are in dire straits, wracked by food shortages, poverty, and an influx of war refugees. Even worse, the corrupt occupiers exploit their power, hounding the native population.
As a winter storm looms over the metropolis, NKPD homicide detective Henrietta Hofmann begrudgingly partners up with mushroom-headed patrol officer Koji Nameko to investigate the mysterious murders of fungal and half-breed children. Their investigation drags them deep into the seedy underbelly of a war-torn city, one brimming with colonizers, criminal gangs, racial division, and moral decay.
In order to solve the case and unravel the truth, Hofmann must challenge her past and embrace fungal ways. What she and Nameko uncover in the midst of this frigid wasteland will chill them to the core, but will they make it through the storm alive?
“I enjoyed Mushroom Blues a lot, and the sense of place and culture and the strangeness of the fungi are all very well done. Go read this book.”—Mark Lawrence, bestselling author of Prince of Thorns, Red Sister & The Book That Wouldn’t Burn
Review
Now I may be late to this fungal indie goodness, something that has been becoming a staple for me (I guess?), but better late than never, right? I grabbed this one of audio, and I thought Imogen Church’s narration was spot on. And of course the Felix Ortiz cover is just chef’s kiss…
Detective Henrietta Hoffman, the quintessential, down-on-her-luck, uber-jaded character, has been forcefully exiled to the worst place she could imagine—Hōppon. Just two years after the loss of The Spore War, the mushroom-lush country is being fully colonized by the victors. Coprinian forces are stationed everywhere, taking over law enforcement and more. But when a decapitated fungal child is found, Hoffman must swallow her pride and team up with the mushroom-capped NKPD native Koji Nameko. The blend of noir investigation, political intrigue, action, loss, and danger—as well as some really unique fantasy and scifi—that follows is truly pulse-pounding.
So I get the hype. The last two years for me haven’t been huge in the genre, but since I was a teenage fantasy and scifi have always been staples in my reading. So believe me when I say this is a banger of a release. It really takes multiple things I love—fantasy, science fiction, mystery and thriller—and delivers this really fresh blend of them all. I’ve read fantasy mysteries and scifi mysteries before, but what this one nailed was the feel of a police procedural that’s just been meshed into a world that feels other. They aren’t monster hunters or dragon slayers, they are everyday cops, and despite their world being different, they are just doing the job.
Speaking of the world, this novel’s worldbuilding is extreme. It’s as if the author sat and wrote out every single thing that we use in our day to day lives—even cups, concrete, and DOORS—and was like, “hmmm, yes, all of that has it’s own version that’s been fungalized.” (Not a word? It is now). The world is unique, rich, and built from the ground up. It might not be your typical fantasy/scifi, but this definitely read like something noticeably not earth. In that way it felt kind of along the lines of urban fantasy at times, even bringing to mind the film Bright…some of the context shared between the two helped as well. The minute details, like mixed children having small sprouts of mushrooms on their heads, felt like a really special showing of an author that fully knows what they’ve created.
This novel is heavy though. To not sugarcoat, it is filled with ethnocentrism, prejudice, and tons of racism. The wounds of war are still fresh, and the hate is steaming on both sides. However, with the book’s perspective, so much of the hate is coming from (often gushing from) Detective Hoffman. It can be hard to read and digest. While Hoffman was not a soldier in the war that stole their country from them, she certainly has no problem spewing the Coprinian vitriolic ignorance. With that being said, when you stick with it, the story is designed to show you how disgusting this is, how wrong, and Hoffman eventually begins her journey out of this. It’s a well done facsimile of our own world’s history of systemic racism, imperialism and hatred. There’s a fine message in there too of those feeling more aligned with Hoffman (at the beginning) needing to get their shit together too.
The mystery is written just how it should be. Approached with the reader learning as the investigators do, and with the twist being dangled right before their eyes at multiple times before it’s finally revealed. There’s complexity, there’s red herrings, and there’s definitely a lot of thread weaving and pulling by the end. If you claim to have had it figured out before the end I’ll call you a liar, this one’s well done. There are some otherworldly notes thrown in too, which really (again) cemented the genre blend for me.
Another thing I really enjoyed was drawing similarities between this and Welcome to Cemetery. While there are miles of differences, there’s still some detective and cop traits that you can’t lack in a police procedural. While my main character is young and trying to prove herself, her partner is the jaded one that struggles. In some ways Koji is reminiscent of Williams to me, he wants to do the right thing no matter the cost. While ultimately the twists are polar opposites, there is still a through-line of police corruption in both novels. And I know the author and I both review for FanFiAddict, but we had zero discussion surrounding our books together, and mine was even completed before I joined. It makes me think my novel might be a bit more noir than I thought.
Super intriguing. Thoroughly enjoyable. And easy to imagine how endless the world could be. I’m interested in their next case, and even hopeful for side stories exploring the world at large.
Keep in mind that the novel does take place in winter…but my only tiny gripe is that cops are meant to keep their heads on a swivel, right? When on duty they are always prepped for action, and especially in this one, when Hoffman knows that people are after her…how was she always in mittens?! How do you draw/fire a gun in them? Are they mitten/gloves together? That is all I would like added in answer for book 2.
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