Harry Turtledove is one of my favorite authors, albeit I didn't read his entire bibliography. I got know his writing with The Lost Legion and I've read those books probably ten or more times and when one set started to fall apart, I bought a new one. After first four Videssos books I found Gerin the Fox novels and loved them a lot. I've read them probably two or three times. And after those I totally fell in love with The Case of the Toxic Spell Dump. I've read that books twice, about quarter of a century ago, when I was all about urban fantasy and huge fan of Laurel Hamilton and her Anita Blake series. Back then, about the same time, I read Otherwise (or Otherworld) books by Poul Anderson and over the decades The Case of the Toxic Spell Dump and Operation Chaos and Luna by Poul Anderson got mixed up in my head and I've started seeing them as set in the same world, authored by Harry Turtledove. All of this is to say that when I started reading Twice as Dead, I had a feeling like I was falling in some quite familiar and well known world, almost like I was reading a sequel of those novels.

I'm not well versed in American history, but I would hazard a guess that the novel is set in late '40s or early '50s of the 20th century, and at some points I had some difficulty to follow certain references, so I had to search them on the internet, but that was very rewarding in it self. In fact, while I'm writing this I'm listening to the music that features in the book somewhat heavily.

Twice as Dead is basically an LA noir crime novel, but with huge amount of social commentary, not so much concerning social class and standing, although there's a lot of that, but mostly about race and religion in America, segregation and racism, as well as immigrants, antisemitism and a lot about the danger of fascism and white supremacy. I can't imagine what made Turtledove write a book like that. :) I must say that at certain times some of that social commentary came a bit heavy-handed but then again, I'm a middle aged East European Socialist that belongs to ethnic majority in my country (sort of), not a minority in America, so what do I know.

All that aside, if we read this novel strictly as urban fantasy yarn, I had an immense amount of fun. Turtledove is a master of written word, leagues beyond average writer in the field of urban fantasy and I would love nothing more than to see Twice as Dead become a successful series of novel in the manner of Dresden Files, let us say. Turtledove's writing and world building is fascinating and complex and his firm grasp of history allows him to engage the reader and lure them into full immersion into America that is lost in time and now belongs solely to old movies and books with yellowed pages.

I want to read more of this while I'm listening to Charlie Parker and Bille Holiday. Oh, and I got to buy myself a bottle of Wild Turkey as soon as possible.

5*

One of my all-time favorite urban fantasies is The Case of the Toxic Spell Dump, also by Turtledove, so I was thrilled when I saw this was coming out! In this, we have a hard-boiled detective (similar to Sam Spade) except the blonde who walks in is a vampire. The plot was not nearly as tightly woven as The Case of the Toxic Spell Dump, but I found myself enjoying it quite a lot nonetheless. A somewhat leisurely, but fun read.

(A note: Since Turtledove is essentially recreating the a Dashiell Hammett-esque 1930s world, he uses the polite language of the 1930s to describe different races, some of which are quite impolite today. Once I got used to it, it was ok, but there was a lot of wincing in the first chapters.)

This is the start of a new series from Harry Turtledove. It’s an interesting departure from the alternate history he’s written a lot of, and although it starts a series it works well as a stand alone. I found it entertaining and absorbing.

Jack Mitchell is a private detective in a Los Angeles that doesn’t look very much like the one we know. World War II was fought with different people for different reasons, magic is real, and creatures like zombies and vampires inhabit the city along with the living population.

Like most detectives, he’s juggling multiple jobs. The vampire Rudolf Sebestyen is missing, and his half-sister – who’s also a vampire – wants to find him. Clarice Jethroe’s husband Frank has gone missing too. She’s sure it wasn’t voluntary, and she wants him found. Meanwhile, Marianne Smalls’ husband is sure she’s having an affair, and he wants proof to reduce his divorce settlement.

The three cases cross and at times converge, providing Jack with an even bigger puzzle than he thought.

This has the flavour of a 1950s or 1960s detective novel. Turtledove is quite deliberately evoking the period and style, and it works very well. It’s a little slow to get started, perhaps because Turtledove has to get a bit of world building in there too. Still, it doesn’t take long to ramp up, and I was never bored.

The world building is excellent, using touchstones from real history, and some accepted ideas from the fantasy genre, to anchor an original vision of the world as it might be. It was vivid and believable, and made the mystery story seem plausible.

The novel resolves the three cases Jack investigates, but there are some aspects of the world which clearly leave an opening for future novels. Readers are likely to be satisfied with this one – it does very much feel like it has an ending – while still being interested enough to look out for the next in the series.

The characters were vivid too, and although I’m not sure readers will exactly empathise, you’ll certainly understand what they’re feeling and doing and why. Some characters weren’t fully rounded – like Jack’s love interest, Dora Urban. However, this was generally a deliberate reflection of their behaviour, and added to the atmosphere of the novel.

I enjoyed this a great deal. It kind of mashes urban fantasy, alternate history, familiar fantasy tropes, and hard boiled detective fiction all in together to produce an original and interesting world. Add a solid plot and strong characters, and I think most readers will get the same pleasure from it.

I loved this book. The story is well-told and well-paced; it was difficult to put the book down. The characters and world-building are excellent and there are many passages so well-written that I would read them over several times. I found the noir attitude compelling but I did have to look up some words. Overall this is a great read and I look forward to more books in the series. Thank you to Netgalley and CAEZIK SF & Fantasy for the advance reader copy.

This was a fantastic job in the genre and had that feel that I was looking for, it was a strong opening chapter in the City of Shadows series. The characters were everything that was needed in this universe and worked with the plot of the book. I was invested in what was happening and am excited for more. Harry Turtledove wrote this perfectly and everything worked overall.

Got lost a few times reading the book, however I give it 5 stars it was very good. The getting lost part may have been my own fault. Will definitely be looking at more books from Mr. Turltedove.

As much as I’m having a hard time believing this, I’ve never read a book by this author until now. I think it’s because, after reading this, his books are on the cusp of what I like. For instance, I requested this book even though I’m not fond of books that take place in the past. Anyway, I did read this latest, and I’m glad I did. The author’s writing, buildup, and plotting is great, even though there were a couple things that weren’t a personal preference, not a problem with the book. His way of immersing the reader in the timeframe is exceptional without losing sight of the characters and what’s happening. Fans of his are sure to be happy with this series starter, and I will probably read the next one. Recommend. I was provided a complimentary copy which I voluntarily reviewed.

Wow, 75 and still going strong as the dean of alternate-historical fantasy.
The opening shows us how desperate a gumshoe Jack is, with the notion of undead infestation in LA casually dropped on the way to open the door for a beautiful dame. Lots of specific details tell us the rules of magic in this world and that she’s a vampire before he figures it out. He interviews to low-lifes, cats, and ghosts. A lot of poking around finds that his case (one of three) is linked to a drug developed by the Nazis that even they wouldn’t use. The tone has echoes of Lovecraft Country or LA Confidential with supernaturals. Though the plot progresses slowly at first, the ending had several Call of Cthulhu adventure-style boss battles and revelations.

My only negative comment is the narrator digresses too much about writing, which feels out of character.