The Unnatural Inquirer Review

Hidden in the center of London is a place called the Nightside. In THE UNNATURAL INQUIRER, we are taken back to this spooky place where PI John Taylor lives and works. John Taylor has the gift of being able to find anyone or anything. He’s been hired by The Unnatural Inquirer, a gossip magazine (very similar to The National Enquirer) to find a man named Pen Donavon. Pen claims to have a DVD with proof of the Afterlife. He sold rights to it to The Unnatural Inquirer but then he and his DVD both disappeared. The magazine wants Pen and the DVD found so they offer John Taylor a million pounds to do the job. Normally John wouldn’t work this kind of case, but the money is right so he takes the job.

The magazine sends their demon girl reporter, Bettie Divine, to accompany John on his case. Bettie is the daughter of a succubus and immediately charms John with her flirtatious ways. Suzie Shooter aka Suzie Shotgun is working her own case so she is nowhere around to witness John’s infidelities.

John and Bettie feverently search all over The Nightside for answers and clues to Pen Donavon’s whereabouts. Everyone seems to have heard about the Afterlife DVD and wants to get their greedy hands on it. Does the DVD really show the Afterlife and answer all our questions about whether Heaven and Hell really exist?

Will John be able to safely find Pen and the DVD or will dangerous people try to stop him from completing this case? Will Bettie charm her way into John’s life or will he stay loyal to his true love Suzie Shooter?

THE UNNATURAL INQUIRER is an exciting urban fantasy novel with tons of magic and adventure to keep readers glued to the pages. This was my first Simon R. Green book and I will definitely be looking for the others in this series. There was enough back-story for me to follow along without having read the prior books. Green introduced his characters, their appearances and personalities in this book as if it was the first, instead of the eighth in his series. This is a great thing to do because then readers can pick up any book in the series and follow along without feeling like they missed something.

I thoroughly enjoyed riding along with John Taylor through the Nightside and I look forward to another adventure with this dangerous and ruthless PI. THE UNNATURAL INQUIRER is a fun book that fantasy readers will really enjoy.