“The Devil Went Down to Austin,” by Rick Riordan

FM's ratings:

1.      Premise 9

2.      Prose 9

3.      Plot 10

4.      Characters 10

5.      Overall 9

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Another impressive novel in a great series!  Tres Nevarre is a joy to watch as he tries to solve a murder that has been pinned on his wheelchair-bound brother, Garrett.   The realism here is superb, especially if you are from Austin, where the story takes place.  Oddly, the ever-present mobile taco stands have had eggroll carts substituted for them – Riordan is after all from San Antonio…  But the landmarks, buildings, and street names are all familiar to an Austinite.  I concurrently read a novel set in San Francisco which did much the same thing for that city and have to admit that not being as familiar with it made it not as much fun.  At least this technique doesn’t detract, and adds some atmosphere.  The real draw here, as in so many good novels is that the characters seem so real, like people you are actually getting to know.  Even the secondary and tertiary characters come off the page and add to some very effective action scenes.  And, as with all books by Riordan, the humor is a huge plus; not as prevalent as in his Percy Jackson series, perhaps, but popping up at unexpected times, sort of like classic Arnold Schwarzeneggar lines like, “I had to let him go.”  The female roles are very strong as well, especially the love interest, Maia Lee.  Next stop in this series: “Cold Springs.”