The Changeling Detective by Phillip Berrie

The Changeling Detective by Phillip Berrie is a short novel about a private investigator who can change his appearance (shocking revelation based on the title, I know). It was first self-published in 2011 and has recently been picked up by Hotspur Publishing. The latter edition is the one I read. Blurb:

For a private detective, being able to change your face is a distinct advantage. The Changeling Detective thought he was unique, a mutant of sorts, like those he had read about in comics when he was younger. However, when he becomes the focus of a vile-smelling crime boss with similar abilities and meets a genuine witch, the Changeling Detective has his whole world turned upside down.

An urban fantasy/detective noir story in an Australian setting with elements of crime, horror, witchcraft and deep-time science fiction.

Above all, I would call this an action-packed read. There is a mystery element to it, of course, but it ends up focussing mostly on the origins of the detective rather than on an unrelated crime as it first looks like it might. For that reason, I'd be inclined to label it more urban fantasy than crime, although I imagine sequels might swing in the other direction. For lack of a better descriptor, I'll refer to the detective as John for the rest of this review (not his real name but one of the aliases he was using).

John is very much the only central character in this story. There are other characters present in the narrative, of course, but they all play second fiddle. Ruth, the love interest/sidekick is a fun character and provided a — I hesitate to say normal — non-shapeshifter perspective. There wasn't that much room with everything else going on for a lot of time spent dwelling on their relationship but the building blocks were certainly there. There is quite a bit of potential for sequels to develop it further.

The bad guy, Newman, was adequately dangerous and somewhat confusing, in a good way. A reasonable part of the story focussed on John trying to work out why Newman was trying to kill him. Let's just say it wasn't the reason he originally thought. And I liked that the answers left some back story to explore in sequels (which are hopefully forthcoming).

All in all, The Changeling Detective was a fun read. It's more or less what it says in the title. I recommend it to urban fantasy fans after a quick read, particularly one with a lot of action. Oh, and I should mention it's set in Canberra, which may be a selling point for those sick of New York and other American cities (or is that just me?).

4 / 5 stars

First published: 2011, this edition June 2013, Hotspur Publishing
Series: Yes. Book 1 of ?
Format read: eARC
Source: courtesy of the author
Disclaimer: Although the author is a friend, I have attempted to write an unbiased review.

Transgressions by Phillip Berrie

Transgressions by Phillip Berrie is the first book in what I assume will be a fantasy trilogy. The following review contains minor spoilers, but nothing pertaining to vital plot elements.

Transgressions is about Wamzut, a wizard who, before the action begins, lost his body and almost died in a magical battle. He was saved as a disembodied soul only due to a magical insurance device he had in place. The story opens with a priestess, Nessa, helping him take possession of a body whose soul has vacated it due to an unrelated magical attack. The new body is not that of an 80 year old man, however, but of a young, half-elven woman.

There is plenty of scope for this to go badly in terms of how it is treated in the text, but Berrie pulls it off without making it creepy. Wamzut, now going by Attina, the name of the woman whose body he's possessing, vows to find and stop the magical creature that killed Attina and commences that quest more or less immediately (after dealing with a few practical matters). Of course, things don't go entirely to plan and so, a more-epic-than-intended journey begins.

As far as the trans aspect goes, Wamzut is still at heart a man and refers to himself as male unless he's specifically referring to his body (and even then he usually says "Attina's body"). He also continues to be attracted to women and, after some (entertaining) urging on Nessa's part, a physical relationship blooms between them. I do think perhaps a bit more time could have been devoted to him angsting about his new genitalia, instead of being skimmed over, but the "how to be a woman" conversation was also skimmed over, underscoring that the focus of the story is on magical events rather than the new gender.

The world building was well thought out. There were lots of small world-fleshing-out bits dropped in, which I enjoyed. A particular favourite was the psychic wave that rolls with the sunrise which interferes with some types of magic and jolts magic-wielders awake if they're sleeping.

I found the prose a little stilted at times, but given that it's told in first person by a technically 80 year old man, it is, perhaps, understandable. I got used to the style more quickly than I expected to but I suppose your mileage may vary.

Transgressions is very much a book 1. A lot of goals are introduced which Wamzut begins to world towards but not all are completed. The book did end at a logical break point but I was left wanting to know "but what about...?" It's definitely the first portion of a larger story and I am keen to read the next instalment to find out what happens.

I recommend Transgressions to fantasy fans, particularly those who enjoy stories about travelling between worlds/dimensions. Although I didn't think the trans aspect was handled poorly, I'm not sure I'd recommend it as a trans narrative; it's definitely more a story about magic than gender.

4 / 5 stars

Published: November 2012, self-published
Series: Book 1 of ? (guessing it will be a trilogy)
Format read: ebook
Source: Review copy provided by the author
Disclaimers: The author is a friend and once upon a time I read an early draft of part of the opening, which influenced my reading slightly (thanks to vaguely remembered story facts), but not my review.