I Hear a New World

Bestseller Moore’s satisfying second Long London urban fantasy (after The Great When) again adroitly blends the fantastic and the mundane. He eases readers back into a 1958 London where two alternate versions of the city exist side by side through vivid prose describing the environs. (“Ahead, through soaking haze, the banked filth that will be a football stadium is beetled with black raincoats and flat caps, both milling workforce and those sodden locals who’ve brought refuse as a contribution to the ground’s foundations.”) Moore eventually reintroduces protagonist Dennis Knuckleyard, who, in the previous volume, stumbled upon the other London but hopes that he’s left his stressful adventures behind him. Then creatures from that dimension, among them an eight-foot-tall six-armed being, erupt into the real world, their presence sparking riots. Dennis is catapulted back into magical mayhem and, by the end, his life has changed dramatically, provocatively setting up a sequel. Moore’s worldbuilding is as fascinating as ever. Series fans won’t be disappointed. (May)