Author: R. M. Ridley
Release Date: March 13, 2015
Series: None
Genre: Urban Fantasy | Crime > PI | Anthology | Magic/Elementals | Paranormal
Edition: mobi
Pages: 21709 (kindle pages)
Publisher: Xchyler Publication
Source: Author (Thanks a lot Mr. Ridley!)

Blurb

In this collection of short stories, Jonathan Alvey continues to battle the unraveling world of the White Dragon Black.

Interview: A rare sit-down with paranormal private investigator Jonathan Alvey.

The Play’s the Thing: When a blonde woman shows up in Alvey’s office, seeking protection, he uncovers more than a murder attempt.

The Cost of Custody: Alvey helps estranged parents rescue their daughter from a terrible fate.

Sins of the Father: A pawn shop owner risks it all by asking Alvey to recover property that is more than meets the eye.

Legerdelivre: There’s nowhere Richard Tomlin can hide when it comes to the controlling powers of a dusty grimoire, but can Alvey truly help him?

What a Nightmare: Little old ladies do deceive, and secretaries come dear, in Jonathan Alvey’s office.

Do As I Say, Not As I Did: Alvey must air a CEO’s dirty laundry before a company ghost destroys too much.

The Ties That Bind: Can Alvey control a poltergeist and maintain his promise to not fall victim to the Dragon Black?

Bindings and Spines: A first chapter sneak peek of the second White Dragon Black novel.

Rating

Review

PLOT | STORY

B3 is an anthology with some great stories and experiences of one of my favourite protagonist, Mr. Jonathan Alvey, a private investigator who is also a magic practitioner. I loved this book even more than Mr. Ridley’s previous one, Tomorrow Wendell, which BTW is also about Jonathan Alvey and is super awesome! I absolutely loved all the stories and will re-read them very soon (yes, it’s that good!) All the stories are unique and adventurous. They are sure to give any reader an ultimate paranormal-high. There are a lot of new monsters, magical-books and unique concepts that’ll keep you gripped to the very end. What really impressed me is that Mr. Ridley has used so many different languages and religious signs for spells, that it makes the reader feel that all this is real and there’s actually a science behind all the magic used by Jonathan Alvey.

Characters

Like his last book, Mr. Ridley has created something more than just a likeable character, he’s created a character sensation. Jonathan Alvey is an extremely well developed and an amazingly crafted character. His moods, his attitude, his problems, his dislikes, his paranoia, his sufferings, his system for using magic (like his bag which he always carries in his car) and his procedure whenever a new client comes in (the silver cigarette case), as a reader I know them all. I’ve become really attached to Jonathan Alvey and I’m waiting eagerly for Mr. Ridley next book. For me Jonathan Alvey, as a character, is at par with Bilbo Baggins. All this really shows the amount of hard-work the author has put in.

Kills

Kills were moderate in this book. One monster-kill for each story, which was only fair for our one-man-army! I really liked the way Alvey killed those monsters, always in a new way using hell loads of different magical techniques and more often than not pure common sense!

Writing

Mr. Ridley’s writing is really simple and amazingly relatable. No unwanted fancy words, which for me is really good writing. Though while reading the book I leaned a lot of new and impressive magical words for magic-books and monsters. The flow of sentences was really good and overall it was a nice and easy read. For me it was a “cozy mystery.”

Beginning

This book began perfectly with an interview of Jonathan Alvey. If you’ve read Tomorrow Wendell, then you’ll know why it is so. The interview couldn’t have been better and is the perfect example of what Mr. Ridley’s refers to as his creative muse! (hehehe! What say Mr. Ridley?) The first story was a great start to such an awesome book. It’ll grip you right from the start. The pace of the book in the beginning is good, which continues till the ending.

Ending

The ending was also great. I really liked it. The only thing I didn’t like was, WHY THE HELL DID IT END! I would have enjoyed a couple of more stories (even more than that) and even those wouldn’t have been enough! I’m eagerly waiting for Mr. Ridley’s next.

Blurb

There’s no blurb for this book yet as I received an ARC (Advance Reader’s Copy). Will fill this section once the book is released.

Cover Art

I loved the cover art and in one word, it is simply AWESOME!

You can also read this review at Goodreads.

Other Stuff

Opening line: “Mr. Alvey, you must help me”, the woman gasped, clutching the handkerchief to her décolletage.

Highlights: Strong characterisation.

Lowlights: None.

Memorable Paragraph:

‘Private Investigator’ was just the shingle over the door, though. Jonathan’s real talent laying realms far less mundane. Most of his clients didn’t come to him because his was the first name in the book. They came because rumours said he was the man to deal with the odd, the inexplicable, and the obscure. The rumours were true: he was the practitioner of the arcane arts.

Final Thoughts: An amazing book.

Related pic on My Instagram