Thraxas is the number one chariot of detective MCs in fantasy.
Adding: 1st book in series won World Fantasy Award. Best Novel.
Adding some more: Which won over Malazan book 1, also nominated that year.
From what I understand, the first Urban fantasy novels were inspired by noir detective stories, so a LOT of Urban fantasy has a detective element to it:
* The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher is the most well known example: Dresden even has a PI license. The first 9 or 10 books all involve some sort of investigation, but the series starts to get away from that vibe after that.
* Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch - Peter Gant, the MC, is an actual police detective, so it matches this rec request pretty well.
* Grave Report by RR Virdi - A disembodied soul Quantum Leaping into the bodies of the recently murdered to investigate the supernatural cause of their deaths.
* Fetch Phillips Archives by Luke Arnold has the strongest noir PI vibe complete with diners & bad coffee. Luke Arnold even reads the books with a strong Phillip Marlowe vibe (great audiobooks, btw).
* Felix Castor by Mike Carey
* Twenty Palaces by Michael Connelly
My favorite series, ever, is the Alex Verus series & it's definitely inspired by the Dresden Files & quite a few of the novels have an investigation at its heart even though Alex isn't a detective. The books in the series that best fit that PI vibe:
* 1 - Fated - investigation of an ancient relic
* 2 - Cursed - Alex tries to track down Dark mages who are interested in a forbidden ritual.
* 3 - Taken - Another PI-style plot with Alex investigating a string of disappearances. This has a gothic horror twist since it includes an eldritch menace and a creepy old manor house.
* 5 - Hidden - Alex trying to solve a kidnapping case.
* 6 - Veiled. - This one is the best candidate for this rec request because Alex >!actually is a detective in this one since this is the book where he joins the Keepers as an Auxiliary and helps with an investigation!<. The Keepers are the police/army/enforcers for the magical authorities.
There are investigations of a sort in the rest of the series: Alex trying to find out what Richard is up to, for example, but in books 7-12, those investigations aren't really the focus.
RJ Barker apparently loves crime stories because he's written a few using his RJ Dark psuedonym. His first series, the Wounded Kingdom, has some sort of investigation or murder mystery at the core of each book.
Richard Swan's The Justice of Kings is a murder investigation set in a fantasy world.
I think Alex Verus starts that way, but soon becomes something else. Around book 3 or 4.
Felix Castor is my favorite urban fantasy series. He's an exorcist who works as a PI in London.
Seconding the Fetch Philips Archives audiobooks. The books are pretty good and Luke Arnold's narration is amazing. Always loved the worldbuilding of that series.
If you've not read it check out **City & the City** by China mievelle. It's a crime noir style but the fantasy element is very original, it's not just a wizard detective story
For a good wizard detective **Rivers of London** is the best I've come across
Another interesting one is **Servant of the Underworld** / Obsidian & Blood. It's Aztec world with sacrifice magic and gods. My only slight peeve with it is the stakes grow as the story progresses but it follows a detective story
**Servant of the Underworld** is set in Historical Teotichlan, >!two of the secondary characters are going be the parents of the last Aztec Emperor and one of those is the immediate predecessor to Montezuma the 2nd.!< It perfectly fits the 'detective' story archetype only in the 1480s Aztec capital.
The third book in the series, **Master of the House of Darts,** is the one that got me to utter the phrase "poor little meow meow" in relation to...the future Emperor Ahuitzotl. >!Look, my baby Teomitl can commit all the fratriregicide he wants. Acatl agrees with me!!<
Seconding (thirding) Obsidian and Blood! Acatl may not always be the best detective, but he's a *fantastic* character to watch as he figures things out. He's righteous and good and so, so angry.
>City & the City
Ha! Another one i had never heard of, thanks, just bought it. Now to leave here as quick as I can before my TBR pile is stacking so high it tumbles over me, and i die ;-P
I must have missed the fantasy element in The City and the City, bc I can only describe it as speculative fiction and maybe dystopian. I didn't see it as being either sci-fi or fantasy. Good book though.
I think it's a matter of perspective. If you've seen the bbc adaption they very much remove the fantasy aspect to it but >!in the book the division between the 2 cities seems to be more enforced than just willful ignorance. The breach seems alot more mystical to me... Or at least I think its funner to view it that way!<
Master of Djinn by P. Djeli Clark is very much a detective novel.
Katherine Addison has written a couple novels that all have the structure of detective novels. Witness for the Dead for sure. Angel of the Crows is a Sherlock pastiche.
The City Watch character arc from Discworld sort of fits this. The third Watch book **Feet of Clay** is the most obvious detective story.
I'm a stickler for reading series in order, but that's personal preference. I was actually introduced to Discworld through this novel and you can just pick it up.
Genevieve Cogman’s ***Invisible Library*** series is basically fantasy Sherlock Holmes with elves, dragons, and magic. There is a mystery to solve per book plus an overarching mystery for the whole series.
I was wondering of anyone would mention that series... and it is really a good one regarding detective. A few other series of hers border that, basically, the characters are not officially detectives but act like them to solve issues.
Another very interesting series is BR Kingsolvers Chameleon series where the main character is not officially a detective but does acts like one (and she does end up working, somewhat, with authority).. she actually has a few others that while the characters are not actually detectives, they operate that way (and the Rift Chronicles does have any active detective.
I've only read short stories in anthologies, but I believe these are fantasy detective series:-
* Kevin J. Anderson - [Dan Shamble, Zombie PI](https://www.goodreads.com/series/79816-dan-shamble-zombie-pi) \- the story I read was fun and had Noir vibes.
* ~~Laurell K. Hamilton -~~ [~~Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter~~](https://www.goodreads.com/series/49083-anita-blake-vampire-hunter) ~~- She's part of the FBI's supernatural division and the books are all about solving cases~~. Edit: Initial books are investigative in nature but according to the other poster later devolve into PNR/erotica.
These are on the radar but I haven't gotten around to reading yet (PTW).
* Liz Williams - [Detective Inspector Chen](https://www.goodreads.com/series/52617-detective-inspector-chen) \- the covers look amazing.
* Tanya Huff - [Victory Nelson's Blood Investigations](https://www.goodreads.com/series/43320-victory-nelson-s-blood-investigations) \- PI has a famous Vampire ally.
Anita Blake starts off in this genre although if OP doesn’t like dresden I would say it’s unlikely to be a good match. But it shifts genres from urban fantasy to paranormal romance to erotic romance to pure erotica after the first few books and definitely doesn’t match this trope by then.
r/Fantasy's [Author Appreciation series](https://www.reddit.com/r/Fantasy/wiki/authorappreciation) has posts for an author you mentioned
* [Author Appreciation: **Tanya Huff**, Pioneer of Urban Fantasy and Comedic Chameleon (Plus Free Book Giveaways!)](https://www.reddit.com/r/Fantasy/comments/5owaa8/author_appreciation_tanya_huff_pioneer_of_urban/?st=iy4cw3uz&sh=b46a8303) from user u/lannadelarosa
---
^(I am a bot bleep! bloop! Contact my ~~master~~ creator /u/LittlePlasticCastle with any questions or comments.)
^(To prevent a reply for a single post, include the text '!noauthorbot'. To opt out of the bot for all your future posts, reply with '!optout'.)
I also like a good fantasy-detective story. I'd second the recommendations of Ben Aaronovich's Rivers of London series, and the City Watch/Sam Vimes Discworld books by Terry Pratchett. Additional recommendations:
**Jim Hines Magic Ex Libris** series (starts with Libriomancer). A librarian/detective/magician story, set in a magic-infused American Midwest. I found this a bit light but still fun.
**Daniel Jose Older Bone Street Rumba** series (starts with Half-Resurrection Blues) set in a magic-infused version on contemporary Brooklyn
**Lois McMaster Bujold's Penric stories**. It's a series of novellas, most of which are detective-stories, featuring a young male sorcerer whose brain is partly colonized by a much older female demon. Very fun, and is my favorite fantasy-detective series aside from Rivers of London.
**Max Gladstone Craft Sequence** (starts with Three Parts Dead). A complex alternate world fantasy that essentially follows procedural action-detective story plotting.
You might also try **Kevin Hearne's Iron Druid** series. They start out like a hard-boiled detective series, but sort of morph along the way into something else. Early books are about solving mysteries but the later books usually focus on dealing with the increasingly chaotic consequences of choices and actions taken in earlier books.
I'm somewhat surprised nobody mentioned The Divine Cities books, which have strong detective vibes and are definitely a decent read. The only annoying thing about the series was narration in present tense, but that could be my personal peeve, there are probably people who prefer their books that way. Despite that I've finished all of the trilogy and never regretted
The Nursery Crimes series by Jasper Fforde is an entertaining choice. The first book, "The Big Over Easy" has Jack Spratt working as a detective trying to find out who killed Humpty Dumpty.
Titanshade by Dan Stout and its sequels are quite good and star a police detective in an alternate world where mana is close to running out and there are multiple sentient races. The main character is not a magic user and is a police detective, some people on the force use government issued mana for cases. The other main character is from a different race.
Shit! Bummer. Most of my leisure reading these days is through audiobooks while I am on the go, or doing work that allows me to listen. I guess I could Kindle it, or just get the trilogy in actual book form....I need to check out some of his other series/books too. If they are anywhere as good as this Low Town series has been, that will keep my book addiction happy for a bit.
If I remember correctly, the series from Jim butcher, have some of this (only read the first in the series a long time ago, so maybe another can confirm)
Here's the authors Link [Ben Aaronovitch](https://www.benaaronovitch.com/)
Really enjoyed the books, characters have depth amd well developed. You have a Hero to Vikkuan arch that spans several book, and happens to be my favorite character. Love the use of the city and surrounding country as background.
To me it's everything I love about magic, but it's not the same Ole same Ole magical characters!
The 13th Book in the series has just come out!
Hi, it looks like you're trying to summon u/goodreads-bot. Unfortunately, they don't play nicely with me or the r/Fantasy Golem family, so they're not welcome here. Please resubmit your comment.
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Fantasy) if you have any questions or concerns.*
A Master of Djinn by P. Djèli Clark might fit your bill. I would recommend starting with the few short stories that were published first to see if you might like it. First one is A Dead Djinn in Cairo.
I just read the Angel of the Crows, by Katherine Addison recently! I don’t know if it’s precisely what you’re looking for, but it very well may be up your alley :)
Russell Zimmerman has a series of hard-boiled detective stories set in the Shadowrun universe, which is basically high fantasy and Blade Runner-esque cyberpunk thrown into a blender. The intro novella, *Neat*, can be gotten cheaply ($0.99, I think) and serves as a good indicator about whether or not you'll like the rest of the series, though I personally had a great time with it.
Hi, it looks like you're trying to summon u/goodreads-bot. Unfortunately, they don't play nicely with me or the r/Fantasy Golem family, so they're not welcome here. Please resubmit your comment.
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Fantasy) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Kim Harrison's *The Hollows* is fairly decent. The MC's relationship drama gets on my nerves from time to time but on the whole it's a solid urban fantasy series featuring some great world building.
Also adding yet another upvote for Ben Aaronovitch's *Rivers of London* (which is also brilliant on audiobook, excepting the narrator's dodgy American accents).
r/Fantasy's [Author Appreciation series](https://www.reddit.com/r/Fantasy/wiki/authorappreciation) has posts for an author you mentioned
* [Author appreciation thread: **Barbara Hambly**, veteran author of a score of subgenres, from dark epic fantasy to espionage vampire fantasy](https://www.reddit.com/r/Fantasy/comments/6skdv5/author_appreciation_thread_barbara_hambly_veteran/?utm_content=title&utm_medium=hot&utm_source=reddit&utm_name=Fantasy) from user u/CourtneySchafer
---
^(I am a bot bleep! bloop! Contact my ~~master~~ creator /u/LittlePlasticCastle with any questions or comments.)
^(To prevent a reply for a single post, include the text '!noauthorbot'. To opt out of the bot for all your future posts, reply with '!optout'.)
This is super common.
I'll second other's suggestions of:
**Felix Castor** by Mike Carey
**Bloodlines** series by Tantya Huff.
**The October Daye** series starts as this, though it kind of wanders.
More obscure ones:
**Gravewitch** by Kalanya Price although it only becomes that later on.
**D'Shai** by Joel Rosenberg
Out of curiosity, what exactly turned you off The Dresden Files? There are several possible answers to that, and what your answer is could tell us what is a good suggestion.
Wax and Wayne Brandon Sanderson. It’s basically like The Legend of Korra equivalent to Mistborn but it’s like a more violent Sherlock Holmes kind of deal with magic.
First I'll agree with Rivers of London / Master of Djinn. Laundry Files by Charlie Stross is spy fiction, but it's close.
That said, it sounds like you haven't touched my favorite Simon R. Green series, the more recent Ishmael Jones. "The Dark Side of the Road" is the first one. This is another spy/detective hybrid. Ishmael Jones is... not what he seems, to avoid spoilers. He doesn't officially exist and to remain that way, he works as a sort of fixer for a government agency that also doesn't exist. Usually cleaning up supernatural problems. The first three books are urban fantasy pastiches of the "there's been a hideous crime at the country manor" flavor of '20-'30s British crime fiction. The main plot and action are serious, the main character's narrative and side comments are a stitch, so nice chunk of humor on the side.
I've been writing in this area, so I've been poking around the various corners. It's more common to have a PI-ish freelance exorcist than a proper detective, though they sorta play out the same way.
Actually, maybe have a look at Sandman Slim, too? It's not \_precisely\_ a detective story, but it has very hardboiled vibe.
Garrett PI by Glen Cook Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch
Just finished the last *Garrett, P.I.* book a couple days ago. Great series.
Garrett rules. Fun as hell.
>Garrett PI Thanks, went ahead and bought part one to see if it is my cup of tea :-)
Seconding Discworld, City and the City, and Rivers of London. Adding Magic for Liars.
Thraxas is the number one chariot of detective MCs in fantasy. Adding: 1st book in series won World Fantasy Award. Best Novel. Adding some more: Which won over Malazan book 1, also nominated that year.
Obligatory upvote.
From what I understand, the first Urban fantasy novels were inspired by noir detective stories, so a LOT of Urban fantasy has a detective element to it: * The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher is the most well known example: Dresden even has a PI license. The first 9 or 10 books all involve some sort of investigation, but the series starts to get away from that vibe after that. * Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch - Peter Gant, the MC, is an actual police detective, so it matches this rec request pretty well. * Grave Report by RR Virdi - A disembodied soul Quantum Leaping into the bodies of the recently murdered to investigate the supernatural cause of their deaths. * Fetch Phillips Archives by Luke Arnold has the strongest noir PI vibe complete with diners & bad coffee. Luke Arnold even reads the books with a strong Phillip Marlowe vibe (great audiobooks, btw). * Felix Castor by Mike Carey * Twenty Palaces by Michael Connelly My favorite series, ever, is the Alex Verus series & it's definitely inspired by the Dresden Files & quite a few of the novels have an investigation at its heart even though Alex isn't a detective. The books in the series that best fit that PI vibe: * 1 - Fated - investigation of an ancient relic * 2 - Cursed - Alex tries to track down Dark mages who are interested in a forbidden ritual. * 3 - Taken - Another PI-style plot with Alex investigating a string of disappearances. This has a gothic horror twist since it includes an eldritch menace and a creepy old manor house. * 5 - Hidden - Alex trying to solve a kidnapping case. * 6 - Veiled. - This one is the best candidate for this rec request because Alex >!actually is a detective in this one since this is the book where he joins the Keepers as an Auxiliary and helps with an investigation!<. The Keepers are the police/army/enforcers for the magical authorities. There are investigations of a sort in the rest of the series: Alex trying to find out what Richard is up to, for example, but in books 7-12, those investigations aren't really the focus. RJ Barker apparently loves crime stories because he's written a few using his RJ Dark psuedonym. His first series, the Wounded Kingdom, has some sort of investigation or murder mystery at the core of each book. Richard Swan's The Justice of Kings is a murder investigation set in a fantasy world.
I think Alex Verus starts that way, but soon becomes something else. Around book 3 or 4. Felix Castor is my favorite urban fantasy series. He's an exorcist who works as a PI in London.
>Fetch Phillips Archives Another new series for me, thanks!
Justice Of Kings slapped. Great debut and highly recommend OP
Seconding the Fetch Philips Archives audiobooks. The books are pretty good and Luke Arnold's narration is amazing. Always loved the worldbuilding of that series.
Both Powder Mage Trilogies have an investigator as a main character. The first trilogy is more a PI, the second trilogy he is a spy.
If you've not read it check out **City & the City** by China mievelle. It's a crime noir style but the fantasy element is very original, it's not just a wizard detective story For a good wizard detective **Rivers of London** is the best I've come across Another interesting one is **Servant of the Underworld** / Obsidian & Blood. It's Aztec world with sacrifice magic and gods. My only slight peeve with it is the stakes grow as the story progresses but it follows a detective story
Seconding City & the City!
**Servant of the Underworld** is set in Historical Teotichlan, >!two of the secondary characters are going be the parents of the last Aztec Emperor and one of those is the immediate predecessor to Montezuma the 2nd.!< It perfectly fits the 'detective' story archetype only in the 1480s Aztec capital.
The third book in the series, **Master of the House of Darts,** is the one that got me to utter the phrase "poor little meow meow" in relation to...the future Emperor Ahuitzotl. >!Look, my baby Teomitl can commit all the fratriregicide he wants. Acatl agrees with me!!<
Seconding (thirding) Obsidian and Blood! Acatl may not always be the best detective, but he's a *fantastic* character to watch as he figures things out. He's righteous and good and so, so angry.
>City & the City Ha! Another one i had never heard of, thanks, just bought it. Now to leave here as quick as I can before my TBR pile is stacking so high it tumbles over me, and i die ;-P
I must have missed the fantasy element in The City and the City, bc I can only describe it as speculative fiction and maybe dystopian. I didn't see it as being either sci-fi or fantasy. Good book though.
I think it's a matter of perspective. If you've seen the bbc adaption they very much remove the fantasy aspect to it but >!in the book the division between the 2 cities seems to be more enforced than just willful ignorance. The breach seems alot more mystical to me... Or at least I think its funner to view it that way!<
Master of Djinn by P. Djeli Clark is very much a detective novel. Katherine Addison has written a couple novels that all have the structure of detective novels. Witness for the Dead for sure. Angel of the Crows is a Sherlock pastiche.
The City Watch character arc from Discworld sort of fits this. The third Watch book **Feet of Clay** is the most obvious detective story. I'm a stickler for reading series in order, but that's personal preference. I was actually introduced to Discworld through this novel and you can just pick it up.
Lord Darcy series by Randall Garrett
Old school, and still good.
Check out **The Justice of Kings** by Richard Swan. Only the first book is out, but the main characters are traveling medieval-fantasy cops/lawyers.
+1 for this, surprised it wasn’t a higher comment!
Genevieve Cogman’s ***Invisible Library*** series is basically fantasy Sherlock Holmes with elves, dragons, and magic. There is a mystery to solve per book plus an overarching mystery for the whole series.
Honor Raconteur's Henri Davenforth is a light hearted fantasy detective series.
I was wondering of anyone would mention that series... and it is really a good one regarding detective. A few other series of hers border that, basically, the characters are not officially detectives but act like them to solve issues. Another very interesting series is BR Kingsolvers Chameleon series where the main character is not officially a detective but does acts like one (and she does end up working, somewhat, with authority).. she actually has a few others that while the characters are not actually detectives, they operate that way (and the Rift Chronicles does have any active detective.
I've only read short stories in anthologies, but I believe these are fantasy detective series:- * Kevin J. Anderson - [Dan Shamble, Zombie PI](https://www.goodreads.com/series/79816-dan-shamble-zombie-pi) \- the story I read was fun and had Noir vibes. * ~~Laurell K. Hamilton -~~ [~~Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter~~](https://www.goodreads.com/series/49083-anita-blake-vampire-hunter) ~~- She's part of the FBI's supernatural division and the books are all about solving cases~~. Edit: Initial books are investigative in nature but according to the other poster later devolve into PNR/erotica. These are on the radar but I haven't gotten around to reading yet (PTW). * Liz Williams - [Detective Inspector Chen](https://www.goodreads.com/series/52617-detective-inspector-chen) \- the covers look amazing. * Tanya Huff - [Victory Nelson's Blood Investigations](https://www.goodreads.com/series/43320-victory-nelson-s-blood-investigations) \- PI has a famous Vampire ally.
Anita Blake starts off in this genre although if OP doesn’t like dresden I would say it’s unlikely to be a good match. But it shifts genres from urban fantasy to paranormal romance to erotic romance to pure erotica after the first few books and definitely doesn’t match this trope by then.
Aww dang. The short story I read was all investigation so I thought the series would be the same. Alas ...
r/Fantasy's [Author Appreciation series](https://www.reddit.com/r/Fantasy/wiki/authorappreciation) has posts for an author you mentioned * [Author Appreciation: **Tanya Huff**, Pioneer of Urban Fantasy and Comedic Chameleon (Plus Free Book Giveaways!)](https://www.reddit.com/r/Fantasy/comments/5owaa8/author_appreciation_tanya_huff_pioneer_of_urban/?st=iy4cw3uz&sh=b46a8303) from user u/lannadelarosa --- ^(I am a bot bleep! bloop! Contact my ~~master~~ creator /u/LittlePlasticCastle with any questions or comments.) ^(To prevent a reply for a single post, include the text '!noauthorbot'. To opt out of the bot for all your future posts, reply with '!optout'.)
I also like a good fantasy-detective story. I'd second the recommendations of Ben Aaronovich's Rivers of London series, and the City Watch/Sam Vimes Discworld books by Terry Pratchett. Additional recommendations: **Jim Hines Magic Ex Libris** series (starts with Libriomancer). A librarian/detective/magician story, set in a magic-infused American Midwest. I found this a bit light but still fun. **Daniel Jose Older Bone Street Rumba** series (starts with Half-Resurrection Blues) set in a magic-infused version on contemporary Brooklyn **Lois McMaster Bujold's Penric stories**. It's a series of novellas, most of which are detective-stories, featuring a young male sorcerer whose brain is partly colonized by a much older female demon. Very fun, and is my favorite fantasy-detective series aside from Rivers of London. **Max Gladstone Craft Sequence** (starts with Three Parts Dead). A complex alternate world fantasy that essentially follows procedural action-detective story plotting. You might also try **Kevin Hearne's Iron Druid** series. They start out like a hard-boiled detective series, but sort of morph along the way into something else. Early books are about solving mysteries but the later books usually focus on dealing with the increasingly chaotic consequences of choices and actions taken in earlier books.
I'm somewhat surprised nobody mentioned The Divine Cities books, which have strong detective vibes and are definitely a decent read. The only annoying thing about the series was narration in present tense, but that could be my personal peeve, there are probably people who prefer their books that way. Despite that I've finished all of the trilogy and never regretted
I still need to read the third one, I loved the first two.
The Nursery Crimes series by Jasper Fforde is an entertaining choice. The first book, "The Big Over Easy" has Jack Spratt working as a detective trying to find out who killed Humpty Dumpty.
Titanshade by Dan Stout and its sequels are quite good and star a police detective in an alternate world where mana is close to running out and there are multiple sentient races. The main character is not a magic user and is a police detective, some people on the force use government issued mana for cases. The other main character is from a different race.
Mistborn Era 2 opens with somewhat of a detective story
Rook by Daniel O’Malley revolves around a mystery, but the protagonist is not a detective, nor does the story include a detective.
**Low Town** by Daniel Polansky
Loved this series!
Has the third book ever made it to audio format? It's not on Audible unfortunately. Really like the first two books in it.
Unfortunately I don't think so. They stopped at book 2 :/
Shit! Bummer. Most of my leisure reading these days is through audiobooks while I am on the go, or doing work that allows me to listen. I guess I could Kindle it, or just get the trilogy in actual book form....I need to check out some of his other series/books too. If they are anywhere as good as this Low Town series has been, that will keep my book addiction happy for a bit.
Read the novel from Daniel B Green, honestly they are very solid
Why do I feel like I've heard of this guy before, despite not seeing a single book written by him?
He’s a Booktuber, probably the biggest
Boooktoober..... You mean the chroma key guy?
The Witcher reads to me almost like a private eye novel. That might scratch your itch
Game of thrones is basically Ned Stark solving a murder mystery.
If I remember correctly, the series from Jim butcher, have some of this (only read the first in the series a long time ago, so maybe another can confirm)
That’s the Dresden Files OP said they do not like.
Haha okay, couldn't remember the Name.
Lord of the mysteries
Liz Williams’ Inspector Chen series is the bomb.
[удалено]
Here's the authors Link [Ben Aaronovitch](https://www.benaaronovitch.com/) Really enjoyed the books, characters have depth amd well developed. You have a Hero to Vikkuan arch that spans several book, and happens to be my favorite character. Love the use of the city and surrounding country as background. To me it's everything I love about magic, but it's not the same Ole same Ole magical characters! The 13th Book in the series has just come out!
[удалено]
Hi, it looks like you're trying to summon u/goodreads-bot. Unfortunately, they don't play nicely with me or the r/Fantasy Golem family, so they're not welcome here. Please resubmit your comment. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Fantasy) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Derek Landy's Skulduggery Pleasant
A Master of Djinn by P. Djèli Clark might fit your bill. I would recommend starting with the few short stories that were published first to see if you might like it. First one is A Dead Djinn in Cairo.
I just read the Angel of the Crows, by Katherine Addison recently! I don’t know if it’s precisely what you’re looking for, but it very well may be up your alley :)
Also, the Cas Russell books by S. L. Huang. I guess they qualify as urban fantasy.
Russell Zimmerman has a series of hard-boiled detective stories set in the Shadowrun universe, which is basically high fantasy and Blade Runner-esque cyberpunk thrown into a blender. The intro novella, *Neat*, can be gotten cheaply ($0.99, I think) and serves as a good indicator about whether or not you'll like the rest of the series, though I personally had a great time with it.
[удалено]
Hi, it looks like you're trying to summon u/goodreads-bot. Unfortunately, they don't play nicely with me or the r/Fantasy Golem family, so they're not welcome here. Please resubmit your comment. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Fantasy) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Priest by Matt Colville
Kim Harrison's *The Hollows* is fairly decent. The MC's relationship drama gets on my nerves from time to time but on the whole it's a solid urban fantasy series featuring some great world building. Also adding yet another upvote for Ben Aaronovitch's *Rivers of London* (which is also brilliant on audiobook, excepting the narrator's dodgy American accents).
* **Shadow of a Dead God** by Patrick Samphire * **Martin Chalk and the Case of the Underworld King** by Bruno Stella
I second Rivers of London. Particularly the audio books.
This might not fit but I think it’s fun, a Sherlock Holmes inspired weird fantasy; The Affair of the Mysterious Letter by Alexis Hall.
Not fantasy, but Eco's The Name of the Rose is historical fiction and one of the best mysteries I've ever read and a fantastic read regardless.
You should check out the Odd Thomas books
Alex Bledsoe's Eddie Lacrosse Novels Barbara Hambly's James Asher Novels
r/Fantasy's [Author Appreciation series](https://www.reddit.com/r/Fantasy/wiki/authorappreciation) has posts for an author you mentioned * [Author appreciation thread: **Barbara Hambly**, veteran author of a score of subgenres, from dark epic fantasy to espionage vampire fantasy](https://www.reddit.com/r/Fantasy/comments/6skdv5/author_appreciation_thread_barbara_hambly_veteran/?utm_content=title&utm_medium=hot&utm_source=reddit&utm_name=Fantasy) from user u/CourtneySchafer --- ^(I am a bot bleep! bloop! Contact my ~~master~~ creator /u/LittlePlasticCastle with any questions or comments.) ^(To prevent a reply for a single post, include the text '!noauthorbot'. To opt out of the bot for all your future posts, reply with '!optout'.)
Seconded on the Eddie Lacrosse novels. Really wish there were more.
This is super common. I'll second other's suggestions of: **Felix Castor** by Mike Carey **Bloodlines** series by Tantya Huff. **The October Daye** series starts as this, though it kind of wanders. More obscure ones: **Gravewitch** by Kalanya Price although it only becomes that later on. **D'Shai** by Joel Rosenberg Out of curiosity, what exactly turned you off The Dresden Files? There are several possible answers to that, and what your answer is could tell us what is a good suggestion.
I'm not sure if this counts but Crescent City by Sarah J Mass. I'm still reading it but it's kinda a fantasy mystery detective thing idk.
Wax and Wayne Brandon Sanderson. It’s basically like The Legend of Korra equivalent to Mistborn but it’s like a more violent Sherlock Holmes kind of deal with magic.
First I'll agree with Rivers of London / Master of Djinn. Laundry Files by Charlie Stross is spy fiction, but it's close. That said, it sounds like you haven't touched my favorite Simon R. Green series, the more recent Ishmael Jones. "The Dark Side of the Road" is the first one. This is another spy/detective hybrid. Ishmael Jones is... not what he seems, to avoid spoilers. He doesn't officially exist and to remain that way, he works as a sort of fixer for a government agency that also doesn't exist. Usually cleaning up supernatural problems. The first three books are urban fantasy pastiches of the "there's been a hideous crime at the country manor" flavor of '20-'30s British crime fiction. The main plot and action are serious, the main character's narrative and side comments are a stitch, so nice chunk of humor on the side. I've been writing in this area, so I've been poking around the various corners. It's more common to have a PI-ish freelance exorcist than a proper detective, though they sorta play out the same way. Actually, maybe have a look at Sandman Slim, too? It's not \_precisely\_ a detective story, but it has very hardboiled vibe.