The Last Smile in Sunder City

The Fetch Phillips Archives, Book 1

By: Luke Arnold

Narrated by: Luke Arnold

In a world that's lost its magic, a former soldier turned PI solves cases for the fantasy creatures whose lives he ruined in an imaginative debut fantasy by Black Sails actor Luke Arnold.

Welcome to Sunder City. The magic is gone, but the monsters remain.

I'm Fetch Phillips, just like it says on the window. There are a few things you should know before you hire me:

1. Sobriety costs extra.
2. My services are confidential.
3. I don't work for humans.

It's nothing personal - I'm human myself. But after what happened, to the magic, it's not the humans who need my help.

Walk the streets of Sunder City and meet Fetch, his magical clients, and a darkly imagined world perfect for fans of Ben Aaronovitch and Jim Butcher.

Praise for The Last Smile in Sunder City:

"Arnold's writing and narration combine for a strong addition to the contemporary fantasy genre and kick off a new series with a powerful start. A must-listen, especially for fantasy lovers and Arnold's fans." (AudioFile)

"A richly imagined world.... Winningly combining the grit of Chinatown with the quirky charm of Harry Potter, this series opener is sure to have readers coming back for more." (Publishers Weekly)

"A marvelous noir voice; Arnold has captured the spirit of the genre perfectly and wrapped it around a fantasy setting with consummate skill." (Peter McLean, author of Priest of Bones)

Fetch Phillips novels:

• The Last Smile in Sunder City
• Dead Man in a Ditch

©2020 Luke Arnold (P)2020 Orbit

Critic reviews

"[T]he focus on meticulous worldbuilding and highly detailed backstory as well as the cast of fully developed and memorable characters are unarguable strengths.... The first installment of an effortlessly readable series that could be the illegitimate love child of Terry Pratchett and Dashiell Hammett." (Kirkus)

"A marvelous noir voice; Arnold has captured the spirit of the genre perfectly and wrapped it around a fantasy setting with consummate skill." (Peter McClean, author of Priest of Bones)

"A richly imagined world... Winningly combining the grit of Chinatown with the quirky charm of Harry Potter, this series opener is sure to have readers coming back for more." (Publishers Weekly starred review)

confusing timelines

I couldn't keep up with past action vs present or even if future actions being described. Story left me confused.
I did enjoy the very descriptive tropes and metaphors to all five of my senses. author is great for those.

1950’s Film Noir

I love old black and white movies. This reminds me of a 1950 something detective film. The kind where Sam Spade and the gangster maul have a thing for each other but it can never be. This however has the death of magic and the decline of Vampires, lichen and trolls along with goblins and witches. All mixed in with a human race that destroyed the magic in an attempt at gaining power and wealth. Fantasy, fiction, mystery and fun on the darker side of humor.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

I was hesitant, but it delivers.

A modern noir-style? Narrated by author? So many ingredients that have disappointed me in the past. I usually think these are underwhelming, unimaginative, or over-done. This is only the good and none of the bad.

Interesting characters and descriptions of the world. Great backstory and history development. Delivers in the moment tension while building larger story arcs. Before I even knew this was a series I was thinking there could be some great follow-up (at the same time worried that the spell could be broken with a next "chapter").

Most important for me was that the author delivers something extra to the story in the narration and isn't just some vehicle for him to cut out a middle-man. He provides feeling and differentiation for each character making a more surround and complete experience. Great work all around.

Really fun listening experience

This was really fun. Luke Arnold really gets into character and makes the story enjoyable.

World building at it's best

I love books that can build a world that you just picture and this world along with a fantastic lead character doesn't disappoint. also the author's talent at narration is one of the best.

Awesome

Just what I needed after Dresden! Great start to hopefully a great series! Can't wait for the next one! It's like a weird mirror of Dresden files...most excellent!

A fun different story

There were elements that seemed unfinished, it overall a great yarn. Good outing by Arnold

Well written, narration didn’t work for me

Well written, interesting story full of noir and urban fantasy tropes. I didn’t like the narration — the reader spoke too fast and used a monotone for the first-person protagonist. The monotone was in character, but I didn’t enjoy the prose or story as much because of it. The story was a little more dour than I prefer in a noir.

Luke Arnold has the goods!

If you enjoy the Dresden Files, you will almost certainly enjoy this book. Luke Arnold, who is *great* on Black Sails, reads his own work here and does a bang-up job. I devoured this hard-boiled urban fantasy mystery.

Fun!

What a talent! Author, actor and narrator extraordinaire. He is one of the rare narrators who accomplishes unique, interesting and believable voices for each character, and makes it sound effortless.

This book really captures the feel and classic dialogue of the noire genre, but with some interesting fantasy elements thrown in, along with some observation about the human condition that never change, no matter what world you imagine.

I really enjoyed it and bought the next book in the series right away.