Foxglove Summer
Ben Aaronovitch
** spoiler alert **
Bev stakes her claim
Explanation: I have already read every work in Ben Aaronovitch's Rivers of London series that has been published as of 16-Sep-2023. I have been gradually re-experiencing them in audio format. I like to always have an audiobook on tap for my daily walks and for road trips. You can find my review of the kindle edition here. This second review is of the audiobook version, but more than that, it's about the experience of reading the book knowing something of the future of most of the characters.
THERE WILL BE SPOILERS, both for this book and for future RoL books. You have been warned.
From the perspective of the future, there are two developments in Foxglove Summer that I found particularly interesting -- the first appearance of the High Fae, and Bev's claiming Peter for her own.
Earlier in the series Nightingale and Peter have explained that they use the words fae or fairy as catch-alls for any humanoid magical being. In classical folklore, however, fae and fairy are a good deal more specific. The words refer to a race of magical people who live in a sort of feudal society traditionally ruled by a king and a queen. They live in a place called Fairyland or Avalon or Underhill (and probably other names I'm unaware of). And there are stories about them stealing children, and leaving behind substitutes called changelings. These beings, we learn in Foxglove Summer, exist in the RoL world. They are called The Fair Folk or High Fae in the Follypedia Wiki. In fact, it becomes clear that this is not the first appearance of High Fae in RoL -- Molly (the Folly housekeeper) is one. We will meet another in Lies Sleeping -- Foxglove, who will come to live at the Folly with Molly.
The second major development in Foxglove Summer concerns Peter's progress towards domesticity. In the first books of the series Peter makes it pretty clear that he is ready and indeed eager to go to bed with anything attractive and female and human-shaped. It has also been clear for a while that he regards Beverly Brook in that light. Bev, in contrast, seems to have been taking a "We'll see..." approach to Peter. In Foxglove Summer she makes her move. She takes Peter into the River Lugg where they make the beast with two backs in order to give it the energy to produce a genius loci of its own. Then, after Peter surrenders himself to the Fairy Queen in order to free the children she had captured, Bev shows up and claims him.
“Put your hands on your head,” she said, “and step away from the boyfriend.”
The Queen hissed and gripped the rope harder.
“I don’t care,” said Beverley slowly. “He is not free to make such a bargain.”
“Nonetheless,” hissed the Queen, “he made a bargain and he must keep it.”
“Ladies,” I said.
“Peter,” said Beverley, “you stay the fuck out of this.”
She reshouldered the shotgun. “I’ve loaded this particular gun with scrap iron,” she said. “Now, I don’t know if a shot to the head will kill you or not. But just consider how much fun we can have finding out.”
While they were chatting, I created a little shield and, very carefully, sliced off the ropes around my wrist. The Queen felt when they went slack and turned to grab me but Beverley shouted, “No!” And she thought better of it.
In the not too distant future, Peter will end up married to Bev (in fact, if not quite with all the legal forms) and the father of twin demigoddesses.