45 years: 1978-2023
Discover why this incredible series has sold over two million copies worldwide. If you're a fan of Terry Pratchett, you will love the imaginative, irreverent and all-round irresistible Rivers of London
books.
Ben Aaronovitch has built his playful crime and fantasy mash-ups into a hugely popular literary franchise. After serving his sci-fi apprenticeship penning episodes of Doctor Who, Aaronovitch turned his hand to prose with the PC Peter Grant series. Effortlessly blending multiple genres, the books, which began with Rivers of London in 2011, introduce the eponymous copper – who also happens to be the first English apprentice wizard in over 70 years. The series has grown to include novellas and graphic novels and has a dedicated cult following around the world.
Ben Aaronovitch was born in 1964. Discovering in his early twenties that he had precisely one talent, he took up screenwriting at which he was an overnight success. He wrote for Doctor Who, Casualty and the world’s cheapest ever SF soap opera Jupiter Moon. He then wrote for Virgin’s New Adventures until they pulped all his books.
Then Ben entered a dark time illuminated only by an episode of Dark Knight, a book for Big Finish and the highly acclaimed but not-very-well-paying Blake’s 7 Audio dramas.
Trapped in a cycle of disappointment and despair Ben was eventually forced to support his expensive book habit by working for Waterstones as a bookseller. Ironically it was while shelving the works of others that Ben finally saw the light. He would write his own books, he would let prose into his heart and rejoice in the word. Henceforth, subsisting on nothing more than instant coffee and Japanese takeaway, Ben embarked on the epic personal journey that was to lead to Rivers of London (or Midnight Riot as it is known in the Americas).
Ben Aaronovitch currently resides in London and says that he will leave when they pry his city from his cold dead fingers.
Praise for Ben Aaronovitch and the Rivers of London series
“Highly entertaining.” — Sunday Express.
“Charming, witty, exciting.” — The Independent.
“Ben Aaronovitch has created a wonderful world full of mystery, magic and fantastic characters. I love being there more than the real London.” — Nick Frost.
“As brilliant and funny as ever… Masterfully crafted – gives the late, great Terry Pratchett a run for his money.” — The Sun.
“An incredibly fast-moving magical joyride for grown-ups.” — The Times.
“Funny and wildly inventive.” — Mail on Sunday.
