A girl’s got to eat and pay rent, after all, and moreover, Ropa has a family to support: her Gran, and her little sister Izwi. The Library of the Dead follows a teenager named Ropa, who works as a ghostalker: someone who speaks to ghosts and delivers their messages to the living – for a fee, of course. Huchu has done in his novel The Library of the Dead (Tor, 2021), first in the Edinburgh Nights series.

A quick look through the city’s history will show some horrific tales of violence and bloodshed, such as the Burke and Hare murders, and the life of Sir George “Bluidy” Mackenzie of Rosehaugh.Īnd like many old (and sometimes not-so-old, in the case of many American cities) and storied cities, Edinburgh makes a fine setting for an urban fantasy novel. Edinburgh Castle, for example, has quite the bloody reputation some researchers believe that it might have been the most besieged building in all of Great Britain, and perhaps one of the most attacked in the world. There is also the history of the city itself, and its inhabitants. One can walk down a narrow cobblestone lane one moment, hemmed on all sides by 16th century buildings, only to turn a corner to find oneself on a wide avenue amidst 21st century skyscrapers. As has been mentioned, Edinburgh is old, and the architecture of the city reflects that, ranging from the medieval to the ultra-modern. Part of it might have to do with the city’s look. And there are plenty of stories: Condé Nast Traveller counted Edinburgh among the 10 Most Haunted Cities in the World in 2017, and many people are convinced there is truth to that. In that time, the city’s history has been mottled in shades of light and shadow – and those shadows can be very dark, if the stories are to be believed. Long before there was a city bearing that name, humans were living in the area around 8500 BCE, and since that time it has only grown in size and prestige. Please note that the page may contain spoilers.Įdinburgh is an old city, and its history runs deep. Trigger warnings for this novel can be found here, c/o.

Library of the dead huchu