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In Your Dreams by Tom Holt
01/10/2004 . Source: Phil Jones 
pub: Orbit. 474 page hardback. Price: £12.99 (UK), $30.00 (CAN). ISBN: 1-84149-159-4. Buy from Amazon US - Buy from Amazon UK
nb: US titles may only be available from Amazon US, and UK titles from Amazon UK. check out website: www.orbitbooks.co.uk
This is the follow on book from 'The Portable Door' and continues following the life of Paul Carpenter. He is stuck in his job (in more than just the legal sense) for the company of H.W. Wells & Co. They are not your average company shall we say. They cover all aspects of magic and act as consultants to numerous clients.
His life seemed to have settled down after his baptism of fire into the company. Office politics are a bit more dangerous in H.W. Wells & Co. Numerous events lead to him rescuing the senior partner who had been trapped in the form of an office stapler for quite some time. Now though, life seemed a bit more 'normal'. He was now living with his girlfriend Sophie (who also works in the same office) and work didn't seem all that bad.
Things were turned on its head when Sophie left him a note one evening, after they had had a row at work, saying she was dumping him and going to work in the Los Angeles office. He was also due to start working in a new department in the company, Pest Control. It turned out that pest control was not what he imagined. Disposal of dragons, vampires, werewolves and the like were the norm. Your usual hero-type stuff but Paul felt he was far from being hero-type material. So he began his basic training.
This is a new departure for Tom Holt as I believe it's the first series of books he has done. Continuing from the excellent 'The Portable Door', I was expecting more of the same. I can't quite put my finger on it, but it just does not have the same feel as the first book. The characters are as well rounded, beautifully created and perpetuated as before. I love the character of Paul. Down trodden and someone you would normally overlook the events that occur fit perfectly to his character.
Perhaps it's the quieter humour in this book. It doesn't have the same sparkle or complex jokes of Holt's previous books although there are still some wonderfully entertaining scenes such as the Wyvern in the cash machine eating all of his bank and credit cards. It feels less like a humorous story and more like, well, fantasy for a better word.
The plotting is complex. Numerous threads are created and distributed throughout. Plenty of clues and red herrings are there in abundance. The characters are used to their full advantage, but I think in some respects it's this clever plotting that pulls the book down a bit. The middle section does feel weighed down and a bit slow although the ending more than makes up for this. It shines and is not quite what you expect but if you're one for happy ending this may not be the place to look.
I love Tom Holt and even when he has an off day he is still a superb writer. He uses folk tales and even current media to his full advantage. He has also comfortably left the stage open for another book in the series. I would strongly urge people to read 'The Portable Door' first. You could get by not reading it, but I feel you would be missing out considerably if you didn't. Tom Holt fans may be a tad disappointed, but I would say it's still worth reading as it out shines a lot of so called 'humorous fantasy' out there.
Phil Jones
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