The Stranger Times

This is a comic urban fantasy set around a Fortean Timesalike newspaper in Manchester. It's very likeable, a fun and entertaining read, with some opening sketches for an interesting mythology should this become a series. It's not hard to spot the antecedents. The “small organisation gets involved in defeating occult plots” set up will be familiar to Ben Aaronovitch's fans, while there are also definite elements of Pratchett. McDonnell has a way to go before he can be talked of alongside him, but the camaraderie between the loveable - well, losers would be harsh, but winners is in no way accurate either - of the Stranger Times staff is reminiscent of the Watch. Either way, I wolfed it down in a day, and I'll be looking out for the next one.