TITAN’S DAY by Dan Stout – Review

I received this book for free from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Titan's Day by Dan Stout
Series: The Carter Archives #2
Published by Daw Books on April 7 2020
Genres: Adult, Fantasy
Pages: 432
Format: ARC
Source: Publisher
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The nitty-gritty: A cleverly plotted sequel with plenty of mysteries, Titan’s Day is a strong entry into Stout’s fascinating retro/noir urban fantasy world.

Last year I was surprised and delighted by Dan Stout’s debut, Titanshade, as were many other readers, and I couldn’t wait to get back into Stout’s unique world. And I’m happy to say the sequel stands up wonderfully to the first book. Titan’s Day is a successful sequel that builds on the first book but also introduces some new players. And as with any series review, do be aware that there are minor unavoidable spoilers for Titanshade.

After the thrilling climax of the last book—where Titanshade PD private investigators Carter and Ajex inadvertently discovered a hidden underground supply of manna (the rare, magical substance that comes from whales)—the two have just finished up a six week desk duty stint in order to keep their involvement in the manna strike out of the papers. Their first day back, however, they’re thrust right into the middle of a magical mystery. The dead body of a young Mollenkampi girl is found in an alley, and a broken glass vial under her body reveals she may have been in the possession of snake oil, a dangerous combination of manna and a drug called angel tears. The discovery of a second body close by sends the Titanshade PD into a frenzy and eager to wrap things up before the annual Titan’s Day celebration.

As Carter and Ajax start delving into the murder, they find themselves going head to head with a number of colorful characters, including an investigator named Dungan, who seems to be hiding evidence, a powerful sorcerer who is linked to Gellica, the woman Carter can’t stop thinking about, and the dangerous CaCuri twins who have more than one political agenda and seem to control the entire city. Carter will need to use all his resources to get past the city’s red tape and figure out who the murderer is before Titan’s Day.

One of the things I love best about this series is the way Stout seamlessly integrates his world-building into the story. You won’t find any big info dumps or paragraph after paragraph of exposition. Rather, Carter casually mentions the details of the world as the story progresses. I love this organic way of telling a story, which gives you just enough information but doesn’t over-explain things. For example, the city of Titanshade is built on the ice plains, a frozen landscape warmed only by a buried god, a Titan, who—according to legend—sacrificed himself to save the people of Titanshade. Near the center of the city, where the wealthy live, the heat vents are plentiful and it’s much warmer. But on the fringes of the city where the vents are few and far between, those with fewer resources must wear heavier clothing to keep warm. I feel like there is still a lot we don’t know about this Titan, and whether he’s actually real or just a myth, and I’m hoping the next book goes a little deeper into this mystery.

I also love the retro 70s/80s vibe of this world, which adds a unique touch and sets this series apart from other urban fantasies. Cameras have flash bulbs (anyone remember those?) and when Carter and Ajax type up police reports, they use carbon paper to make duplicates. You won’t find any cell phones in Titanshade, but you will find pagers! Add to all this Carter and his methodical way of solving crimes, and you have what feels like an old fashioned detective story with a dash of magic.

We get to know some new characters this time, most importantly the CaCuri twins Thomas and Katie, who are tied up with the Harlq Syndicate, a dangerous criminal organization. Katie is appealing to the masses who are out of work and trying to get elected to office, but both are pretty scary characters and have some interesting run-ins with Carter. Lots of characters make return appearances. One of my favorites is a woman named Gellica, who is actually a magical construct and needs regular infusions of manna in order to survive. In Titanshade, Gellica and Carter were (sort of) romantically involved, and now in this book they are trying to deal with their feelings for each other. Not to mention the fact that they are on opposite sides of Titanshade’s political arena and belong to completely different classes. There’s a lot of longing and indecision between them, and although it wasn’t the focus of the story by any means, I did love that Carter has no idea how to conduct himself in a relationship. It definitely made him more human. 

Which brings me to Carter, who is a truly delightful mix of gruff, street smart, wisecracking and tenacious. Carter is driven to find the truth, even if he has to step on toes to do it. He rubs people the wrong way, and he knows he rubs people the wrong way and just doesn’t care. Ajax acts as someone Carter can bounce off of, but I was happy to see that Stout gives Ajax his own personality and backstory as well. And if you love humor, you’ll love the dialog, particularly between Carter and Ajax. It’s hysterically funny at times and it’s one of my favorite things about this story.

Titan’s Day didn’t have as much action as Titanshade, so for me it was a touch slower than the first book. But that’s really not a complaint, as this slower pace gave the author more room to explore the various mysteries that are going on. This is also a much more political story than the first one. Now that many citizens are out of work, due to the temporary halt of the oil drilling, there’s a push for new leadership, someone who will help the economy get back on its feet. Carter and Ajex find themselves in the middle of this political maneuvering, and I loved watching the way they handle themselves. This is more of a slow burn story where clues are dropped carefully, with plenty of different characters and factions adding to both the mystery of the murders and the mystery of Carter’s sudden affliction when it comes to manna. I’m terrible at figuring stuff out so I was surprised by everything in this story!

There’s a burst of frenetic action at the end as Carter and Ajax finally connect all the dots, but Stout leaves plenty of room for things to develop in the next book. We still don’t know a lot about the new source of manna that’s been discovered, and I’m hoping that Carter and Gellica will get to spend more time together as well. You can take away all the fantasy trappings of this world and still be left with a damn fine police procedural, but the wonderful city of Titanshade and all its mysteries add such a fascinating layer to the story, it just wouldn’t be the same. Highly recommended!

Big thanks to the publisher for supplying a review copy.

Read my review of Titanshade.