Most of Angelmaker, Nick Harkaway's second novel (after The Gone-Away World), takes place in a fantastical London that combines the edgy urban fantasy of China Mieville with the cerebral action-movie pacing of Neal Stephenson. (As in the classic Cryptonomicon, the contemporary narrative is driven by a long-forgotten scheme from World War II.) Joe Spork's father was a gentleman thief of mythic proportions--think the Kray brothers with the psychopathic edges shaved off and replaced with a Raffles-like charm. Joe rejects that life, barely making ends meet repairing clocks and other mechanical antiques. Then a particularly weird assignment drops him into a world of robot bees, killer aesthetic monks (no, that's not a typo) and an aging ex-spy named Edie, who roams around London with her blind dog.
Harkaway revels in the blockbuster approach. It isn't just about pushing the accelerator all the way to the floor, but also about a conscious steering of scenes to over-the-top effects. When Joe finds a gift his father left behind, it builds up to an almost ridiculously dramatic and ostentatiously self-conscious climax. On the other hand, it's so much fun that most readers will be willing to play along. Edie's flashback scenes, recalling her education in espionage and her cross-dressing battles against Shem Shem Tsien, the Opium Khan, are both stirring and hilarious. Angelmaker takes the piss out of the modern techno-thriller, infusing it with a sleek retro style and a sexy sense of humor--both of which mark Nick Harkaway as a writer to watch.-- Ron Hogan, founder of Beatrice.com