ARC Review Arkham Horror Shadows of Pnath by Josh Reynolds

I was given a copy to review via Netgalley and Aconyte Books. My reviews are always honest and all opinions are my own. #ShadowOfPnath #ArkhamHorror #JoshReynolds #Netgalley #AconyteBooks   #BookReview

The Wrath of N’kai by Josh Reynolds was the first book by Aconyte I read and I am so glad I did. When I learnt that Reynolds was back writing for Arkham Horror but more importantly my favourite expert thief, Alessandra Zorzi was back I was more than I little excited. Thankfully Shadows of Pnath did not disappoint.

We see Zorzi return with a new vocation, securing occult artifacts she had once stolen to put in the safer hands of the Miskatonic University. With her new apprentice Pepper Kelly (another reason I adored this book), Zorzi is on the trail of the Zanthu Tablets which leads her to Paris. The task is not an easy one made more difficult when Pepper is kidnapped by an old enemy of which the countess has many. In a race against time Zorzi must rescue her apprentice, find and secure the tablets and stop an old enemy from summoning an army of vengeful ghouls from the depths of the catacombs. But if anyone is up to the task it is Zorzi.

I was overjoyed to have Alessandra and Pepper back on the page again. This dynamic duo make for such a fun noir-esque read. Add into this the horrors that only Arkham can provide and you have a rip-roaring thriller that will keep you hooked. Reynolds is brilliant at combining the historical setting and melding it with the occult horror you come to expect from the Arkham Horror games. It was a joy to see Alessandra taking Pepper under her wing and Pepper coming more into her own as a character from the previous novel. The relationship between the pair also added to the story by giving a feeling of tension of if Alessandra would be able to rescue her apprentice and friend in time.

The novel is well paced and while it is not exactly hard to see some twists coming it fits the pulpy noir genre perfectly. I also enjoyed the more sinister aspects of the horror in this one. It is more true to the genre and Lovecraftian horror than the general horror tropes. I certainly wasn’t expecting to end up liking a ghoul for example but here we are.

I loved reading this one and hope we get more adventures of Zorzi and Pepper in the future. I’d definitely read them!

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