Murder at the Kinnen Hotel by Brian McClellan-A critique

"Murder at the Kinnen Hotel" is a 2014 novella with less than a hundred pages. It is authored by Brian McClellan and part of the Powder Mage book series set to be "twenty-two years before the events in Promise of Blood", the first book in the series.

Book Overview (according to Amazon)

Special Detective Constable Adamat may be the most capable young investigator in all of Adopest. He's sharp, thoughtful, and his particular sorcery gives him a flawless memory. A transfer to the First Precinct seems like the perfect opportunity to showcase his abilities and advance his career.

But things work differently in the First Precinct. The murder of a businessman's mistress quickly pulls Adamat into an unexpected world of conspiracy and politics where he's forced to use all his wits to stay one step ahead of unseen enemies and keep his friends - and himself - from the guillotine.

Occurs twenty-two years before the events in Promise of Blood.

Critique

Despite his age (23), he is remarkable. I like the way he seems to carry himself like he has a certain air about him. He's insulting/talking poorly about Ricard's obvious forehead and receding hairline but says the women find his "full features" handsome before commenting on his charm. He's talking about Ricard's thinning hair since he can't insult him any other way but hates him since something happened during their university days. Never mind he can insult him. He says he's smart too but can be stupid at times. His internal thoughts or general annoyance about Ricard is entertaining. Dorry is so grimy. I was happy the Captain hated him too. Who robs unclaimed murder victims? He's the nephew of the commissioner so he doesn't even need to do that. He's just horrible. Powder mages can use black powder to enhance their skills beyond that of normal humans as it is one of their commands and one of the three primary methods of sorcery. They are hidden but illegal in other countries due to their ability. Dorry ridiculed the possibility of them being involved in the murder because they're rare as he joked that they would be after a ghost next. Captain Hewi was hesitant about it as well but they have trust since they worked together and moved from the twelfth precinct together to the first where they are now. Dorry said he got a confession from the cook for the Viscount murder which Adamat had said was not the murderer before getting to lead Ricard's case after getting furious with Dorry who kept belittling him. He had suggested the lady of the house as a suspect but the commissioner said they shouldn't forget she's related to the crown.

Adamat believes Ricard is smart enough to kill his mistress without implication if he wants to. He adds that the gun was in its original state so it was not the weapon used. The shady nephew had a shady uncle, shocking! I'm proud of him for straying away from his quiet character (with his wife) to disrupt the peace of the horrible people. Yes, there's a hierarchy and respect should be given but they are the worst. I like that they say "pit" to swear like "What the pit?" It's interesting, I've never seen that before. I like the idea of the newsies for fresh gossip and adverts. Even Constable White knew that the first precinct thrived off of politics saying they care more about the "illusion of order" than actually doing their job. She came from the royal cabal of sorcerers to find the said powder mage in the gossip he shared for the newsies which the commissioner was furious about. Aw, he still wanted to help his friend. General Tamas kills his people because they are monitored strictly while he and his wife roam free as the king's favourite and it's sad. Adamat worries about his hair wondering if it was thinning as his father went bald early. Another balding head comment about Kemptin(Walis) as they describe that his head's center shone while the sides clung on. Huh, 3 balding comments. Not surprised that White left him but that still hurt, wow. He called him out and punched him, hahaha, still lawfully though. 

I kind of didn't want them to find the powder mage but how would things have been resolved? So did Adamat who asked if anyone knew his name which no one did even his employer who only knew him as "the powder mage." That's sad, RIP. The cook and their distant relative, Genetrie was beheaded. RIP to her too. I felt bad for her. I hope her son has the best life. The commissioner was arrested but his family would be handled by White's underlings. The family includes Dorry, who would be a disgrace now, ha! Walis was willing to sell out his family to protect himself. Captain Hewi was made the new commissioner. There was no public credit to Adamat but White offered more to him for serving the Cabal well which he rejected. He rejects the offer for fear of repercussions later on, especially since he and his wife want children soon. Everyone tried to protect themselves: White from unnecessary things like involvement in the murder, Hewi for her job, Adamat during the cruel interrogation, and Walis against his family. There's an epilogue and in it, we learn about what happened to Ricard. He's alive and at the funeral for Melany, the dead mistress he said he wanted to marry. He wept and was the only one there since he was the only one who knew her in this country.

He joked about his commitment issues worsening now before apologizing again for what happened with Cora. We learn that Ricard is Adamat's cousin who hurt their friend unintentionally he said but so deeply she left the country and didn't return Adamat's letters since he introduced them. Ricard says he would make it up to them but Adamat tells him to let it go. Ricard thanked him and encouraged him not to feel bad about the circumstances of the promotion because he brought people to justice and saved him. We learn that Adamat became a full detective and learn how he got Hewi promoted to commissioner. He says the Iron King approved it since he called her unambitious and controllable which is not true but she's the best person for the job. Ricard would be sending the urn of Melany's ashes to her family with some gifts and Adamat is surprised that he may have truly loved her. Adamat apologizes to Ricard for not winning his run for unionization and the always optimistic Ricard he knew said he knew deep down that they wouldn't win before his optimism shone through again as Adamat says he came close. Ricard says he came closer than before and he would keep trying no matter the possible consequence because he's "going to drag Adro kicking and screaming into the modern era."

Favourite character: Adamat-He was patient when needed, cocky when needed, and respectful when needed while utilizing his "minor sorcery" and wits. Captain Hewi- She was considerate, supportive, and trusting of him.

Favourite scene:When one of the other constables commented on how long it took for Dorry to come to his conclusion of suspecting the cook compared to how fast it took Adamat. Dorry who "beat" out a confession from her by the way. Adamat and Ricard discussing in prison. Ricard appreciated the effort and Adamat thought the trouble was worth it because of the smile of appreciation on his face as he was helping him for "old times sake". When Adamat called out Dorry in the precinct and punched him. Very worth it.

White's farewell to Adamat as she called him a good man who shouldn't change. He recognized the relief on her face as things were over and her somewhat smile which he thought was interesting in light of her stern nature knowing she may have been brutally trained to be in the Cabal. This is the same way she was hurt when he warned her about Teef's nervous tick so she wouldn't kill him for it. Same way she dialled it back a bit after he told her she was doing a bit too much during the interrogation of Genetrie. I respect Ricard's fight for unionization and I like the end with his determined optimism. He hoped to achieve unionization for more money and fewer hours as he believed it brought about more productivity. He would want to head it as a personal benefit but it's still a great cause.

Most memorable thing: The guillotine displayed in the town square to ensure power and order. They have a prison downtown by the station and close to the guillotine. That is so petty that they douse the fires to avoid long meetings from the police (commoners) as nobles who were recently ordered to allow it. White cruelly questioning Genetrie. It was effective but cruel, especially with how she was already.

Overall: I thoroughly enjoyed this. I'm definitely checking out the other books in the series.