Maybe I'm just a sucker for a rip-roaring tale of adventure and magic. If you are, too, you'll love this book.

Mage accidentally comes into the possession of a "focus", a magical item that causes happy accidents to occur in favor of the user. Regrettably, it also causes the villain, the wealthy wizard, Tamenaga, to hunt the user down and kill him or her (as he had the previous owner). This causes Mage enough consternation that he decides to use the focus to get revenge while being hunted by demons from Japanese mythology.

Sadly, the synopsis is more exciting than the book itself. Dedman's writing skills are at first-year creative writing student levels and this is a tale that requires a defter hand, a better sense of humor and a wider imagination.

This is an interesting read and can be entertaining as long as your expectations are low.

I wouldn't call this a mystery novel, though it does have elements of that. Its more like a modern urban fantasy. Its easy to read and the main characters are likeable, though you can get mixed up at times with all the unusual Japanese names which keep on cropping up.

If you like light fantasy and Japanese mythology then this is a book worth reading and I'm happy to read the sequel SHADOWS BITE and see if it is as enjoyable and light as the first book.