A Stroke of Brilliance by Nazri Noor

Narrated by Zachary Johnson

Nazri Noor’s Arcane Hearts series of snarky, sexy, action-packed urban fantasy novels continues with A Stroke of Brilliance, which picks up shortly after A Touch of Fever ends. In that book, the author did a great job of setting up and introducing listeners to the fascinating and imaginative universe of the Black Market – a dimension that travels from place to place, enabling its inhabitants to go through portals into ‘our’ world – of creating a couple of complex, likeable leads and of setting up an intriguing overarching plotline for the series.

Note: There are spoilers for AToF in this review.

The series’ PoV character is Jackson Pryde, a smart-talking artificer whose parents were killed in an explosion that also destroyed the entirety of the Artificer’s Guild. Artificers are born without much magical ability but with the talent for creating devices that amplify the little magic they have, and Jackson, who still feels his loss keenly but mostly covers it up with layers of wise-assery, is now working on something he hopes will restore his fortunes as well as a more widespread respect for the craft. For years, Jackson has been at loggerheads with his former best friend, Xander Wright, a mage destined for incandescence (a state achieved only by the most powerful); but after teaming up to solve several murders, Jackson and Xander rediscovered their friendship and finally admitted and acted on the frustrated attraction which had been simmering between them for so long.

Jackson ekes out a living by fulfilling commissions from the various guilds, hunting for valuable materials and reagents they need in their work in exchange for a fee – or, as he terms it, the “Keep Jackson Alive Fund.” He’s always undertaken these quests alone, but now Xander often accompanies him – which pleases Jackson a lot; not only because he likes the company but also ecause it gets Xander out of his study and away from all his stuffy mage books! When A Stroke of Brilliance begins, Jackson has received a commission from The Circle of a Thousand Hands – the guild of scribes and scroll-makers – to bring back some Japanese Pine Resin, and on the way, he and Xander have stopped off to help a kindly wood spirit and her family with a spot of gardening. They’re taking a break when a wounded and terrified fawn bursts in to the clearing; Xander spots a wound on one of the animal’s back legs and with Jackson’s help, pulls out a splinter- a piece of purple crystal that looks suspiciously like the shard of a Chrysanthemist.

Returning to the Black Market with the Resin and the other crystal shards they found, Jackson and Xander make their way to the Thousand Hands, where Kaoru, the Guild Master, hints at there being some “unfortunate” goings on at the Ringing Hollow – the guild of glassblowers. There’s clearly some bad blood between the two guilds, but Jackson isn’t convinced he and Xander should be the ones to look into it. Xander, however, thinks leaving it to SEER (magical law enforcement) would be a mistake, so Jackson reluctantly agrees to go to the Ringing Hollow to scope things out after he’s dropped off the shards at home to see what Lore (the Artificer’s Intelligence built by his father) can discover about them.

When Jackson and Xander arrive at the Ringing Hollow, they receive a distinctly frosty reception from the Second Voice, the guild’s second-in-command, but their conversation is interrupted by the news of an explosion down in the main foundry. Before the messenger can say much more, however, the Second Voice shuts her down and immediately attempts to play down the incident as nothing more than an occupational hazard of working with extreme temperatures and molten glass. It’s obviously a lie – and when Reza Arshad, the infuriatingly handsome and, well, just plain infuriating SEER operative who got mixed up in the murder investigation in the previous book turns up to tell Jackson and Xander that he, too, suspects something is amiss, and even offers to share information with them if they’ll reciprocate with whatever they find out, they’re more convinced than ever that there is something seriously wrong.

A Stroke of Brilliance is a terrific follow-up to the first book. The plotting is tight and the questions and the tensions mount as we head into an action-packed climax with Jackson, Xander and their friends and allies facing a deadly foe the like of which they’ve not seen before, and whose origin is still shrouded in mystery. The world-building is excellent as we get to know more about the various guilds and the way they and the Black Market operate; the concept of a moveable dimension opens up all sorts of possibilities and settings for future stories, and I love that. I’m also loving the central relationship between Jackson and Xander; it’s fun and sexy and full of affection, with an underlying tenderness that comes through strongly despite Jackson’s frequent admonishments to himself not to go overboard with the sappy. (He’s so far gone…) They’re obviously crazy about each other, they work well together and have a great way of bouncing off each other – and I always love a couple for whom snark is a way of expressing affection ;) That isn’t to say they don’t have obstacles to overcome, and in this book we meet two of them – Xander’s overbearing and frankly awful parents – but they’re working through them together and are solid as a couple.

The author introduces some interesting new characters and the recurring ones are becoming more fully fleshed out; there’s a nice element of found family to the story, too, all the more poignant because Jackson has lost his (there’s a beautiful moment when he remembers his parents and how much they loved and laughed together).

Zachary Johnson delivers another fabulous performance that combines considerable technical skill with a lot of warmth and heart. Jackson is a great character; he’s outwardly confident and often brash but he loves fiercely and carefully guards the inner vulnerability he very rarely lets others see. He’s a romantic at heart – although he’d probably die before admitting it! – and Mr. Johnson absolutely nails every single facet of his character – his insecurities, his warmth, his humour – and the banter with Xander and smart-arse remarks are timed perfectly. Xander’s wit and new-found playfulness are on point, too, and the conflict he experiences between his desire to follow his own path and to fulfil his parents’ expectations is skilfully conveyed. The secondary cast is appropriately portrayed and clearly differentiated (I love his portrayal of Lore), although there are a couple of female characters I couldn’t have identified as such had it not been made clear in the text. That’s my only criticism though – otherwise, it’s a wonderfully engaged and animated performance that was an absolute delight to listen to.

A Stroke of Brilliance is an inventive, fast-moving story and the narration is superb – wonderful entertainment all round. As I write this review, book three, An Iron Fist, is waiting for me in my Audible library, and I’m off to listen to it!

Caz

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