Johannes Cabal; a necromancer of some infamy; often finds himself on the run from one individual or another. This time however, he’s on the run from the local government.

Having stolen the identity of a minor bureaucrat, Cabal takes passage on the Princess Hortense; a passenger airship that is leaving the country (and his enemies) behind. Cabal’s deception seems perfect and as he looks forward to a quiet trip, his plans are dashed when he comes face to face with someone he’d thought left behind. It is the one woman to ever match wits with him, and could potentially blow his cover – Leonie Barrow.

When a fellow passenger appears to throw himself to his death, Cabal’s curiosity gets the better of him and he investigates. His minor efforts result in an attempt on his own life, and then the gloves come off.

Cabal must swallow his price (to an extent) and reluctantly team up with Leonie to discover the murderer. And in the process, discover the secrets within the Princess Hortense herself.

The Detective is the second book in the Johannes Cabal series. I read and reviewed the first book earlier last year and decided to give the second book a go.

As much as I enjoyed the first book, I sadly cannot say the same of the second. While Cabal was still his brash self, he didn’t have as an effective foil as he did in the first book. Here we have Leonie Barrow; and while she is a decent partner to Cabal, she unfortunately doesn’t hold a candle to Cabal’s brother from the first book.

The story itself was also a tad disappointing. There were some points where it just seemed to drag along, not quite sure where it was going. It was as if the story were like the Princess Hortense herself, just drifting along with no real heading.

Several flashback scenes offer us a more detailed look in to Cabal’s past and give us a better idea of the man he used to be. I personally would enjoy seeing more that that man in upcoming books.

A decent addition to the Johannes Cabal series, I found The Detective to be fairly amusing. Readers who enjoyed the first book should give this one a try. I myself am looking forward to the third book, to reading and to reviewing.