Where is Anybody?

Another snappy, quick-paced modern fantasy from Simon Green. As always, Green specializes in throwing highly inventive ideas at the reader, nested in a quip-filled narrative and dialogue that almost qualifies as a book full of banter. In this volume, Green concludes the saga of magical ultra-thief Gideon Sable, his girlfriend/partner, and his quirky gang of associates. As is often the case with Green, a serious thread underlies the relentless pace and droll humor. It offers a nice capstone to this series, something that seems rare in fantasy. It is also brief and reads fast.

If there is a downside, it is the fact that most Green books are very similar in tone and can feel formulaic. This could be, for example, a Nightside book as easily as a Sable book. I suspect that is part of Green's appeal but I would like to see shim break the mold sometime.

I read and enjoyed all the five Gideon Sable novels. There's a lot of fun, humour, Gideon is a smart ass and the gang is crazy enough to keep me entertaining.
This time we start with a BANG and close with a BANG after saying good bye to some characters. There's surprises, there's humour and fun.
It could be the last in this series or a reboot but I will surely miss those who are gone.
Mr Green often uses a sort of template but I couldn't care less as I was having a lot of fun in reading this story
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Ok I was late to the party where Simon R Green is concerned but I have now read three of his series and a few other things besides. It’s fair to say that he does follow a specific script when writing and he’s not afraid of leaning on the cheese. But frankly I don’t care. He comes up with great ideas, the worlds are always interesting and the character interactions are fun and engaging. It’s not hard-hitting literature but it is always entertaining and I always leave each book wanting the next one – no mean feat after reading 20 or so of his books within a few months. And this one was no exception.

Simon R Green has so many series and I think they all exist in the same world. This series is pretty simplistic, but Green writes with his typical sense of humor and fun. The stakes are high -- aren't they always? And the bad guys are really, really bad. Gideon and his crew spend most of the book trying to rescue each other, and right when I'm thinking that there aren't any real consequences, we say goodbye to some beloved friends forever.
I will always read new books by Green, because they are so much fun. Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this

I’ve been reading his author for years, so I know exactly what I’m getting when I read one. While his books aren’t perfect, I still quite enjoy them just like I did this one. Poor Gideon doesn’t know what to do with himself after Annie is kidnapped, and he can’t find her using any magical means. So, he gets the old crew together to find her. I was surprised at the end, as I generally am since this author usually has a twist, and this was quite a twist. I think this might be the last book in the series considering how it ended. Yes, this series follows a formula, but I still enjoy them anyway as the books are entertaining, witty, action-packed, and fun. Recommend. I was provided a complimentary copy which I voluntarily reviewed.

As this may be the last in the series, I'm giving 5 stars as I loved the characters and stories. Gideon wants to keep his hand in the con and goes out on night.y jaunts thinking Annie doesn't notice, until he returns to find someone found Annie and left a kidnappers note. The on.y way to get her back is retrieving an impossible item. His only option is getting the old crew back together and nonstop action results. Always snarky, the dialog doesn't disappoint and the action and adventure doesn't either. I guessed early on who was behind the kidnapping, but there is still surprises throughout the book with a final chapter to sum it all up, which I really appreciated. Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the trade of a free read for an honest opinion.

Where is Anybody? by Simon R. Green, a fun read that pulls you in and makes you want to keep coming back. Green is a master of the genre and is fairly prolific, I am always on the lookout for any new books of his and this one did not disappoint.

Humour and banter, over the top antics, a satisfactory if not usually predictable conclusion - just what I expect from a Simon Green novel and this one doesn't disappoint. Yes, it's similar in a lot of way to his previous books, but that's why I pick them up - I know I'll enjoy them! I won't comment on the plot, because really that's only an excuse for the banter and shenanigans!

I enjoyed the romps with Gideon Sable, Annie Anybody and the rest of their crew and am glad their adventures drew to a satisfactory conclusion (not always the case with fantasy series).

A light-hearted, fun way to spend a few hours - recommended.

"Legendary master thief and conman Gideon Sable must pull off an impossible heist to save his partner's life in this fast-paced supernatural thriller from New York Times bestselling British fantasy author Simon R. Green.

Gideon Sable specializes in stealing the kind of things that can't usually be stolen. But these days the legendary master thief is officially retired from the caper game. Now, instead of pulling off elaborate heists with his crew of supernatural specialists, he runs a magical shop in the heart of London with his partner Annie Anybody. Still, he can't resist occasionally going out in the night to steal things when Annie's not looking. For old times' sake - and for the joy of the con.

But after one of his late-night illicit jaunts, Gideon returns to the shop to find that while he's been stealing, someone else has been hard at work...stealing from him. I have taken Annie Anybody, reads the note on the countertop. If you ever want to see her again, you must find and steal Time's Arrow. You have forty-eight hours.

Stealing the legendary Arrow isn't a challenge; it's certain death. But Gideon will stop at nothing to save Annie from their unknown enemy - with or without the help of his talented, terrifying former crew..."

Thieves can never retire. It will be work work work until the day they die.

Simon Green is winding up the story of Gideon Sable and his nefarious stealing ways in Where is Anybody? He has to find Time's Arrow or he will loose Annie Anybody, his soulmate, who has been kidnapped. He brings together his team and starts hunting. What could go wrong. Read and find out.

Gideon Sable is a lot of things – thief, rogue, collector, jack of all slightly nefarious trades and a master of several of them – more than he admits but then he likes to be underestimated. It’s all part of the game, after all.

But he’s been trying to go straight – or as straight as anyone can who operates in Old Soho – after the events of Not of This World. But it’s not working for him. He misses the thrill of the hunt – and the curiosities and oddities store he inherited always needs more stock.

He may have sorta/kinda convinced himself that’s that’s enough to justify all of his occasional illegal forays into other people’s collections – particularly as he only steals from people – and creatures – who really, really deserve it. But his partner, Annie Anybody, can always see right through him.

She always wears someone else’s face, so it’s easy for her to spot that her partner is wearing a mask of contentment that doesn’t quite fit. Gideon may always be ‘the man with a plan’ but this time Annie has a plan of her very own – and it’s much, much better than Gideon’s.

All he has to do is get the old gang back together – or at least as together as some of them can ever be – and ride to Annie’s rescue. Because Annie’s been kidnapped by one of Gideon’s many, many old enemies – and he’ll do anything to get her back. No matter how many impossibly well-guarded collections he has to burgle to save the love of his life.

But no plan – not even Gideon’s – survives first contact, especially when that enemy already knows all of Gideon’s tricks. As Annie’s kidnapper most definitely and absolutely does.

Escape Rating B: If the TV series Leverage had a book baby with the author’s own Nightside series the result would be Gideon Sable. Gideon is a liar, a thief, and a con artist, much like Nate Ford in Leverage – who is also ‘a man with a plan’. But Gideon, even though he usually operates outside the law and against the powers that be, only operates against villains who are much worse than he has any intention of ever being – even if those he considers fair game often represent that law OR are themselves among the powers-that-be. Power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely, and Gideon Sable is right there waiting for some of them to step over a line that sometimes only he can see.

But he’s not really Gideon Sable. Or rather he IS Sable now but he hasn’t always been. In Old Soho, the mask and moniker of Gideon Sable belongs to whoever can steal it and keep it. In the first book in the series, The Best Thing You Can Steal, he had just assumed that identity – whoever he used to be.

This story, which looks like the final book in the series, reads like a bit of a victory lap for the character – in spite of his desperation to save Annie and enact some serious justice on whoever took her from him.

Along the way, first he has to get the old gang back together – and every single one of them needs help before they are available to help him. Even old friends and enemies manage to pop onstage for a brief moment and fans of the series will enjoy seeing most of them again – even the ones that Gideon himself would prefer to drop into a pit lined with spikes or vipers or both.

One of the things that has made this series work for me is that Gideon is a stream-of-consciousness snarkmaster of the first order and we see everything from inside his wry, cynical, sarcastic head. If you like his voice, you’ll enjoy the series – and probably most of the author’s other series – because the style is the same throughout and his worlds tend to bleed into one another – often literally.

Just don’t attempt to start here. It would be like reading the last chapter of a book before the first – before anything that’s going on in the ending has enough backstory to make sense. But all the books in the series are just barely above novella length, so if you like a lot of sass and snark in your protagonists then Gideon Sable might be your jam.

It certainly has been mine, and I’m sad that this series seems to be ending. At least I still have a few of his Ishmael Jones series left to read for when I next need some high quality snarcasm!

Gideon and Annie live a relatively calm life, buying and selling magical objects in their (not so) little store. But Gideon is missing the thrill of stealing things, so at night he frequently slips out. One night he returns to discover Annie (Anybody) is missing! In order to get her back, he is forced to steal something really rare, an object that lets you go back in time to right all the wrongs you’ve done. This object is currently part of a secret exhibition at a secret location where people with lots of secrets go to admire them. Sort of a museum…
Gideon cannot fulfil this task alone, so he gathers his old friend – and some of his enemies as well. Things do not go as smoothly as he hoped for, and during the story he discovers lots of new secrets about his old friend and enemies.
I just loved reading this because it’s so over the top! From the stuffed bear that guards Gideon’s shop, to my absolute favourite the mirror that is just not any mirror. All characters, whether they are good or bad, have the same kind of dark humour and often I had to laugh out loud.
All things come to an end and I think (and I’m not the only one here) that this is the end of this series. That’s a pity but I can understand why there had to be an ending to this series. It’s all rounded up nicely! I’m looking forward to reading more books by Simon Green as I’ve read a lot of them in the past already.
Thanks to Severn House and Netgalley for this review copy.