I received this book for free from my own shelves in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Source: my own shelves
Juniper Wiles
by
Charles de Lint
It is part of the Newford #21 series and is a urban fantasy in a Kindle edition that was published by Triskell Press on April 29, 2021 and has 249 pages.
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Other books in this series include [books_series]
Other books by this author which I have reviewed include The Dreaming Place, "Newford Spook Squad", Juniper Wiles and the Ghost Girls
First in the Juniper Wiles urban fantasy sub-series with a couple of amateur sleuths (and twenty-first in the overall Newford universe) revolving around a former teen TV detective. It takes place some fifteen years after Widdershins, 11.
My Take
It’s an unexpected intro to the primary character, as de Lint both introduces us to his primary protagonist with her introspection on her life in LA and sets the background for what is to come. Yet the story splits between Juniper and Jilly.
It’s useful that de Lint uses first person protagonist point-of-view from Juniper’s perspective, as it tunes us in to Juniper’s easygoing nature, content for her residuals to pay her bills while she seeks out a new life at home. Her biggest problem is the number of fans who insist that she’s really “Nora Constantine”, the character she played on the TV show — which leads to the start-up of Coppercorn & Wiles, Private Investigators. Well, okay, being thought to be Nora used to be her biggest problem until Jilly introduces her to the “other” side of Newford. Thankfully Juniper’s experiences on-set have prepared her for her new life as a badass. Good preparation for the otherworld of Crescent Beach where a monster threat may invade our world.
The action is all about the characters. Some of it involves weapons and battle with a lot of activity helping Jilly prep for the show and participating in Jilly’s volunteer activities. –Ya gotta love Jilly. She’s such a giving character who has a career doing what she loves while her idea of fun is helping and interacting with people. She helps at the soup kitchen, visits old folks — usually with a few dogs she’s “borrowed” from the shelter to take for walks — she’s a dog whisperer, counsels kids in art, and best of all, her attitude about life and her point that we don’t pay attention to the “little everyday mysteries and enchantments that are going on all around us . . .” They’re beautiful.
I know Juniper is the main character, but Jilly is right up there. She sure has a different take on life, partly because of the traumas she experienced earlier in her life, and has the friends to prove it. She’s attracted a lovely family of choice who are so supportive of her and each other. This family includes a unique security team, lol. That point she makes about the progression of songs in an album telling a story makes me want to re-listen to a few.
”Life isn’t meant to be comforting . . . It’s big and it’s messy.
Jilly has her own come-to-Jesus moments, and I love when she introduces Bobo to her housemates. I loved Lyle’s acceptance of Bobo! As for Geordie teaching Bobo about “Inside voice!” . . . I wish more owners could teach their dogs this trick!
Hmm, Jilly has had a fascination with police sketch artists, which reminds me of Phoebe Monday’s character. Jilly is eager for her and Juniper to be detectives, and she thinks they need to “practice being more quippy”.
There’s a parallel world, well, many otherworlds, but the one that concerns us is Crescent Beach from Nora Constantine.
There is an ick factor, for it seems that Ethan had a real thing for “Nora Constantine”, so real that he wrote fanfic that ticks Juniper off. It is funny to learn that some of Jilly’s family are fans of Nora Constantine and don’t have a problem with Ethan’s porn.
Ooh, that Joe can be snarky! Particularly when Emma does not do well with Juniper’s reveal.
There’s a metaphysical feel to the prose and is a cozy read with a nice flow.
The Story
Juniper is settling in at home and reacquainting herself with old friends and old haunts. Now if only people would stop thinking her TV character, Nora Constantine, was really her! She is not a detective! She only played one on TV!
Yet Jilly introduces her to the other side of Newford and a character who’s murdered before Juniper meets him — and is still getting text messages from him! — drags Juniper into a world she never expected and a moral obligation to prevent a monster invasion.
The Characters
Juniper “Joon” Wiles is a former actress who has retreated from the craziness of LA to her hometown of Newford to go back to her true love for creating art. She’s also taking boxing lessons to stay in shape. Tam Wiles is her music-loving and -playing obsessed brother, and together they live in the house they inherited from their grandparents. Lydia is but one of Tam’s girlfriends.
Bramleyhaugh is . . .
. . . the house on Stanton Street inherited from Bramley Dapple, Jilly’s and Sophie’s old art professor. It’s really an artists’ colony these days housing Jilly Coppercorn, a fae-like woman renowned for her fairy paintings and giving nature; Geordie, who is Jilly’s musician husband (Widdershins); Wendy writes poetry, has a blog, and is a computer whiz; Mona, who creates a comic strip, “Life as a Bird”; Lyle, a werewolf, is Mona’s boyfriend; and, Christy, Geordie’s brother, who is a writer and lives on the third floor with Saskia — she writes poetry and talks to the spirits in the wires, in other words, she is plugged into the Internet through her mind. No paying for Internet! Christiana Tree is a shadow of all the things Christy didn’t like about himself. The Grumbling Greenhouse Studio is out back of Bramleyhaugh.
Also on Stanton Street is the Rookery, whose inhabitants turn into birds! The Kelledy house is actually inhabited by faerie royalty.
Members of Georgie’s Celtic band include Amy Scanon, Meran Kelledy, Lesli Batterberry, and Miki Greer. Isabelle Copley, a numena, is an artist who paints abstracts. Isabelle might be Izzy who lives with Kathy (they’re numena) and they live up in the attic. John Sweetwater appears to be a numena too.
Joe, a.k.a. Crazy Dog and Bones, is a tall Native whose parentage is Kickaha with a half of corbae and canid on the other half; he easily steps sideways into otherworlds. Cassie is Joe’s wife and reads fortunes (The Onion Girl , 8, and The Dreaming Place, 14). Middleworld is the first part of otherworld you step into. Cousins are shapeshifters; we’re the five-fingered. Cody, a.k.a. Coyote, is a friend of Joe’s. Whiskey Jack and Nanabozho “Bo” are handy friends of Joe’s.
Nora Constantine is . . .
. . . a TV show based on a series of books about a teen detective by Emma K. Rohlin that ended after three seasons. The lead character is “Nora” who was played by Juniper. The Goth “Gabi Ramos” is a hacker and was played by Allison Bennet. “James Hearne” (played by Dean Farris) and “Toby Cannon” were “Nora”’s boyfriends in the series. “Carmen Hale” is Nora’s frenemy. “Roland Anders” is a teacher’s assistant who keeps getting sucked into the investigations. Greta Swirsky is Juniper’s agent. “Bret Palmer“, played by Adam Hendrix, is the big bad in the story. Charlie Midnight is a monster in the unpublished manuscript — the backstory on this is so sad and scary! The city setting is a place called Crescent Beach.
Emma’s daughter, Shannon, wanted her mother to write a story with her. Thomas Scott is Emma’s son-in-law and a gambler. The novelizations were written by Emmett Rowland, Erica Roberts, and Evelyn Roome. I can’t tell if these novelizations were of the TV series or further stories.
Bloods are vampires. Salty’s Fish Fry is still there as are Kelly’s Fashions and Souvenirs, Eddy’s Surf Shop, and the Dog’n’Burger, although they’re not doing well. Gavin is/was a cryptid hunter. Chief irvine and Mayor Sanders are/were there.
Newford is . . .
. . . a laidback town filled with the supernatural. Enough so that the police department has the “Newford Spook Squad” with Sam Cray in charge. Crowsea is a neighborhood. The Half Kaffe Café is where “Jason”, “Tess”, Amana, Robert, and Emma are some of the baristas. The Deer Mouse Diner. Second Home. The Light of India is a favorite restaurant. Pop’s Pins is a bowling alley.
Nick Burns manages Burns’ Books, a used bookstore owned by his uncle. Annie is one of the employees. Holly has a used bookstore too — she has a hob, and then there’s Turtle Moon. The open-minded Pearse O’Shaunessy runs a gym with a pretty gym out front and a basic boxing club in back. Gabrielle is a new boxer.
Ethan Law is the “boy” from the café with a fixation on Nora Constantine. Edward is his trans friend.
Judy is one of the people at the animal shelter where Jilly borrows Bobo, a terrier/poodle mix; James, a golden retriever; Sonora is a bull terrier; Charlie, a husky/shepherd cross; Rubie, who’s part black lab; and, Ginger who is a shepherd/setter mix. Jilly also teaches at the Arts Court.
FaerieFest is an annual event that celebrates the mythic and musical. Marisa and Alan Grant run East Side Press and take a very active part in the fest. Bands that play at the fest include Faun, The Clockwork Noise Smiths, the Goblin Kings, and Cerin (from the Cerin Songweaver Tales) joins in. Maddie and Carla are fest attendees who love art.
Many of the people from Wren Island are numena, characters, including Cosette and Rosalind, brought to life by a certain kind of artist. Eadar are characters from books, created when enough people believe in them — boy, does this one remind me of Jasper Fforde’s Thursday Next series. Do remember that the Eadar do not like it when you refer to our world as the real world. Mabon is an otherworld.
The Cover and Title
The cover is subdued with a dim background of woods and a blonde fairy. In the foreground is Juniper in a black sports bra, her hair pulled back in a ponytail and wearing brown boxing gloves. She’s in profile, leaning her forehead on a light gray pillar, which her gloved hands grasp. The text is all in white with the title at the top with a red outline. The author’s name is below Juniper’s elbows with an info blurb below that.
The title is all about Juniper Wiles.
