Attorney Alistair Burke has been newly hired to represent supernaturals who find themselves in legal trouble in the state of Wisconsin. His first major client is a shapeshifter on trial for a murder he didn’t commit, an already tough job further complicated because Alistair must defend his client while preventing mundane humans from discovering supernaturals live among them.
The case turns out to be the tip of the iceberg– the first move in a slaver’s plot to capture and kill local supernaturals, using their life energy to power his own necromantic magic.
Although Alistair is by no means ready to deal with the situation, he will not allow his friends to die….
Warlock at Law by R.L. Baranowski (in fact a married couple writing together) is a quite promising urban fantasy debut! While I did have a few quibbles, it was a very entertaining mix of legal procedure and supernatural mystery.
I really enjoyed Alistair as a main character, and his invisible-to-others sidekick, Abby, definitely added to the fun. There’s quite a bit of male gaze from Alistair’s point of view, but it’s very much a reflection of his personality and narrative voice. When he actually interacts with women, he’s respectful, which makes it feel more like a character trait than an annoyance. This was also nicely counterbalanced by the fact that some of the most powerful characters in the book are women.
The legal aspect of the story went a bit over my head, as I’m not familiar with the American legal system, but since one of the authors is apparently an attorney, I assume the courtroom procedures and terminology are fairly realistic.
The blending of the mundane world with the supernatural worked well for me, and it was easy to immerse myself in this version of reality.
Overall, this was a fast-paced, fun, and engaging adventure that I breezed through in no time. I’d happily recommend it to anyone looking for an easy read with plenty of chuckles along the way.
That said, I could have done with fewer moments focused on physical attraction, detailed descriptions of appearances, or sexual jokes. To be clear, this isn’t a romance or a spicy book. It’s mostly played for comedic relief, but it still felt a bit juvenile to me, especially the way male characters rival over a woman. It leaned more into humor than pining or melodrama, but I personally found those parts a little cringey. Without them, the story would have been ten times better, in my opinion.
My main complaints are fairly minor and common in debut novels. Some plot developments feel a bit too convenient, and a few character arcs lack depth. Injury is stacked upon injury, yet somehow the characters keep going. Running, fighting, and even carrying others around, despite being held together by little more than bandages and determination. This isn’t unusual in action-heavy fantasy, but it does reduce the suspense when the stakes don’t feel entirely grounded.
There are also occasional logic gaps. One small example: Abby can read by sticking her head into any reading material and apparently even absorb information from entire bookshelves. She can also teleport almost anywhere in the world in an instant. Yet she agrees to do something she doesn’t want to do in exchange for specific magazines. Couldn’t she just pop into a store and “read” them there? Not a plot hole, exactly, but one of a few little inconsistencies that stood out. Small niggles, really.
Lastly, there were a noticeable number of typos—not enough to be disruptive, but enough that I picked up on them, and I’m not usually the type to notice unless they’re fairly frequent.
Despite these small issues, Warlock at Law is a fresh and clever take on urban fantasy, with a distinctive voice, a great sense of humor, and a lot of heart. I’m genuinely looking forward to seeing where this series, and the author, go next.
