Hang Wire

Strange things are afoot in San Francisco. A murderer haunts the streets, hanging people with wire nooses. A skilled acrobat spends his nights hunting the killer. A group of pagan dancers at the local circus is starting to worry the owners. A local blogger is experiencing missing time, afraid that he’s committing the horrific murders. And all of these things are connected, with greater consequences than anyone knows, threatening the entire world. Unless the gods themselves step in, that is.

Hang Wire is Adam Christopher’s latest urban fantasy, this time delving into the power of myth (both ancient and modern) and mixing in a liberal dash of murder mystery. Christopher’s adeptness in developing his own curious mythologies and histories serves him well here, as the reader quickly discovers that this version of San Francisco is similar to, but not exactly like the one we all know. Unfortunately, his penchant for flashbacks undercuts some of his narrative momentum here. We could’ve lost half of Joel’s interludes without sacrificing anything plotwise, and it would’ve made for a tighter reading experience. Thankfully, his otherwise measured pacing and engaging storytelling makes for several well-constructed mysteries for the reader to unravel.