A clever take on the "find the missing girl" and leaving a hint of possible occult at the end. The writing flowed, not a bad Covid isolation read. ( )

11/8/16 - Many years ago I met a guy on the Excite message boards. We kept running into each other on different threads talking about books. We started verbally sparring, poking at each other while reviewing books. I created a thread called "Don't peek unless your name is Orbitsville", that was his screen name (also one of his favorite books). Of course a lot of people "peeked" so we had a giant conversation about what books everyone was reading that lasted almost 2 years. Obritsville and I became close e-friends and eventually I went up to visit him in Toronto where he lived. We hung out and it was great. At some point he dropped out of the internet sites that we both frequented.

The point is that this was one of his favorite books. I believe he probably sent it to me more than 10 years ago. I'm finally getting to it and missing/wondering about my old friend. If you're out there reading this Seth, let me know you're still among the living, it would definitely brighten my day.

12/23/16 Well I finished this today and unfortunately it was really kind of underwhelming for me. Pretty much a straight "thriller", which I usually avoid, set in the modern world, which I also usually avoid, but with an interesting/unique premise. I didn't hate the characters, but I didn't love them either. So me and Orbitsville will have to agree to disagree about this one. :) ( )

Imaginative and completely absorbing, this debut novel hooked me when I read it 20-some years ago and has stayed with me all these years. Once you read it, you will never look at urban rooftops in the same way again. ( )

The night was clear and cool and Rose was alone on the rooftops of London. It seemed peaceful to be above the city and yet still be a part of it. Carefully, she lined her camera up to the ledge along the building and looked through her viewfinder once more. But this time, instead of seeing the empty roofscape of the city, she saw the strangest thing. Running figures, some loping, some as if swinging on invisible ropes, bounding and leaping across the angled rooftops on the other side of the street. there were perhaps fifteen of them, young, old, men or women, it was difficult to tell. there was even a dog of some kind, darting silently between their feet.

Since the 1920s the rooftops of London have been home to a well-organised society. Hundreds of people at a time have lived up there in secret, travelling along cables that they had strung between the buildings. But now, their world is crumbling around them as they fight for survival against the evil Chymes and his gang, while down below the police are starting to wonder what is going on, when several dead bodies are found that seem to have been killed up above. This book is set in the late 1980s. and even then the inhabitants of Roofworld were seeing more security cameras appearing on the rooftops. I'm not sure that the story would be feasible if it was set nowadays with so many CCTV cameras everywhere. People may not look upwards, but the cameras see everything. ( )

Original concept, nicely executed. Mr. Fowler has never been as good since and that's a shame. The universe he imagineers in ROOFWORLD is enticing and believable. The city of London contains many secret places and Rose and Robert come to know some of them, putting themselves in grave peril. Catchy from the opening pages, a thriller with a good head on its shoulders. ( )