LA has an – interesting – reputation. It’s the City of the Stars, but also all the machinations required to keep those dreams going. Wannabe actors (and now influencers) flock there, hoping for a Big Break, but the break can only come for so many. But what happens to those who get left behind?

In Charlie Huston’s new novel, some might call the eponymous Sid Catchpenny one of those unfortunates. Today, Sid’s a “sly” – someone with the ability to move through mirrors – and he uses his skills primarily for thievery. Sid, like other slies, specializes in stealing objects with emotional or cultural resonance, called “mojo”. (Mojo powers some major magic, from automatons to influence, so can be extremely valuable.) So, when an old friend asks him to help trace a missing girl, and her room happens to be a mojo hotspot, how can he refuse? Pretty soon, Sid’s embroiled in a complex tangle taking him through community theater, D&D, MMORPGs, cults, and the local music scene, on the path to saving the world. Plus, Sid’s got mysteries of his own to solve, specifically relating to his wife’s death.

As an avid mystery and urban fantasy reader, I was obviously intrigued. It’s hard to balance a magical world and a mystery plot, especially one set in a modern-day analogue. I was very curious to see how Huston fared, and whether he was able to keep the balance… (Thanks to NetGalley and Vintage for the review copy!)

It’s all about the vibes

Let’s start with the worldbuilding. There is a LOT of world to build here. There’s a whole magic system – soft; a week later and I can’t exactly tell you how it works. There’s the LA that lives inside this magic system, a whole new entertainment industry for the writing. And there are the connections to the loved and familiar, which are sometimes even harder to get right.

The magic system here could almost be described as “vibes”, which is not necessarily a bad thing. Mojo seems to do everything from enable mirror escapes to power automatons. Unfortunately, it’s trapped by the internet, which puts our magic users’ power at peril – a neat way to limit their scope. Huston writes characters with so much conviction in mojo that it was only after reading that I questioned any of its logic. The breakneck pace helps here too – each scene is followed by another new take on the power of culture on the human experience.

Because Huston wants to explore, it would seem, every single modern cultural experience. He touches on live performances (from local theater to concerts and shows). There’s video games, contrasted with the routine pattern of D&D. And of course, TikTok and the streaming Internet – simply a drain for our collective mojo. The input side of the equation is a fascinating one, allowing Huston to explore the variety of human connection.

The output side is a little less objectively interesting. The stakes in Catchpenny are mostly personal, and the few mojo “outputs” we see are the same. Think automatons and mirror-jumping: interactions that happen up close and personal, not on a really grand scale. There are points where Huston raises the stakes, but they came a little late for me to rally believe them. No spoilers, but this feels somehow very Gen Z as a book to me – it’s like smashing together Amanda Montell with some magical empowerment and seeing what comes out the other end.

The vibes of mystery

What about the mystery? Catchpenny ostensibly follows as Sid traces Circe, a missing teenager, at the bequest of an old friend. And there is some good deduction and reasoning involved on Sid’s part as he follows her footsteps. Sid’s also go this own personal mysteries to reckon with: his wife died years ago and he’s always wanted to catch the killer.

There’s certainly plenty of crime to explore in the story. Sid is literally a thief. This puts him in contact with a number of criminals and other shady characters, who think nothing of mafioso tactics to get their way. Huston brings Sid’s depression, anxiety, and excitement to life, and while reading I felt thoroughly engaged in the ostensible crimes.

While Catchpenny is a crime story, it’s more an adventure than any real mystery. Huston is more interested in worldbuilding and twists than deduction, and while his world and characters are compelling, they’re not precisely guessable. This can be a good thing, but Catchpenny does not feel like fair play. Instead, it’s a story that uses magic and pseudo-mystery to capture a precise moment in time. Where we once had detectives focused entirely on psychology, we now have a crime – and a detective – running entirely on vibes. It’s a fascinating world, and wonderful way to explore human irrationality and emotion… (even if it’s not, precisely, the mystery I may have expected).

Something new…

Honestly, I’m not entirely sure where to place Catchpenny in my catalog of reading this year. It’s definitely an urban fantasy setting, and there’s heaps of worldbuilding and exploration. But in many ways, the exploration of mojo feels more sci-fi in spirit, with mojo serving as both technology and MacGuffin, driving the power of human engagement and its role in society. There are also some mystery and crime elements – but our protagonist gets driven by those elements, and they can almost feel like contrivances. Catchpenny, it can feel, doesn’t fit neatly anywhere…

…And in many ways, that makes it more intriguing. Huston clearly cares about culture, and Catchpenny is really one extended exploration of the vectors of culture in modern society. Plus some robots. (And who doesn’t love a robot?)

I will be going on vacation soon! Hopefully that will mean more posts, not fewer, but we shall see. Until next time, stay cozy and stay curious!

Catchpenny was released on April 9, 2024.

*This will count for “has futuristic technology” for my 52 Book Club, because automatons.