Full Disclosure: This book was read as an e-ARC (Advance Reader Copy) obtained via Netgalley from the publisher in advance of the book's release on May 18, 2021 in exchange for a potential review. I give my word that this did not affect my review in any way - if I felt conflicted in any way, I would simply have declined to review the book.
The Album of Dr. Moreau by Daryl Gregory
The Album of Dr. Moreau is a SF/F mystery novella by Daryl Gregory, a multi-award-nominated (and winning I think) author of Sci Fi and Fantasy. My prior knowledge of Gregory comes from his Nebula nominated "Spoonbenders" and his Hugo (and otherwise) nominated "Nine Last Days on Planet Earth", both of which have been solid - but otherwise haven't really blown me away. But the hook on this novella interested me a little, so I figured I'd request it on NetGalley because why not.
And I'm glad I did, because The Album of Dr. Moreau really touched an itch I haven't realized needed to be scratched - for this is a loving self-aware pastiche of locked room murder mysteries....with a mystery featuring a boy band filled with genetically modified anthropomorphic animals whose groupies are furries and all the hijinx that result. It's really really fun as a result, and I'm very glad I picked it up, and if you grew up liking old Agatha Christie mysteries (or similar authors), you'll enjoy this a lot.
Plot Summary: A letter is sent to a pop star in May 18, 2021, from a fan....with a story from 20 years past. A story of a time 20 years ago when the "boy" band WyldBoyZ - made up of genetically modified anthropomorphic animals who spoke English and could sing in beautiful harmonies - got involved with the mysterious murder of their hated manager. A story featuring a detective investigating the scene, and using her particular knowledge to discover the truth about perhaps the strangest murder mystery ever known.....
Thoughts: You should be able to tell that The Album of Dr. Moreau is going to be a send-up of murder mystery novels by how it begins - by quoting TS Eliot's 5 rules of Detective Fiction, guidelines that the story then goes on to break into pieces. You have a letter describing a past mystery how it happened, with the story alternating perspectives between the band members and our main character Detective Delgado, as she attempts to figure out this seemingly most unusual of locked room mysteries.
And Detective Delgado is the perfect mix of insightful and brilliant and still down to Earth possible to make it all work, empathetic and yet self aware of the situation she's in (she used to be a magician with her famous father!), able to talk to various people in ways to get the truths, until the big reveal in the end. And the investigation is peppered with fun moments and occasional jokes, as you might imagine when all the fans of the band who are potential suspects are furries and the actual band (and also suspects) are ALSO anthropomorphic animals loved by children and adults around the world. In short, if you liked old detective novels and you like fun? You'll really love this.
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