The Gumshoe, the Witch, and the Virtual Corpse
"A fine debut novel by Keith Hartman. What kind of novel I'm at a little of a loss to say. Equal arguments can be made that it's a police procedural, a contemporary Wiccan fantasy, a gay PI novel, a near future SF thriller, a novel of social commentary, and even, in the sections from the point of view of one character, a YA coming of age story. In the end, it's a bit of them all, I suppose, which is part of what made me enjoy it so much. I love a book that breaks down the walls between genres, that just tells a story,the author trusting himself and the story enough to let it go wherever it leads him. THE GUMSHOE, THE WITCH, AND THE VIRTUAL CORPSE is like it's title a somewhat busy book, but there's enough payoff in characterization, story, and ideas to make the trip through its pages a real pleasure." --Charles de Lint, The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction