The Necromancer by Adam Coleman is a supernatural crime thriller that blends murder, magic, and messy romance in a moody Melbourne setting. With a premise that promises intrigue and action, the novel delivers moments of excitement and charm but struggles at times to balance its dual timelines and emotional stakes, making it an uneven—yet still enjoyable—read.

The story follows exes Alex and Robbie, former magic school sweethearts turned estranged detectives, as they’re forced to work together to solve a sorcerous murder. The dynamic between them is one of the novel’s strongest aspects. Their shared history crackles beneath every interaction, with unresolved feelings and lingering bitterness making their partnership as tense as the case itself. Coleman captures the complexities of former love—how nostalgia and resentment can blur the line between what’s left behind and what still lingers. Alex’s inner conflict, as he fights off both external magical threats and the temptation of rekindling something with Robbie, adds emotional depth to the fast-paced narrative.

The dual timeline format—the present-day murder investigation interwoven with flashbacks to their time at magic school—offers insight into how Alex and Robbie’s bond formed and unraveled. However, the shifts between past and present can feel abrupt at times, occasionally breaking the flow of the main plot. The “magic school” flashbacks have a YA-esque feel that doesn’t always blend seamlessly with the gritty, noir tone of the contemporary sections, though they provide essential context for the emotional stakes of the present-day mystery.

The supernatural elements are intriguing, with Coleman creating a magic system that feels familiar yet grounded in the urban landscape of Melbourne. The descriptions of spells, curses, and necromantic rituals are vivid without being overly complicated, but some of the rules of magic feel underdeveloped, leaving certain plot points feeling a bit too convenient. The titular “necromancer” is an ominous presence, but the mystery surrounding the sorcerous murder could have been more tightly woven, as the resolution feels somewhat rushed compared to the careful buildup.

The supporting cast, including other detectives and magical figures, adds some humor and texture, though most of them are lightly sketched rather than fully fleshed out. The Melbourne setting is atmospheric, and Coleman captures both the mundane and mystical sides of the city with ease—from rain-slicked alleyways to hidden magical enclaves. The contrast between the urban crime elements and the supernatural underworld creates a compelling backdrop for the story.

One area where the novel shines is in its dialogue. The banter between Alex and Robbie is sharp and layered with subtext, balancing humor with genuine hurt. The humor throughout the novel helps offset the darker moments, though it can sometimes undercut the tension, making the stakes feel lower than they should.

Ultimately, The Necromancer excels at delivering a story about love, loss, and second chances, but it stumbles when it comes to fully realizing its mystery and world-building. At 3 stars, it’s an enjoyable read for fans of urban fantasy and magical crime thrillers, though it may leave readers wanting more cohesion and depth in certain areas. If you enjoy stories like The Dresden Files or Rivers of London, this one might scratch that supernatural-crime itch with its blend of magic, murder, and unresolved romance.

This sounds like a book right up my alley but the execution when it comes to the writing made me DNF it after about 30 %. Thanks to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for the chance to read this book.

As much as the blurb sounded like a perfect match for me (magic and LGBTQ, yes please!) and I was looking forward to the dual timelines as an interesting plot device, unfortunately this is a DNF for me. I’m really struggling with the writing which reads more like a plot outline than an actual story. It starts right from the beginning, with the team of police officers discussing a case that has no relevance to the story itself; each simply listing their thoughts, one after another, only for it to be ‘solved’ by an idea which isn’t shared with the reader (this strike me as lazy!). The ‘outlining’ continues; “then we went to bed, then we woke up, then I had a shower, then I put socks on, then we went to the market, then we visited this stall and that and bought this and then this; then we had dinner…” -it’s just boring me to death. As others have stated here, this book needs a developmental edit and then some. I won’t publish this review on social media since it’s a DNF, and I wish the writer all their best in their future endeavours.

DNF - I was hoping that this would work for me but I found the story lacking in some way that I cannot quite pin down. The writing style & I suppose if I'm being honest, the plot itself, weren't my favourite. There is certainly an audience for this story but, it does not include me.

An entertaining read with a novel magic system, characters you want to spend more time with and a mystery that keeps you guessing!

The concept of this book is really good and cool. Magical elements, magical task force, and drawing in current events as well. Though the pacing is a little slow and the formatting is not consistent.

Engaging and inventive, this is an exciting fantasy-noir story with a richly designed world and wonderfully written characters! Thank you to NetGalley and to Adam Coleman for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review!

A 3.75/5
The protagonist had me at his first observation! What stood out for me was that the character is written in a way that it is not an assumed idea of a person at whichever age they are portrayed. They feel real , like-like as though I could run into them any time .
The writing is lucid , crisp , and with a tinge of humour in it. Above all, the author chooses to open his story with a young adult, anxiety ridden underdog with honest ambition and hope ! – all of those are my favourite things in one.
I did find myself wishing to spend more time with Alex learning the ins and outs of his new world.
A+ for such a unique take on magic where it is a subject to be researched like math or science and not just a happenstance!

This was a really interesting read. I didn’t know quite what to expect going in, but the title drew me in because I love stories about necromancers. Gay magic detectives? I'm in!

When Alex reopens a case that seemed to be closed and unintentionally exposes himself as a magic user at work, things take a drastic turn. After making this discovery, he joins the Magic Squad and is compelled to work with his former partner. The story alternates between flashbacks to Alex's time in magic school, including the incidents that caused him to leave, and the current investigation, which affects his relationships at work and in his personal life.

With a dual-timeline framework, we witness the romance between Alex and Robbie during their magic school years in the past, while the present presents Alex's struggles with growing magical threats and his denial that he still feels anything for Robbie.

The summoning and necromancy components of the magic system, along with its distinct "affinities" and skill-building methodology, were very intriguing. The flashbacks' incorporation of passages from textbooks gave the magical world more depth and a more authentic, immersive sense.

All in all, an enjoyable read.

This is an interesting, ambitious book with a lot to recommend it. However, I think it needed more work before release. The mix of POV characters was confusing, particularly in combination with the back-and-forth between college years and the present. Also, I didn't find either of the main couples persuasive (in terms of them being right for each other)—which could be okay if it was intentional, but I didn't get the impression it was.

On a somewhat minor note, a Jewish family that's observant enough not to turn on/off lights on Shabbat would NOT be using/touching money (on Shabbat) as part of their made-up penalty for making a mistake.

Overall, this felt like it needed a strong developmental (and then line/copy) edit. Plenty of promise, but not ready for prime time.

My thanks to the publisher/NetGalley for a complimentary copy of this book.

In an earlier, YA-inflected timeline, Alex and Robbe meet and fall in love at magic school. In the present, Alex battles a series of magical attacks of ever-increasing menace, while trying to convince himself that he definitely has no remaining feeling for Robbie.

It left me feeling a little unfulfilled . I wanted to see if the past relationship was going to impact the present. But it was enough to make me want to read more from the author.

I would very much have liked to leave a favorable review. Unfortunately, info-dumping often substitutes for characterization and the POV wobbles, for example sometimes hewing closely to one character's perspective and then shifting to the omniscient narrator mid-scene. Additionally there are weird right-wing overtones (so-called diversity quotas characterized as "nonsense" by a supposedly sympathetic woman character, for example) and clunky dialogue (a character, informed that "kirk" is "Scottish for church" -- common knowledge, surely, and not "Scottish" but just Scottish-inflected English? -- replies "You learn something new every day!"

This has the bones of a good book but it's in need of structural work and strong line editing. I won't post this review online.

The title really got me on this book. I really liked it! It's great for Halloween season. Great writing and plot.

I wasn't sure what I was going to make of this one but it dragged me right in. There was so much to like about this book that I had to have a little think about where to start

So we follow Alex, a cop who's in a pretty happy relationship with his rich boyfriend, and he's a thinker. There's a case that was meant to be closed and he wants to give it one more try, this works but he's then outed as a magic user at work. Not what he wanted at all. Then he gets sent off to work with the Magic Squad on a case that's causing them problems, unfortunately this means he has to work with his ex. I don't want to go too much into more of the plot but there are chapters with flashbacks to when Alex attended magic school and why he left, along with working the case in the present day and how it's affecting his relationships outside of work.

Honestly? I liked this a lot more than I expected to and even though it's pretty much set up as a standalone I wouldn't be against reading a sequel if it happened. The idea of how the magic system works with the 'affinities' and being able to learn more with practice was pretty cool. The summoning and necromancy side was interesting and there were scenes in the flashbacks which had textbook chapters so that we, as readers, could be given the information in the same way the characters would learn it.

The only thing that brought it down for me was the 'historian' aspect. I couldn't keep track of all the suspects and I wasn't exactly sure how Alex had narrowed in on the final suspect in the end. I would definitely recommend this if you like urban fantasy though. I don't read a lot of Australian books so it was nice to see a new setting too.