With a deft, self-deprecating touch, Jeremy P. Bushnell makes dealing with the devil, the world-ending threat of a lucky cat statue and shapeshifting demon sex-wolves seem plausible--perhaps downright inevitable--as The Weirdness manages to soar beyond the potentially familiar tropes of urban fantasy with a strong sense of style and character.
Billy Ridgeway is a writer, though he hasn't published much of anything, working at a sandwich shop in Brooklyn with his best friend, a non-practicing Hindu named Anil. His roommate has recently vanished, he's not sure his girlfriend really loves him and then one morning, Billy wakes up and finds Lucifer sitting on the couch, armed with a deal and a PowerPoint presentation to back it up. All Billy needs to do is to infiltrate a tower protected by the most powerful warlock in New York City and steal back a maneki-neko--one of those beckoning Japanese cat statues. It turns out the Neko is a perpetual motion engine that will burn the world, something even Lucifer doesn't want.
The Weirdness has a life of its own, due to the clever humor and realistic portrayal of each of the characters (even the supernatural ones). Readers will inhabit the story for a long time after finishing. --Rob LeFebvre, freelance writer and editor