Last Call by Tim Powers
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I happen to think this Locus and World Fantasy Award winner of '93 deserves all the accolades it got. Indeed, I think it's as readable now as it was back then.

Especially now that we've all renewed our tastes for myths in our reading habits, this one dives deep into the Fisher King while leading us across the US, always eventually winding up in the dark heart of the country... Las Vegas. :)

This is a great mashup of an ex-professional poker player and a chaos-magic Tarot tribute, switching between a lifetime of mystery-reveals, archetype treatments, and a series of choices that lead up to one hell of a tub of regret.

I'm almost tempted to call it a western, but the wonderful worldbuilding and magic system and the effortless writing makes me stand firm in calling this a fantasy. I might even call it an urban fantasy, but the writing is almost Stephen King in scale and feel. The characters are all a real treat.

I'm frankly rather amazed at the quality of this book. And I really shouldn't be. Anubis Gates was amazing as well. I guess I better get book cracking and read a lot more of Tim Powers! :)

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