3.5 ✨ Do you have sometimes a book when you finished it and have absolutely no clue what’s going on? Yes, this was one of them. Be prepared: it’s a long review this time – because short and simple is not possible. ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• We follow Jude Dubuisson -a New Orleans Street magician- whose talent is finding lost things. A talent not based on misdirection and intuition, but in true magic, bequeathed to him by a father he never knew. A father who was more than human, making Jude a semi-deity. For six years, he does what he can to mitigate his connection to his magic, until one day he gets a cryptic message from the business partner he unceremoniously left behind: Meet me for a drink in an hour. The usual place is very important. Have something for you. That something puts Jude on a path that leads to the death of a god, and a high-stakes game that could not only take from him everything he cares for but the very city at the center of his world. He’s forced to find the Fortune God killer by other, still-living gods who literally want various pieces of Jude. I enjoyed following Jude as he investigated because he met with psychics, magicians, voodoo practitioners, demigods, gods, angels, vampires, zombies, and the list goes on. What I most appreciate is, that each chapter begins with an entry about a certain story time; creation myths, Tricksters, and draws parallels across traditions. At heart, this is an intricately plotted murder-mystery with 1) LOTS of well-developed characters (some who change names and/or identities) 2) various complicated subplots 3) unpredictable twists & turns and 4) gender-bending reincarnations (still don’t get over with, with this plot twist) Overall, The City of Lost Fortunes is an ode, a dedication, to New Orleans and its people. A fantastic, imaginative fairytale-like puzzle of gods and monsters, supernatural folklore, and myths but with a somewhat confusing framework and plot that is not made clearer by the variety of myths and traditions. Do you think it’s your usual fantasy murder mystery cup of tea? You thought wrong! For me, the last third was very engaging, and I could not let go of the book because of the whole turnaround of the plot. But before, it was a nice read with interesting content, I had mixed feelings for the book from *wow amazing, never read before* to *okay, what was that* should I dnf it?