Don’t get the wrong impression, now. Mill Avenue Vexations is a fun work of fiction set in Arizona. It revolves around Vex Harrow, a Goth cab driver who uses magick to help others, particularly those who foolishly messed around with some magick book they found and had the bad luck of finding an authentic text.

She goes on plenty of side quests, interacting with individuals including a love interest, but Vex’s roundabout plot orbit consistently brings her back to the case of a crooked elder sigil, a bunch of students who thought they were performing a ceremony to improve their grades, and the weird horrors they invited into the world.

The fact that volume one begins in a seemingly post-apocalyptic landscape suggests where the story is ultimately headed. The rest of volume one, the next seven volumes and four “singletons” outside the primary plot arc (and possibly volumes nine through twelve, plus any “singletons” I don’t have, but I can’t vouch for those) are meant to tell you how things got that way.

I never had the impression this story was really about magick or the adventures of a Goth cabbie. The setting is clearly of great importance to the writer, in case a title beginning with an avenue name is not enough of a hint. Every café, drum circle, hill and sidewalk is a happy memory of some part of Tempe that may not be there today. One of the “singletons” even has to do with construction and the gentrification of these areas.

What seals the deal are the Author’s Notes at the end of each volume. Kyt discusses the importance of the area almost like an alternative tourism brochure, but for things that may only be accessible by time machine anymore. In a parallel universe, someone near my hometown is writing the same kind of story about Sanctuary, the Vatikan, Funhaus, Savage Garden and the local drum circle. There is even a discussion of Goth at the endnotes of Volume 3.

As pleased as I was to see such a project, it would be amiss not to bring up the subtle lack of an editor. Most of the copy reads well, but occasionally you may run into a typographical distraction that probably gave Kyt a headache once it went to print. There are other inconsistencies, though not necessarily in meaning; you have Volume One, Volume II and Volume 3, according to the covers. To be fair, this nit I have picked is null after Volume 3. Arabic numerals became standard for all the rest.

That fits with a general change in design quality over the early few volumes. The first cover is mostly white, with a black line illustration. The second looks more like a pencil sketch. The third looks three dimensional and clean. While Kyt enjoys having different artists give a different “take” on Vex Harrow for each standard cover, the quality curve is sharp and early in the series. The later covers even feel glossy, for example, while Volume One feels only slightly different than what is sitting in my printer.

I approve of the varying artistic portrayals of Vex. Some even have an anime feel. This is one way to tell the reader that even though an artist had a go, the result is never canon; however you picture Vex in your mind after reading the stories is correct.

I also believe the writer did well to flesh out principal characters and treat them fairly, even if they reflect beliefs not shared. One character comes across as a raging fundamentalist Christian, and it would be too easy to keep that guy as a two dimensional clown for Vexations’ expected target market to laugh at. I approve of how human he seems as time goes on. I don’t believe it is easy to love your enemy.

Outside of Arizona, you are most likely to find these volumes with the internet. A search for Mill Avenue Vexations finds it quickly. A Canadian distributor is currently being sought.