[[quoteright:200:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/200px-TheSomnambulist_3216.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:200:Surely I am coming soon--Revelation 22:20]]

->"''Be warned. This book has no literary merit whasoever. It's a lurid piece of nonsense, convoluted, implausible, people by unconvincing characters, written in dreadfully pedestrian prose, frequently ridiculous and willfully bizarre. Needless to say, I doubt you'll believe a word of it.''
-->--'''The Narrator'''

Jonathan Barnes's debut novel, ''The Somnambulist'' is a GothicHorror Fantasy set in the late Victorian period. The story follows washed-up magician and amateur detective, Edward Moon, as well his companion, The Somnambulist, on their journey to solve their first truly big case in quite some time. What seems to start out as a simple murder, however, is soon revealed to be part of a larger conspiracy that could destroy all of London. There also also several subplots, including a top secret organization known as The Directorate, Edward's sister, his former pupil, as well as a man who lives backwards in time, and is hinted to be the first king of London. [[WhatHappenedToTheMouse Only some are explained in detail.]] A sequel, ''The Domino Men'', was published a few years later.
----
!!This novel provides examples of:
* AbsurdlySpaciousSewer: There's a RunningGag about a criminal that dug his way into one of these.
* TheAce: Edward's former assistant was implied to be this.
* AffablyEvil: [[spoiler: Reverend Dr. Tan]]
* TheAggressiveDrugDealer: Yiangou, who owns an opium den.
* [[AmbiguouslyGay Ambiguously Bisexual]]: Barabbas
%%* AmbiguouslyHuman: The Somnambulist
%%* AncientKeeper: The Archivist.
* AntiHero: Moon is either a Type II or III
* AnyoneCanDie: Not counting Honeyman or Dunbar, there are a staggering amount of casualties in this book: [[spoiler: The Human Fly, Mr. Skimpole, The Somnambulist, Arthur Barge and Mrs. Puggsley, just to name a few.]]
* TheApprentice: Barabbas was this to Edward
* ArbitrarySkepticism: Edward, a stage magician, is awfully dismissive of mediums.
* AsianSpeekeeEngrish: Yiangou, as well as the "Chinamen" working for the Directorate.
%%* AssholeVictim: Cyril Honeyman
%%* AxCrazy: The Prefects
* BackFromTheDead: [[spoiler: The reanimated Coleridge.]]
* BarBrawl: The fight in the opium den is a minor example.
* BatmanGambit: Like you wouldn't believe. [[spoiler: And for possibly the stupidest reason such a gambit has been enacted. Incompetence causes you to dig yourself into the sewers while trying to rob a bank and you get caught by Moon. Obviously the solution to heal your wounded ego is start a cult, stage an elaborate setup of murders, ruin an entire section of London's secret service, resurrect a dead man a la Frankenstein and launch an assault on the city.]]
%%* BeautyToBeast: This is what happened to Barabbas.
* BigBad: [[spoiler: Reverend Dr. Tan/The Narrator]]
* BigFancyHouse: Edward and the Somnambulist go to a few parties where these take place.
* BiggerIsBetter: The Somnambulist. And how.
* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler: The forces of Pantisocracy are beaten and Dr. Tang is arrested. However, the Somnambulist is dead, Charlotte, Grossmith and Speight are Pantisocrats, leaving Edward with no one but Dr. Tang to talk to. Add in the high body count left in the wake, as well as the fact that the Prefects are still on the lam...]]
%%* BlackAndGreyMorality
%%* BlackComedy: In spades
%%* BlatantLies: The Narrator admits to telling a few.
%%* BodyHorror: [[spoiler: The reanimated Coleridge.]]
* TheCanKickedHim: A minor character is mentioned to have been found murdered in a bathroom.
* CassandraTruth: Innocenti [[spoiler: is implied to have made up all of her seeings except those involving Moon and when her scam is uncovered, those seeings are discounted as evidence by investigators.]]
* CerebusRollercoaster: The novel can often drift between scenes of Gothic horror and witty banter seemingly on the drop of a hat. The LemonyNarrator helps ease the transition, however.
* CharacterDevelopment: Moon becomes far humbler over the course of the novel.
* AChatWithSatan: Moon's chats with Barrabas.
* ChekhovsSkill: The Somnambulist's invulnerability.
* TheChessmaster: [[spoiler: The Reverend Dr. Tan]]
* ChurchgoingVillain: [[spoiler: The BigBad is a Reverend of his own church.]]
* CloserToEarth: Moon's housekeeper Mrs. Grossmith
* CodeName: The Mongoose [[spoiler: aka Arthur Barge.]]
* CollectorOfTheStrange: Barabbas
* ContractOnTheHitman: Skimpole hires the Prefects to kill the Mongoose, an assassin hired to kill the Directorate.
* TheCorrupter: [[spoiler: Skimpole was this to Moon's apprentice, aka Barabbas.]]
%%* CountryMatters: The Human Fly [[spoiler: during the seance.]]
%%* CluelessDetective
%%* [[spoiler: CreateYourOwnVillain]]
* CurbStompBattle: [[spoiler: ALMOST]] Everyone who goes up against the Somnambulist ends up regretting it instantly.
* CyanidePill: [[spoiler: An assassin sent to kill Dedlock and Skimpole uses one.]]
%%* TheCynic: Edward Moon
* DarkestHour: [[spoiler: The Somnambulist has been kidnapped, Tan's forces are beating the police and are well on the way to destroying London, and then the Prefects show up.]]
* DeadSidekick: [[spoiler: The Somnambulist.]]
* DeadpanSnarker: Edward, Charlotte, Barabbas... the list goes on and on.
* DeathOfAChild: [[spoiler: Skimpole's son]]
* DealWithTheDevil: Edward working with [[spoiler: The Directorate.]]
* DeceptiveDisciple: [[spoiler: In a moment of extreme gullibility, Dr. Tan believes that Edward has joined him, despite the fact that he has no real reason to.]]
* DenOfIniquity: Yiangou's Opium Den
* DespairEventHorizon: [[spoiler: Edward, after the Somnambulist dies, leaving him officially alone.]]
* DestinationDefenestration: How Cyril Honeyman and Philip Dunbar are killed, although they're more PUSHED than thrown.
* DisneyVillainDeath: Again, Honeyman and Dunbar.
* TheDragon: An interesting case. [[spoiler: The Reverend Dr. Tan clearly considers himself to be this to Coleridge.]]
%%* TheDreaded: The Prefects
* DysfunctionJunction: The vast majority of the cast probably have an undiagnosed disorder or two.
* EqualOpportunityEvil: [[spoiler: Love, Love, Love and Love]]
* EvilCounterpart: Barabbas is this to Edward Moon.
%%* EvilIsPetty
* EvilPlan: Left ambiguous for much of the story. [[spoiler: It's revealed near the end that the Reverend Dr. Tan wishes to kill most of London's population in order to start over and reclaim the country for the ideals of Pantisocracy.]]
* ExpectingSomeoneTaller: The Prefects say this about Skimpole
%%* FallenHero: Barabbas.
%%* FanDisservice: Edward Moon's excursion to Mrs. Puggsley's.
%%* FauxAffablyEvil: The Prefects
* FeelsNoPain: The Somnambulist is a literal example.
%%* FluffyTheTerrible: The Mongoose.
* {{Foreshadowing}}: Several examples, the most notable being [[spoiler: the references to the criminal digging his way into the sewer.]]
%%* FromNobodyToNightmare: [[spoiler: Reverend Dr. Tan]]
* GenreBusting: It's a fantasy/Gothic horror/mystery/black comedy.
%%* GentleGiant: The Somnambulist
* GoodIsNotDumb: Edward Moon is definitely one of the book's smarter characters, although it's hard to tell if he's smarter than The Prefects.
* GraveRobbing: [[spoiler: How the Pantisocrats retrieved Coleridge's body.]]
* GreaterScopeVillain: Though they don't really fit in with the main conflict, the Prefects are a bigger threat and (arguably) do more damage than [[spoiler: Reverend Dr. Tan could have done.]]
%%* HarmfulToTouch: The poet.
* HeroWithBadPublicity: The [[NoodleIncident Clapham Disaster]] has ruined Edward's reputation.
%%* HeroicBSOD: [[spoiler: At the end]]
%%* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler: The Somnambulist.]]
* IHaveManyNames: The Mongoose. [[spoiler: His real name is revealed to be Arthur Barge.]]
%%* IndyPloy: How Edward saves the day.
* InformedAbility: Near the beginning, it's hinted at that Moon might actually be a real magician, instead of a mere illusionist. After one scene, however, nothing he does afterward seems to indicate that he has supernatural powers.
* ItIsBeyondSaving: Averted. [[spoiler: Reverend Dr. Tan believes that London can be saved, but only if the majority of its citizens are killed.]]
* {{Jerkass}}: Edward Moon and Mr. Skimpole, as well as several minor characters.
* KarmaHoudini: [[spoiler: The Prefects simply disappear from the conflict. The sequel double subverts this; at first it seems that they're in prison, but it's later revealed this is done merely by choice.]]
%%* LemonyNarrator: At times.
* LethalDiagnosis: [[spoiler: Skimpole.]]
* LaughablyEvil: [[spoiler: Dr. Tang]] and the Prefects.
* LastOfHisKind: [[spoiler: It's hinted that the Somnambulist is the last remnant of the same race of giants as Gog and Magog.]]
* LikeASonToMe: [[spoiler: Ned Love to Coleridge.]]
* LuredIntoATrap: [[spoiler: The whole plot, arguably.]]
%%* MadeOfIron: The Somnambulist.
%%* MinorCrimeRevealsMajorPlot
%%* MrExposition: Thomas Cribb, Ned Love and Miss Gillman
* NarratorAllAlong: [[spoiler: Reverend Dr. Tan]]
* NearVillainVictory: The day is won only by [[spoiler: Edward causing Coleridge to go insane. The Prefects probably helped too.]]
* NiceJobFixingItVillain: [[spoiler: If the Reverend hadn't lured Edward into his trap, then he probably would have succeeded.]]
* NoDoubtTheYearsHaveChangedMe: [[spoiler: The Reverend Dr. Tan at first assumes Edward doesn't remember him because of this; he soon becomes furious when he doesn't remember him by his REAL name either.]]
* NoSocialSkills: Edward is rather rude and standoffish to most people he meets.
* NoodleIncident: In spades, partially involving Moon's prior cases, but also as a side effect of WhatHappenedToTheMouse
* NotSoHarmlessVillain: [[spoiler: Reverend Dr. Tan]]
* NotSoInvincibleAfterAll: [[spoiler: [[LampshadeHanging I'm sorry. I thought he was indestructible.]]]]
%%* ObviouslyEvil: The Human Fly
* OhAndXDies: Cyril Honeyman dies at the end of the first chapter, after the narrator warning about this. [[spoiler: Played more straight with Skimpole and the Somnambulist.]]
%%* OlderSidekick: The Somnambulist
* OlderThanTheyLook: [[spoiler: The Somnambulist is hinted to be the last of the race of giants that were killed by King Lud/Thomas Cribb.]]
* TheOnlyOne: Many believe that Moon is the only person who can possibly solve the mystery.
* OnlySaneMan: Edward Moon believes himself to be this.
* OutsideContextProblem: The Prefects, who seem to operate on a completely different level than the rest of the characters.
* PeaceAndLoveIncorporated: The firm of Love, Love, Love & Love
* PetTheDog: [[spoiler: Skimpole]] gets a few of these, mainly with his son.
* PlotTriggeringDeath: The murder of Cyril Honeyman
%%* PoeticSerialKiller: Possibly Barrabas
* PoliceAreUseless: Played with; the police are shown to be capable of solving simple cases, but need Edward's help to solve the murder of Cyril Honeyman. [[spoiler: Eventually subverted with Merryweather and the other police helping to hold back the forces of Love, Love, Love and Love.]]
* PoliticallyCorrectHistory: Averted; there's a lot of sexism, racism and cruel treatment of "freaks" running as an undercurrent throughout the novel.
* PosthumousCharacter: Samuel Taylor Coleridge, [[spoiler: before being resurrected.]]
* PrecisionFStrike: [[spoiler: The Human Fly uses a lot of foul language in the afterlife.]]
* ProfessionalKillers: The Prefects and the Mongoose.
* PsychicPowers: It's left ambiguous about the extent of Madame Innocenti's powers.
%%* PsychoForHire: The Prefects, again.
* PsychopathicManChild: The Prefects have this in spades. Despite acting like school boys (almost like the Weasley Twins), they are also remorseless killers.
* PublicDomainCharacter: Samuel Taylor Coleridge.
%%* PutTheLaughterInSlaughter: The Prefects, again
* RedShirt: The police during the climax
%%* TheReliableOne: The Somnambulist
%%* TheReveal: Several during the final act
%%* {{Revenge}}: [[spoiler: The entire reason that the Reverend Dr. Tan gets Edward involved.]]
* %% TheRevolutionWillNotBeCivilized
* RunningGag: The bank robber that tunnelled into the sewers.
* SelfDeprecation: The Narrator often disparages his own writing.
* SickAndWrong: [[LampshadeHanging Lampshaded]] by the Narrator in regards to Moon's fetish
%%* TheSilentBob: The Somnambulist
* SpannerInTheWorks: The Prefects. [[spoiler: The Reverend Dr. Tan also tried to bump off the Directorate in an effort to avert this.]]
%%* StarterVillain: The Human Fly
%%* StepfordSmiler: The workers at Love, Love, Love and Love.
* TokenRomance: Subverted with Mrs. Grossmith and Arthur Barge. It seems trivial at first, [[spoiler: right until Barge is revealed to be the Mongoose.]]
* TrademarkFavoriteFood: The Somnambulist's love for milk.
* TroubleFollowsYouHome: [[spoiler: Moon's Theater]]
* UnreliableNarrator: The Narrator freely admits that parts of the story are BlatantLies, but points out moments of falsity almost as quickly as they arrive.
%%* UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans: [[spoiler: The Reverend Dr. Tan certainly thinks so.]]
* VillainousBreakdown: A minor one, [[spoiler: with Dr. Tang becoming more and more frustrated with Edward, resulting in a freakout as Coleridge goes crazy.]]
%%* TheVoiceless: The Somnambulist. [[spoiler: For the most part.]]
* WeaksauceWeakness: The Somnambulist's fear of heights.
%%* WeWinBecauseYouDidNot
* WhamLine: [[spoiler: But you will know me better, dear reader, as your narrator.]]
* WorldOfSnark: Pretty much every character, to varying degrees.
* WorthyOpponent: Edward laments the lack of worthy opponents during the course of the novel; Barabbas was apparently his last.
%%* WouldHurtAChild: [[spoiler: Both the Prefects and Arthur Barge.]]
%%* WretchedHive: London
* {{Yellowface}}: In-Universe. The Directorate employs white agents disguised as Chinamen.
* YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness: Implied. [[spoiler: The Reverend Dr. Tan admits he used the Honeymans and Dunbars for their money, and when everything was set into motion, they were no longer needed.]]
----