A new Unknown City book for adventurous travelers: Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, the “Garden City” full of English expatriates whose polite exterior belies an intriguing past. Victoria has long been a city of contradictions; the home of the unfortunately phrased “newly wed and nearly dead” is also where you will find one of North America’s oldest Chinatowns; where tales of secret satanic cults abound; and where the flowers bloom so early in the year, it’s no surprise that Victoria, just north of Seattle, is regularly named one of the world’s (yes, the world’s) top tourist destinations. It also includes tips on the city’s best dining, shopping, nightlife, and little-known landmarks. One guidebook is never enough for a single trip. Frommer's is great for pre-departure planning. Some swear by "Lonely Planet" or "Let's Go" to help them find accommodation as they travel. But LP's forte is nuts-and-bolts information, not embellishment, so it makes pretty dry beach reading. Vancouver's own Arsenal Pulp Press fills this void with its "Unknown City" series. The books don't advise on where to stay, how to get around, or list the top sightseeing spots. Rather, they act like a friend who lives in the city you're visiting. They tell you the really juicy stuff.?"The Georgia Straight"--Carolyn Ali "Georgia Straight " Ross Crockford is the former editor of Monday, Victoria?s alternative weekly, and the co-author of Victoria: Secrets of the City, the book that was the inspiration for this new one.