Review: Heart of Steel by Meljean Brook

Format: Trade paperback, ebook
Pub Date: November 2011
Publisher: Berkley
Length: 320 pages
FTC: Purchased myself

It's rare for me to find a book with true depth that I also love on a really emotional level. Heart of Steel was such a book for me.

I know I've talked about my history background before. But I minored in English lit. Which means I've read and analyzed my share of literature, both contemporary and classic. And, while I love it, most genre fiction just doesn't have the layers there to really analyze in the over-detailed way you tend to do in lit crit classes. Heart of Steel has depth to spare. And at barely 300 pages for the trade paperback version, that's saying something.

Review: Scoundrel by Zoe Archer (Blades of the Rose #2)

Format: Mass Market
Pub Date: October 2010
Publisher: Zebra (Kensington)
FTC: Purchased myself

The Blurb:

London Harcourt's father is bent on subjugating the world's magic to British rule. But since London is a mere female, he hasn't bothered to tell her so. He's said only that he's leading a voyage to the Greek isles. No matter, after a smothering marriage and three years of straitlaced widowhood, London jumps at the opportunity - unfortunately, right into the arms of Bennett Day. 

Bennett is a ladies' man, when he's not dodging lethal attacks to protect the powers of the ancients from men like London's father. Sometimes, he's a ladies' man even when he is dodging them. But the minute he sees London he knows she will require his full attention. The woman is lovely, brilliant, and the only known speaker of a dialect of ancient Greek that holds the key to calling down the wrath of the gods. Bennett will be risking his life again - but around London, what really worries him is the danger to his heart... 

If I had to pick a word to describe Zoe Archer’s Blades of the Rose series it would have to be Epic. Because there is just something larger than life about her stories of adventure and romance. It’s partly because they draw on a rich literary and film lore to form the background, or flavor, of the adventures. But it’s also partly because the books are just plain fun to read.

I didn’t think it was possible to enjoy Scoundrel more than the first book in the series, but I did! Bennett Day is  definitely a scoundrel. He’s perfectly content mixing business with pleasure and is particularly happy when he gets to use seduction to further the aims of his group, the Blades, in their quest to keep their enemies, the Heirs of Albion, from pushing British Colonialism onto unsuspecting people using magical repositories known as Sources.  He will fight when necessary, but he’s equally at home using stealth or his ability at decoding ciphers.

Review: Warrior by Zoe Archer (Blades of the Rose #1)

Format: Kindle ebook (also available in mass market and other e-formats)
Publisher: Zebra
FTC: Purchased myself (although I did win a print copy on a blog ;) )

The Blurb:

To most people, the realm of magic is the stuff of nursery rhymes and dusty libraries. But for Capt. Gabriel Huntley, it's become quite real and quite dangerous...

In Hot Pursuit...
The vicious attack Capt. Gabriel Huntley witnesses in a dark alley sparks a chain of events that will take him to the ends of the Earth and beyond—where what is real and what is imagined become terribly confused. And frankly, Huntley couldn't be more pleased. Intrigue, danger, and a beautiful woman in distress—just what he needs.

In Hotter Water...
Raised thousands of miles from England, Thalia Burgess is no typical Victorian lady. A good thing, because a proper lady would have no hope of recovering the priceless magical artifact Thalia is after. Huntley's assistance might come in handy, though she has to keep him in the dark. But this distractingly handsome soldier isn't easy to deceive... 

I haven't read a book like Warrior in a long, long time. In some ways, it's very old fashioned. In a good way. In other ways, this book is entirely new and fresh. There are echoes of Rider Haggard, the Amelia Peabody series, the Mummy movies, and even Indiana Jones in this book. The setting is one I haven't read a lot about: Mongolia. But it's clear that the author has done her research. The climate, customs, even the sprinkling of Mongolian words throughout the story all add to a nice sense of authenticity.

I love that this book is hard to pin down to a single subgenre. There's suspense. There's paranormal. There's history. Even some steampunkish elements. But all of it is woven with such subtle skill that no one element dominates any other. It's entirely new, yet borrows from an extensive film and literature lore—which only adds to the richness of the storytelling.