I really loved this cover so when this book was recommended to me and I found it on KU I thought, why not? Here’s what it’s all about…
Solutions aren’t always black and white—sometimes they come in shades of iron gray.
Captain Bridget “Briar” Rose wants for nothing. Each day is a new adventure, living the life she loves, running cargo on the Ohio & Erie Canal. That is, until her cousin decides to sell the family boat to finance a new business venture. He wants to build locomotives for the railroad—the very industry that could put the entire canal system out of business.
Not one to give up without a fight, Briar does a little snooping into her cousin’s new business partner. When she gets a sneak peek at the locomotive plans, she suspects that the man is either a genius, or a ferromancer—one of the dreaded metal mages of Europe’s industrial revolution.
Determined to reveal her suspicions, Briar takes the plans and heads for the newspaper office in Columbus, stealing the family boat in the process. Kidnapping her cousin’s handsome business partner wasn’t part of the plan, but when he shows up, demanding the return of his property, she can’t let him go. After all, if Briar can prove that the railroad is using ferromancy, she could save more than her boat. She could save her way of life.
I’m going to break this into three parts, the world building, the characters, and the story.
First the world, I really liked it, steampunk for me can be confusing and I don’t like it sometimes, in fact I don’t even know if I would consider this steampunk probably more of a fantasy to be honest. I understood the concept, liked the world and started to follow along pretty quickly. Check.
The characters. I didn’t like Briar, though she did get better, I dislike lead characters who can break any rules and are almost shocked when they have to face consequences. I also didn’t like the way she treated Grayson for most of the beginning of the book, without and real proof that she should. She stole from him and when he came to get his property she kidnapped him, blaming him! I had a hard time forgiving her. That’s a lie, I never did forgive her, she continued to do as she please to the detriment of others. Speaking of the others, I liked them and really helped me enjoy the book. So the characters where at times great and a times annoying.
The story. Without giving too much away I found it interesting. I found the end fell a little flat for me but I found the flow wasn’t too fast or slow and I stayed entertained.
Bottom line, I got thus book free with KU (I think it’s $1 if you want to buy it) and I don’t regret it, it was a fun read.
Geek Sneak Peek 