REVIEW: DEAD IRON by Devon Monk

 

There are some wonderful elements in this story: A steampunked western frontier, werewolves, demons, witches and a missing boy tied to the center of it all. Cedar Hunt is an outsider in the town of Hallelujah, Oregon. He lives on the fringes as a way to protect the townspeople as well as himself. The town is on the cusp of great things if the railroad continues on uninterrupted.

The rail representative however has dark secrets and consorts with even darker energies. Cedar comes against him when a family heirloom given to him by a trio of inventors makes him believe his brother may be alive. He needs to find the Holder, a powerful piece of machinery that will give him the answers he needs.

This book started very promising for me but I became a little disconnected with all the different narrative switching between characters.I would have liked a bit more focus on Cedar. There are also a lot of different magical concepts to keep up with that  I really couldn't connect with. Definite promise and I would give a second novel in this universe a try, this one just fell a little flat for me.