The Iron Duke by Meljean Brook - A Review-ish

After the Iron Duke freed England from Horde control, he instantly became a national hero. Now Rhys Trahaearn has built a merchant empire on the power — and fear — of his name. And when a dead body is dropped from an airship onto his doorstep, bringing Detective Inspector Mina Wentworth into his dangerous world, he intends to make her his next possession.

Mina can’t afford his interest, however. Horde blood runs through her veins, and despite the nanotech enhancing her body, she barely scratches out a living in London society. Becoming Rhys’s lover would destroy both her career and her family, yet the investigation prevents her from avoiding him…and the Iron Duke’s ruthless pursuit makes him difficult to resist.

But when Mina uncovers the victim’s identity, she stumbles upon a conspiracy that threatens the lives of everyone in England. To save them, Mina and Rhys must race across zombie-infested wastelands and treacherous oceans — and Mina discovers the danger is not only to her countrymen as she finds herself tempted to give up everything to the Iron Duke.

This really is going to be a "Review-ish" as opposed to a summary of The Iron Duke. If you want to read a dandy summary of the story, I suggest clicking here or here or here. I'll simply say this about the story, it's a complicated one, full of unusual technology, fascinating history and interpersonal relationships that defy normal expectations.

I wrote to Meljean and asked her if she would do an interview with me about Steampunk Romance because Steampunk intimidates the hell out of me as a reader. I'd read one Steampunk in the past, on a Guest Dare by the Book Smugglers. It didn't go well. I honestly didn't understand the technology, and got so bogged down in the not understanding that the story itself never took hold of my imagination. But when I heard Meljean was going to write one, I was inspired to give Steampunk another go. Why? Because Meljean writes romance. Not just romance, ROMANCE. Her stories are smart, featuring heroines who tend to kick ass and heroes to complement them beautifully. So I had a high level of trust for her as an author. Plus, I figured, if I'd hated the book, Meljean could take it. But then I decided I wanted to do an interview with her as well to ask some questions as they occurred to me about Steampunk and romance - and why the two should go together. Fortunately, Meljean agreed.

Anyway, I read Here There Be Monsters first, which appeared in the anthology, Burning Up. I loved it. I was intrigued by the pirate feel of the story as well as how beautifully Meljean was able to create two incredibly well rounded characters in such a short page count. So I was all in for The Iron Duke, the next in The Iron Seas series.

As someone completely uninitiated into the genre, I again found the technology to be occasionally confusing. I didn't understand some of the technology, or the history of the story. Here's the thing though, the romance between Rhys and Mina is so strong, that I never got bogged down in trying to figure out exactly what was going on in the background. I loved that Mina was this very strong heroine, but she had such vulnerability too, loving her family, and more than that, as a member of society that is so threatened that she requires constant protection for fear that someone might hurt her. And I loved the Rhys thought he had everything until he met Mina and realized that despite his stature as a war hero, there was one thing he'd have to fight to have, Mina.

Rhys is very alpha. He's strong, and determined and heroic in all the ways that are important to me as a reader. He's got a dominating personality, is a leader of men, and frankly, is sensual as all get out. And when he decides that Mina is going to be his, he mounts an assault on her senses, working overtime to show her that they can connect and be intimate.

I liked Mina a lot as well. She is a product of the Frenzy, meaning her mother was raped during a sexual free-for-all initiated by the Horde (the enemy). And yet, her family adores her, protects her, and has no issues with the circumstances of her birth. They support her choice of employment, and they rely on her stability and common sense. And I love how Rhys slowly works her around to being in touch with her sensuality, which she'd never experienced before.

Overall, I loved my experience reading The Iron Duke. I love the Meljean Brook never coddles her readers, she expects us to pick up things as we go along, which I was, for the most part, able to do. I do wish that perhaps a short prologue explaining the Horde's invasion more clearly was included in the story, but my lack of 100% comprehension of the exact history behind the action never detracted from my reading experience. I found The Iron Duke to be a bold and fascinating statement by an incredibly gifted story teller that Steampunk and Romance can and should go hand in hand.

Final grade: A

Stay tuned for Friday when my interview with Meljean Brook goes live!