Reviews

Iron House by John Hart

Only show reviews with written explanations

ava_catherine's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

Love John Hart's mysteries. I really enjoyed this one. He always delivers a roller coaster ride!

avanders's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

My book group review:

We received the books as part of a promotion:

We were all given the choice between Iron House and Last Child and everyone started with Iron House. I say started with because after reading Iron House, many of the girls are ready to read Last Child.

The Group comments, as a whole:
- a fast read
- "How are you not done?! I couldn't put it down!"
- very entertaining
- "Oh! He's a lawyer! No wonder!" (that was a compliment :))
- "How did you find this? I've never even heard of him! It was really good!"
- "How many books has he written?"
- "The Last Child is even better!"

Overall, the group was very pleased with the book and, as I said, many are ready to read The Last Child. The pace was great and we felt that he moved the story along quickly. One member did not love the beginning, but by page 30 or 40, was wrapped up in the plot, the characters, and the story.

Without offering any spoilers: It's about a career killer who attempts to "go straight" for his love and his baby. Unfortunately, his past life has no interest in letting their golden killer walk away and he is chased while the people that he loves are put in grave danger, all of their lives being upended and, in some ways, completely destroyed. There are twists and turns along the way, keeping the story interesting and the reader reading.

Many agreed that, once reading, it was difficult to put the book down.

Overall, the group was PLEASED! And would recommend to anyone who likes a good story, a good thriller, a Grisham/King (mild) story.

scrappymags's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

Nicely done mystery! This is the 3rd book I've heard by Hart, and I am thoroughly impressed with the plots of his books. This one is no exception - he takes an interesting angle, siblings who are different, exposed to different things and how they survive in their own ways. Both take very different paths. Both flawed (and Hart writes flawed soooo well) massively. Suffice it to say, the plot moves quickly and there are many curves in the road. My only hesitation to 5 stars is that I thought it carried on some pages too many, like Hart was having a tough time ending it, and my exact response was, "Enough! Jeeez!" LOL.. perhaps that's a good thing, but since it started to drag.. eh... 4 stars. I found some interesting symbolism here too - fire for one. The fire, wanting to burn something to remove something or a way of erasing the past. Interesting little find in there for those who are going to read it. I also didn't care for the character Elena. She's basically a hostess at a restaurant and seems pretty dumb. Not quite sure how she could miss the fact that her boyfriend is a gangster. But Michael.. now I liked him, which is weird. I actually though that his way of life was justified somehow based on his upbringing. It disturbs ME a bit that I think that way, but there, I said it. An intriguing book, and I read so many mysteries that I am often figuring out the stories too soon. Not so here. Well done.

ladymahesh's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

The writing is solid, some very interesting plot lines...but, while it started brilliantly, it began to develop into a typical Hollywood franchise-ish type of story about mid way into the book. That killed the mood for me. It became too unrealistic especially with the main character - Michael. I wished it focused on the cat and mouse chase rather than flipping between unnecessary dialogues and bizarre twists that didn't need to be there. The story is fast paced for sure but throwing in twists and turns everywhere disn't necessarily make it a great one. It just lost direction while switching between the past and present of Michael and Julian's lives. It got too repetitive and tired by the end. I might give the author another chance with his older books. I just feel this had potential but lost its way about 40% in.

Content Warnings

laheath's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

I don't read this genre often, but I remembered enjoying his book, The Last Child. This story combines organized crime and vengeance with family secrets. It was fast-paced and kept my interest though somewhat predictable. Trigger warning: mental illness and graphic descriptions of murders.

briennareads's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark mysterious

4.0

I won this book through a giveaway on Goodreads. On the cover of the advance readers' edition, there is a quote by Patricia Cornwell, saying "If you crave thrillers that are vividly beautiful, graphic, and will make you bleed, try John Hart." Now, here's the kick: I do not typically read thrillers. That being said, I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

In terms of readability, this book excels. The language, while not elaborate or intricate, is easy and flows well. As such, I was pleasantly surprised to look up and see that I had just gone through thirty or forty pages at a time. It was a good quick read, but one that I actually wanted to finish, not one that I was simply finishing on principle.

The characters and plot lines can be over dramatic and predictable at times, but that does not make them any less entertaining. Elena, Michael's girlfriend, is the easiest character to relate to, but my favorite is probably either Abigail Vane or Michael. Life hasn't been easy for them, and seeing how it has affected them is rather intriguing.

Reading this book has made me want to read not only John Hart's other books, but also more of the thriller genre in general.