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A review by librovert
Heart of Iron by Bec McMaster
3.0
Coming back to the world of London Steampunk wasn't something I had planned to do, but crazy reading challenge tasks get me every time - and this book was readily available through my Audible Romance Package, so away I went.
Relationship wise, this romance was a win for me. Wil is the only one of his kind (Verwulfen) in London. Turned and abandoned as a child, he spent his formative years the circus spectacle "The Beast." He's found a family of sorts with Blade, but he knows he's an outcast. He knows that the Loupe is contagious and he pushes away the one woman who is willing to see him as more than the sum of his past to keep her safe. Lena is independent, headstrong and doesn't understand why Will pushed her away. I love this kind of dynamic and was pleased to see a relationship that wasn't constantly plagued by the single-minded stubbornness of its main characters (I'm looking at you, Kiss of Steel).
The worldbuilding still feels like something of an afterthought. One of my favorite things in paranormal romance is story arcs that really build throughout the series and leave you wanting more and this series hasn't delivered that for me. There is some inkling that the story will really be picking up from here and I am a sucker for the enemies-to-lovers trope that will be featured in Book 3, but again it's not a book I'll be rushing out to read.
Relationship wise, this romance was a win for me. Wil is the only one of his kind (Verwulfen) in London. Turned and abandoned as a child, he spent his formative years the circus spectacle "The Beast." He's found a family of sorts with Blade, but he knows he's an outcast. He knows that the Loupe is contagious and he pushes away the one woman who is willing to see him as more than the sum of his past to keep her safe. Lena is independent, headstrong and doesn't understand why Will pushed her away. I love this kind of dynamic and was pleased to see a relationship that wasn't constantly plagued by the single-minded stubbornness of its main characters (I'm looking at you, Kiss of Steel).
The worldbuilding still feels like something of an afterthought. One of my favorite things in paranormal romance is story arcs that really build throughout the series and leave you wanting more and this series hasn't delivered that for me. There is some inkling that the story will really be picking up from here and I am a sucker for the enemies-to-lovers trope that will be featured in Book 3, but again it's not a book I'll be rushing out to read.