Armored Hearts: Fantasy Steampunk

by Melissa Turner Lee and Pauline Creeden

• ISBN10: 0615799302
• ISBN13: 9780615799308
• Publish Date: 16 May 2013
• Publish Status: Active
• Imprint: Altwit Press
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 268
• Language: English

Reviews

[Angie]

Gareth is a jerk and he knows it. Bound to his wheelchair, he's never been accepted into society, so he tends to reject people before they can reject them. Then a girl falls out of a tree when he's twelve, and he doesn't hesitate to catch her, although he has no idea how he made it up into the air. A few years later, Gareth decides to use his gift for good, masquerading as the Flying Knight to keep criminals out of nearby neighborhoods. Then the girl is back into his life, vying for his affection, but Gareth continuously pushes her away. Armored Hearts is an interesting mix of steampunk and fantasy, as Gareth learns more about his heritage and tries to protect this odd girl who may just capture his heart.

I really enjoyed Armored Hearts. It's really unlike anything I had read before. In the beginning, it kind of felt like a historical superhero story! Gareth dons an old suit of armor that his aunt finds, so he'll be safe as he fights crime (and it keeps his identity secret, of course). But then, Gareth realizes that the Scottish fairy tales he heard as child are more true than he ever knew. Could it be possible that he's descended from fae and that's why he can fly? But then why can't he walk? All of this is slowly revealed as he discovers that not everyone around him is who they say they are, but he isn't really surprised since he's been lying too.

Armored Hearts also has a cute romance. I loved that Jessamine was the pursuer instead of Gareth. He is adamant that he does not want a wife, but his future and Tabitha's future depend on it. His family's estate is in ruin, but Jessi comes from a very wealthy family which can save them and give his aunt a better life in America. She flirts relentlessly with him, and Gareth isn't unaffected by her although he pretends to be. While I liked this romance overall, I didn't quite believe Jessi's motive. She remembers Gareth from when they were young, and decided she wanted to marry him because he can fly and saved her. That's it. She didn't know him at all, but she came up with an elaborate plan to "trap" him. I'm not fully buying that.

In the end, Armored Hearts was a lot of fun. I loved the combination of steampunk and fantasy, and the role of fae. I also loved how Jessamine and Tabitha were both very smart, and seemingly eccentric young women. Tabitha is good at math, and both girls are inventors. They have minds of their own, and don't let Gareth's surly attitude get them down.

Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.

[Danielle Ackley-McPhail]

I haven't run across a lot of steampunk that melds science with fantasy. Generally the focus is more one than the other, with the technology taking center stage beyond even the plot at times. This book is not such a one.

I was very impressed with the development of this story and the way the groundwork for key elements of the plot was set out neatly and unobtrusively, then left in the background until the appropriate time.

A distinctly character-driven story, Armored Hearts drew me in quickly and developed in such a way that as plot elements were revealed it was a true reveal, rather than something I had already recognized immediately when it was introduced. This is refreshing as so many time in other fiction I have read plot points end up coming across as if neon-lit, with the reader let to wonder when that particular element will come into play. Not so here. In Armored Hearts I very much appreciated the organic way that the story unfolded. I was not given the inevitable moment where my mind had time to wonder and try and puzzle out what I knew and what it's relevance was, the storyline kept me too engaged the entire time.

I found the plot twists very original and refreshing, the characters well drawn, and the historic feel comfortable, yet relaxed enough that I didn't feel disassociated from it.

This brings me to my one complaint: I had no sense of completion by the time the book had ended. It will sound odd, but the book both ended too abruptly (before we had a clear idea of where the next volume would take off) and continued too long (past the resolution of the immediate conflict in this volume). Basically the ending did not feel like it occurred in the proper place.

However, as I said, this was my only complaint. Armored Hearts drew me gladly in to its magical world and immersed me there.