Heart Of Brass (Clockwork Agents #1) by Kate Cross
PNR/Steampunk
May 1, 2012
Signet Eclipse

Reviewed by Tori

Favorite Quote: “She drove him to distraction, frustrated him, amazed him, and made him what to do better.“

Arden Grey, Countess Huntley, has everything a woman of the 19th century could want. Wealth, status, and independence. Everything except her husband. The Earl of Huntley disappeared seven years ago while on a mission for a secret government agency called the Wardens. Arden knows her husband is still alive and has never given up hope he will come home to her. One night Arden feels someone watching her and realizes it’s her missing husband.

Lucas (Luke) Gray, the Earl of Huntley, is now an assassin for the Company, a corrupt agency. Referred to as number 5, he is sent to assassinate Arden for her crimes against the Company. As Luke watches his target, he finds himself unable to complete his mission. Something about Arden is familiar and his attraction to her both excites and scares him.

Arden and Lucas’s best friend implement a plan and are able to capture and subdue Luke.They take him to the Wardens headquarters and learn that the Company has tampered with both his memories and his physical stature. Luke is definitely not the man he was seven years ago. The Wardens don’t trust him but Arden finally has him back in her life and will do anything to keep him there. As Arden and Luke struggle to reacquaint themselves with one another again, they have to stop the Company from killing them and Arden has to stop a serial killer.

Heart Of Brass is an delightfully adventurous steampunk filled with riveting action, wicked spies, steamy romance, and an all star cast. Lush world building transports us to an exciting time where carriages and automations are beheld side by side. Set in 19th century Victorian England, we are introduced to the Earl and The Countess Huntley. Married young, these two are challenged in different ways to keep England safe as members of a government agency called the Wardens. Our story starts out with Arden entering the seventh year her husband, Luke, has been missing. Unknown if he is alive or dead, Arden keeps the home fires burning, stubbornly defiant against all who claim Lucas must be dead. When Luke begins appearing to her, threatening her life, Arden realizes that he was captured and corrupted by the Company. As she attempts to stay alive and force Luke to remember her, she realizes that the man she married is not the man who stands before her.

There are two separate but equally important storylines that make up this story. Luke’s disappearance and subsequent return and a serial killer who is preying on young woman of London. Both interesting plots that run parallel but do not intertwine. The serial killer mystery is for Arden only and it strongly shows how fiercely Arden needed to be more then just Luke’s wife. Arden has a hidden vulnerability that engages our sympathies. She has never felt she was good enough for Luke, a feeling enforced by his family. So she strives to become everything Luke was after he left-to prove to him that she too can be exciting and challenging both in and out of their marriage. When we get their background story, we realize that Arden’s and Luke’s marriage had problems and things were said and done before Luke disappeared, which only reinforced her feelings of inadequacy.

I genuinely liked Arden. She is a strong, independent, intelligent, outspoken young woman who we learn has changed drastically since her husband vanished. She has had to stay strong against her own doubts and the doubts of those around her, causing her to take more control of her life then a woman of this time period might normally. She is a brilliant inventor and comes up with devices to help the Wardens but also certain female appliances she sells to be financially independent. She’s not a paragon of virtue though. She has a small drinking problem which started after Lucas disappeared. She is also very stubborn and obstinate. Being on her own for seven years has required to assume the helm so to speak and once Lucas returns, she has a slight problem sharing command.

Poor Luke. You can’t help but feel sorry for him even when you discover how he was before he disappeared. He is back with his wife with no memory of her or their life. Through Arden and his own returning memories, he begins to remember the man he used to be and finds himself disgusted by his previous behavior. He treated his wife as a possession-not badly, but rather indifferently. Being a Warden had meant everything to him and he did many things in his service to them, things that left his wife questioning his feelings for her. We learn his last mission required him to partner up with his mistress, a mistress Arden knew nothing about until after he disappeared. When Luke learns of this he wants to die, not wanting to believe that he brought even more pain to his wife. We also learn that he was not faithful while he was with the Company. When he discovers a tattoo on Arden’s shoulder that is an exact replica of a tattoo he got while he was gone, he knows then that no matter what happened to him while he was with the Company, some part of her was always with him.

Their reunion is bittersweet. In bed, they know exactly where they stand with one another but out of it, they are both somewhat at a lost. Watching them fall back in love with one another is very romantic as the chemistry between them is quite tangible and explosive.

Luke’s expression hardened. “If he came in here right now and told you that somehow I was behind it all, you’d believe that wouldn’t you?”
She scowled at him. “Don’t be a jealous idiot. I would not believe it, and if you’re so very concerned about my affections straying, why don’t you give me a good reason to keep them with you.”

Slowly, he straightened and came towards her. She felt a little like a Gazelle eyeing an approaching lion and didn’t know whether to run or simply accept her fate and offer up her throat. He gaze held hers until he stood mere inches away. His hand reached out and curled around the back of her neck, pulling her closer. “You’re mine,” he told her. “I’d kill any man who tried to take you away.”

Obstacles are handled, situations diffused, and honesty is finally given. We get some wonderfully passionate scenes and the lovely Mr. Huntley likes to talk dirty in bed. Ooo La La. While their situation isn’t 100% resolved, they are off to a wonderful start by the end of the book.

A well developed and personable secondary cast with individual storylines that intersect and spike your curiosity. Henry Huntley, Luke’s younger brother, is an angry young man who treated Arden terribly and was set to declare Luke dead when Luke reappears. He is not happy Luke is back and sets out to discredit Luke as the rightful Earl. Alister Wolfred is a member of the Wardens, a long time friend of Lucas’s, and in love with Arden. He is both elated and angry that Luke has returned from the dead. We met other Wardens, investigators with Scotland Yard, and various members of the Company. What I enjoyed is that no one is what they seem and their hidden agendas make for an exciting story filled with many twists and turns. Witty and engaging dialogue helps speed the story along and give us a more intimate look at out characters and their personalities.

The two mysteries keep us on our toes and resolve themselves simultaneously; giving us the identity of the serial killer and the person who betrayed Lucas and the Wardens. An heroic ending with an intro into the book two leaves us satisfied and more then ready for Touch Of Steel which releases December 14, 2012. I recommend Kate Cross’s newest steampunk series if you enjoy strong protagonists, witty dialog, delish romance, and exciting adventure.

One problem I had with the book is the cover. In the book, Arden wears a nose ring and has seven chains that stretch from nose ring to studs in her ears. It’s a pivotal part of her emotional make up and I was disappointed that it wasn’t shown in the cover art.

Overall Rating: B

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