I hadn't taken part in the Unapologetic Romance Readers' monthly reads for several months, just because there was nothing coming up that particularly interested me--or, even if they interested me, they weren't available from the library and were too expensive for me to buy. I spent a lot of money last year buying book club books that I ended up not particularly liking, and so I've tried to dial it back some this year. But, the monthly theme for May was "steampunk," a genre I really like, and the club choice of The Iron Duke was available from the library, and so I rejoined the fold. This is a book that I liked, but not because of the hero. The world and the heroine are wonderful, and they carried the weight of the book for a hero who at first seemed like he was going to be okay, but really didn't know how to take "no" for an answer.
Our heroine here is Mina, a biracial young woman in an England that lived under the rule of the Mongol Horde for two centuries (I think). While under Horde rule, those who lived in England were infested with nanotechnology that allowed the Horde to control them, mainly by freezing them or forcing them into breeding frenzies. The "hero" of the book, Rhys, ended Horde rule by taking down the tower that broadcasted the signals used to control the populace. Now, about a decade later, Rhys is known as the Iron Duke and ends up in Mina's sights when a body shows up on his doorstep and a conspiracy begins to unfold around them. Oh, and Mina doesn't really want much to do with him, and so he is determined to own her.
This is such an interesting world. While I'm not a huge fan of the "Asian Other" theme that's going on, the concepts in general are interesting. It's a fusing of nanotechnology and steampunk and genetic modification. Krakens and megalodons, genetically engineered by the Horde, threaten sea ships and airships trawl the skies. The European continent is infested by zombies. Mina and her fellow countrymen might be infested with nanotechnology that can let the Horde control them, but that same technology protects their lungs from the smoke and smog of London, gives them superhuman strength, and lets them heal at a supernatural rate. And while the Horde kept a death grip on England, there are hints that this might be developed further and shown nuance in other books, though I'm not a hundred percent sure--but Mina tells about an incident when the Horde was fleeing after the downfall of their tower, and some of the Horde tried to take Mina with them, and she believes it was to protect her from a wrathful English populace who hate her because of her Mongol blood.
Mina herself is also a great heroine. She is committed and willful, but loves her family, wants to do best by her position as an inspector, and is a true Englishwoman despite how she is looked down upon because of her racial background. She wants to live in peace but knows it might not happen, and doesn't let it destroy her life. She's traumatized by her own life under the Horde, which has scarred her in regards of sexual intimacy, but is not scared of connection.
But then there's Rhys. At first, I thought it was just going to be a typical "alpha male pursues woman who rebuffs him" story, but with the awesome world thrown in. In reality, though, Rhys is a total creep. This became increasingly apparent as he insisted on manhandling her against her express wishes, culminating in a scene in which he sexually assaults her despite her repeatedly telling him no, and that the experience is triggering harmful memories for her--the word "trigger" isn't used at all, but that is definitely what is happening and what Mina expresses. But Rhys ignores that and carries on anyway, leaving Mina in a position where she literally has to shoot him to eventually get him off of her. Then, of course, the book tastes a distasteful turn to "woman falls in love with rapist." While this is somewhat of a trope in historical period romances--not as much anymore, but you still find it--it seemed particularly egregious here because so much about this world was more progressive than the historical period is takes place in (albeit in an alternate universe) was, and this made it feel even more out of place than it normally would.
This Rhys plot really left a bad taste in my mouth. I liked the rest of the book a lot--the consensual encounters would have been awesome, had they not been tainted by the earlier one, the world was cool, and I really liked Mina and so, so many of the side characters. I'm one hundred percent interested in other books in this series. But this one...I just can't get over the Rhys thing, and so despite my overall liking of the book, I'm going to have to give it...
2 stars out of 5.
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