The Iron Hunt

At once a reasonably good book and somewhat disappointing. Maxine Kiss, (oh dear) is the latest in a long, lonely line of female demon hunters. Protected by a pact with a group of demons who live on her skin as tattoos, Maxine knows that one day she, like her mother, will be abandoned by the demons who protect her, in favour of her daughter. On that day she will inevitably die, suddenly and violently, when the demons she hunt get their retribution.

It sounds promising, and in so far as it goes, it delivers, but the book is so clogged with backstory, suppressed memories, mysterious visitors, and romantic interests with magical powers that I thought I was reading book two. (I checked the author's webpage: I'm not.) The reader is simultaneously introduced to Maxine's heritage, and the reveal about how much of her heritage has been concealed from her, with the result that two potentially interesting stories become one confusing and dull one-- we need to learn what Maxine believes to be true before we can care that it's false, but when you already know it's false, there's not much point in learning about it.

If this author is taken severely in hand by a merciless editor, she will produce pretty good books.