Thursday, March 28, 2013

Review: The Stone Demon by Karen Mahoney

The Stone Demon by Karen Mahoney
Paperback, 336 pages
Expected publication: April 8th 2013 by Flux
Source: ARC, NetGalley
Buy the book:  Amazon : B&N : Goodreads

From Goodreads:
After being tricked into opening the doorway to the Demon Realm by Aliette, the Wood Queen, Donna Underwood is faced with a terrible ultimatum from the newly released demon hordes. They demand that the alchemists deliver the Philosopher's Stone, or their reaper storm will plunge the world into a devastating modern-day Dark Age.

Donna is sent to London, England, where she must complete her alchemist's training and learn how to recreate the Stone. But time is running out. Between facing the vengeful demon king, Demian, and collecting the Stone's elements, Donna realizes she must give her own life in order to succeed. And this time, even braving death may not be enough to save the world.
 The final installment of the Iron Witch series will take you for a ride and truly does live up to its predecessors. Donna and the gang face hard losses and challenges to overcome Demian and his army. Thankfully, they form an amazing group that wrangles through these incidents with their traditional clever tact. The process and journey they take is not easy and sometimes they trip up on what should be the simplest tasks. Normally, this would bother me but in this case it actually fits the story with the events occurring. It actually helps keep the book from being completely predictable. There are times you will probably think of similar series, but there is just enough of the author's touch to make it her own. Mahoney's keys are in the details. It's the little things she puts in the plot and characters that really make the difference. The snide remarks and small descriptions of Donna's arms in events all play a part, do your best to pay attention. You will particularly love the background information that we are privy to in this book. Info on Donna, her family, and especially Xan will let the characters come full circle for you. They slide past that awkward teenage phase and you get to see them begin to evolve into adulthood.

It would be so easy to give so much away. To justly define the book I would simply say that Mahoney masterfully wraps up loose ends and throws enough quirks in to keep you guessing and consistently turning the page. The Stone Demon does not disappoint, especially for those that already love the series. These fans will probably be dancing by the end and it may not even be for the reasons they think!

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