(ARC) REVIEW • Cons of the Afflicted (Iron Cast by Destiny Soria)

[note note_color=”#7e5d44″ text_color=”#ffffff”]Iron Cast by Destiny Soria • October 11, 2016 • Amulet Books (Harry N. Abrams)
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It’s Boston, 1919, and the Cast Iron club is packed. On stage, hemopaths—whose “afflicted” blood gives them the ability to create illusions through art—captivate their audience. Corinne and Ada have been best friends ever since infamous gangster Johnny Dervish recruited them into his circle. By night they perform for Johnny’s crowds, and by day they con Boston’s elite. When a job goes wrong and Ada is imprisoned, they realize how precarious their position is. After she escapes, two of the Cast Iron’s hires are shot, and Johnny disappears. With the law closing in, Corinne and Ada are forced to hunt for answers, even as betrayal faces them at every turn.[/note]

[note note_color=”#BFD1D1″ text_color=”#ffffff”]I received this book for free from Amulet Books for review consideration. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.[/note]

First sentence: “Corinne’s first day as a nurse at the Haversham Asylum for Afflictons of the Blood was a frosty Thursday.”

Welcome to the Cast Iron club! It’s 1919 Boston, and it’s not Prohibition these young people are worried about. With this loyal crew of thieves behind your back, you don’t have to worry about the danger that lurks in the shadow—at least not too much.

JOIN THE IRON CAST CREW!

• If you’ve felt like you never belong anywhere, come to the Cast Iron.

The Cast Iron is a safe haven. It may be an exclusive club that offers performances, but it’s home for a certain group of people—called homeopaths—whose blood are “afflicted” with abilities the normal human should not be able to do. They’re looking for a place of safety and acceptance, and that’s what the Cast Iron provides. They can be themselves. Their safety is continually threatened by the many people who want to cast them out of society and lock them up. They live in fear that they will be snatched up and thrown into the Asylum, so having the Cast Iron is everything they’d never had—a place of belonging and safety.

• You will never meet a loyal bunch than Ada and Corrine.

The Cast Iron is a family. Through thick and thin, they’ll always have each other’s back, and that’s something everybody wants, especially when these characters steal and run cons. If you’d cross them, that’s a betrayal that would be utterly devastating to these characters. I would never want to betray Ada and Corinne because these ladies are fiercely protective of each other. Their friendship is so beautiful. It’s the type that you’d want because no matter what, they’ll have each other’s back.

• You want to learn about what these hemopaths can do.

You’re in for a surprise if you think this is just strictly historical fiction. There’s a fantastical element that weaves beautifully in the story. These characters have—how I should say—abilities.

[spoiler title=”Holy spoilers about these hemopaths!” style=”simple” icon=”caret”]Hemopaths are people with a disease in their blood that gives them supernatural abilities. In the Cast Iron, hemopaths like Ada and Corinne use their art—music, poetry, illustrations—to manipulate others into seeing, feeling, and believing what they project. Ada is a songsmith, who sings or plays the violin; and Corinne is a wordsmith, who recites poetry. Usually it’s to entertain, and other times, it’s to steal. Their kryptonite is iron, hence why these hemopaths try to stay away from anything that will have them around iron.[/spoiler]

This is something you’d want to learn more of!

• You love the cons.

Thievery and cons are what these characters know how to do. To support the Cast Iron, these characters use their powers to manipulate people into giving them their cash and jewels. They’re a sort of Robin Hood without the giving to the poor. They use what they can do to their advantage. Why not con from the rich?

• Just beware that you’ll be in danger.

Danger is lurking in the shadows. It’s threatening the members of the club, and it’s not because of the cons they pull. The Cast Iron crew is threatened by the law that’s trying to remove hemopaths from society. They’re constantly being watched, so they have to tread lightly. With arrests and disappearances, nobody’s safe.

Should you read Iron Cast? I highly recommend it! Danger may be all around, but you won’t be able to put Iron Cast down! You’ll find it utterly engrossing from the friendship between Ada and Corinne to the abilities the hemopaths have. It’s hard not to fall in love with this book. You don’t want to leave without finding more about these characters and their world.