Iron Angels

by Eric Flint

New York Times best-selling author Eric Flint takes on urban A bizarre kidnapping case leads FBI Special Agent Jasper Wilde into the mysterious world of a strange religious cult, even stranger criminals—and an ancient evil. Set in the Windy City of Chicago and in rusty, industrial East Chicago

A bizarre kidnapping case leads FBI Special Agent Jasper Wilde into the mysterious world of a strange religious cult and even stranger criminals. At the scene of the kidnapping itself, a frightening apparition is seen. Then, a hideously-mutilated corpse is found nearby. Something wicked has come to the nornal-seeming Chicago suburbs.

It doesn’t take long before the FBI agents realize that something truly extraordinary is unfolding in northwest Indiana—and that, whatever it is, the area’s huge steel industry is somehow at the center.

Jasper is joined by Supervisory Special Agent Temple Black. Black has recently been put in charge of a new unit, the Scientific Anomalies Group, created to analyze and handle peculiar cases which might be on the periphery of national security.

Another cult is discovered, although this one seems to be opposed to the criminal activities taking place. Further investigation, however, just produces more in the way of mystery. The agents consult with scientists and theologians, but no one has any idea what might be producing the situation.

Until, finally, the cults erupt in open warfare. As the FBI agents race to intervene and finally put a stop to the horrors, they come to understand and accept that something very ancient and very evil has surfaced in the world—or, perhaps, something that is very, very alien.

About Iron

"[A] sci-fi thriller with plent of twists and turns. . . ."— Publishers Weekly

About Eric

“Another engaging alternate history from a master of the genre.”— Booklist

“. . . an old-style police-procedural mystery, set in 17th century Germany. . . . the threads . . . spin together . . . to weave an addictively entertaining story. . . . a strong addition to a fun series.”— Daily News of Galveston County

“This alternate history series is … a landmark…”— Booklist

“[Eric] Flint's 1632 universe seems to be inspiring a whole new crop of gifted alternate historians.”— Booklist

“…reads like a technothriller set in the age of the Medicis…”— Publishers Weekly

Genres: Urban Fantasy, Fantasy, Fiction, Horror, Science Fiction, Mystery, Detective

496 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published September 5, 2017

About the author

Eric Flint was a New York Times bestselling American author, editor, and e-publisher. The majority of his main works were alternate history science fiction, but he also wrote humorous fantasy adventures.

Reviews

[Grayson · Rating 5 out of 5]

The highest compliment I can pay this book is that once I started reading, it was nearly impossible to put down. It had just the right amount intrigue to carry me from one chapter to another. Although it was more of FBI thriller than I'm used to, it never gets bogged down in the functions of the FBI and gives interesting glimpses into procedures and terminology. For my usual tastes it could have leaned harder into the supernatural but the foundations in the real world served to highlight the spectacle of the supernatural portions, making them even more compelling. The characters read like real people not just sketches of archetypes. The leading duo never falls into lazy cliches of a Mulder/Scully or romantic entanglement, functioning as a solid realistic professional friendship that is so hard to come by.

[Kristene Perron · Rating 5 out of 5]

FBI Special Agent Jasper Wilde thinks he's hot on the trail of a kidnapper, but his world is about to be turned upside down. A crazy cult, a secret society, strange apparitions, unexplained murders, and plenty of pop culture jokes abound as Wilde and his new, temporary supervisor, Temple Black race to solve a mystery and... possibly save the world from evil.

This was a tight story that kept me gripped right up to the final page. Wilde and Black have electric chemistry and every character earns their place on the page. As a reader who has some experience with "real life" action, the attention to detail was appreciated--right down to the new cars designed to compensate for inexperienced drivers and not break traction!

And while this story was a lot of fun, there are also some astute observations about human nature (good and bad) thrown in. I'm looking forward to more of Wilde, Black and the Special Anomalies Group.

If you're an X-Files fan or if you just love fast-paced action and supernatural thrillers, you're going to love this book. Go ahead, take a walk on the Wilde side!

[Bret Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved reading this book! What a wonderful collaboration between renown "1632" author Eric Flint and FBI Agent Alistair Kimble. This book combines crime fiction (with real FBI procedures and a glossary!), science fiction, supernatural elements and freaky cults! I found the character development to be topnotch as I grew to care about these characters. Highly recommended read and hoping for a follow-up novel!

[Craig · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an interesting detective procedural, reminiscent of The X-Files, set in contemporary Chicago. It's quite different from Flint's popular alternate history works and space-opera stories. I found it to be an entertaining read overall, though some of the writing didn't seem up to his usual standards and the dialog was clunky in spots. It could have used another pass for polish, but it was a fun read.

[Kevin Brown · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not one of Flint's better books. The plot dragged and the characters were only mildly interesting.

[Ron · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eric Flint with Alistair Kimble has branched out into a contemporary FBI tale with supernatural/science fiction protagonists. A FBI agent in northwestern Indiana has an X-File like group named Scientific Anomalies Group (SAG) descend upon after his report on a kidnapped girl triggered their search terms. Over the course of the next week, there are a string of strange corpses found, attempted kidnappings, actual abductions, fires, strange guilds surfacing and all culminating in a battle with a cult trying to breach the membrane between worlds and summon monsters. Or are they strange aliens? Anyway, a good opening act that may turn into a series. So read now so you are ready when the second volume comes out!

[Matt Witten · Rating 5 out of 5]

Supernatural horror mysteries aren't usually my thing, but I enjoyed this mystery co-written by horror author Eric Flint and FBI agent/writer Alistair Kimble. The horror mystery felt grounded by the real-world FBI sections of the book. An entertainingly scary read.

[Bad Cookie · Rating 1 out of 5]

I couldn't get into this story. I felt like I was reading a rough draft. It had the potential to be better, but the execution was off. Someone should have done a better job of editing .

[Glennis · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is first in a new series with Eric Flint and newcomer Alistair Kimble. The action takes place in the Chicago area and it seems there is a cult kidnapping and sacrificing people to bring their god into our world. As Agent Jasper Wilde is joined by an agent out of the DC area that works for a division he has never heard of before they try and stop the cultists from killing anyone else and maybe stop whatever it is from coming into our world. They do find allies that have been fighting against these monsters for a long time and use their help to beat back the evil.

A solid good story and a nice beginning to what hopefully will be a long and fun series.


Digital review copy provided by the publisher through Edelweiss

[Daniel Shellenbarger · Rating 2 out of 5]

To be blunt, this is just not a good book, the characters are terrible and unlikeable, the story is poorly developed and goes in circles and the writing is painful. I've liked (and often loved) pretty much every Eric Flint book (and co-authored book) I've read, and I've read a lot of them, but I just plain hated pretty much everything about this book (well, apart from the setting, which I found weirdly intriguing since I have family who live in the area of northwest Indiana where the story takes place).

[Cisca Small · Rating 5 out of 5]

Alistair is a great balance to Flint. The books has the kind of details that readers have come to expect from Flint balanced with Alistair's real world experience.

If you like mysteries or crime novels then this is a must read.

Yes, its Urban Fantasy -but its not what we have come to expect out of the genre. So fresh to read UF with no romance subtext.

[Tara ~ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'd like to preface my review here by saying that this is one of my rare forays into reading a book that is science fiction. Normally I enjoy reading historical fiction, literature, and some non-fiction. However, the unusual subject matter of Iron Angels piqued my interest. This book combines law enforcement meets science fiction similar in a way that the X-Files did/do. The pairing of Jasper Wilde, an FBI agent located in Indiana with Temple Black, an FBI supervisor from the fictional Scientific Anomalies Group located out of the Bureau's CIRG (Critical Incident Response Group) made for interesting reading as they were often at odds, not only personality wise but background and perspective wise as well. It was fun reading their interactions, which were more than a bit prickly at first and at times, downright borderline hostile. It's a testament to the character development on how they eventually come together to do battle against and eventually conquer an otherworldly force of unimaginable power that is on the verge of invading our world. The constant action drives the story along quickly and gives the reader the sense of not knowing what will happen until the very end. This is my first book that I've read by veteran New York Times bestseller author Eric Flint and the newly minted author and FBI Agent Alistair Kimble.

My rating : 3 1/2 stars out of five.

[Meg · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay, but for a non-american reader such as myself, there were a number of cultural references that honestly, I had no idea about, despite many years of being addicted to American tv shows. And when you meet one of these in the text, it's like hitting a brick wall and being knocked sideways. You're too busy thinking WTF to read on with enjoyment. Dead stop to the story.

Like the one referencing some bloke called Dee Somebody. Who is he? What is he famous for (in America but not England)? Why is the author bringing this non-entity into my reading experience? Why should I care about some person who has f-all to do with the story (I don't)? See. I'm too busy thinking about f-ing Dee to get on with enjoying the story. If you are a fan of Dee, whoever he is, don't bother to tell me. I've spent more time on Dee than I ever wanted to. F. Dee and the horse he rode in on.

[Griffin Barber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tightly plotted, this book rocks steadily through an investigation that comes to a burning-hot conclusion! Federal agents, scientists, mad cult leaders, creatures beyond the veil: Iron Angels presents a story that reminded me of the very best of Delta Green.

The characters are intense, and their interactions entertaining and realistic. While it's obvious that Alistair has great depth of knowledge of investigations in general and Federal Bureau of Investigation tactics, policies, and procedures, the authors never let the story bog down in the, "Look how much I know" morass some authors of fiction generally, and more specifically, police procedurals, fall victim of.

I hope to hear more of Jasper and Temple, and even more of their interactions with Masters & Johnson.

[Henry Lazarus · Rating 3 out of 5]

The best way to write a tale abut the FBI investigating monsters in a Chicago suburb is for one of the writers, Alistair Kimble, to actually be a FBI special agent. Eric Flint adds the fantasy excitement to Iron Angels (hard from Baen) which starts with rescuing a girl kidnaped as a cult sacrifice. Beings from another world can enter ours and love the iron in human blood. Someone who has gone into their world comes back with powers. Jasper Wilde is a special agent working with local police. After rescuing the girl and seeing inexplicable things, is joined by Supervisory Special Agent Temple Black from a new x-files like department. Very exciting with probable sequels. Review printed by Philadelphia Free Press

[Thomas Orr · Rating 2 out of 5]

Beginning was good and promising. Well written and the story was interesting. A good mix of character building and mystery. Unfortunately, the story went a direction I didn’t like. Unbelievable was the most disappointing part. The ancient cult was way out there. And characters acted out of their personality which further detached me away from the book.

The ending was epic. Just not believable enough for me.

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

X-Files gets mashed up with Lovecraft. It's not over the top, it's remotely plausible that this bizarre stuff is still secret, i.e. only a few victims, not large portions of cities going missing. One of the villains saves someone, so they aren't the typical super-evil types, indeed I would say that they are more than a bit crazy rather than purely bad. A decent read and the start of a series.

[Brian · Rating 2 out of 5]

This fantasy/horror police procedural had a reasonable plot and the authors seemed to put a lot of effort into snappy dialogue. Unfortunately, I found the banter fairly leaden and sometimes the fast paced action just seemed disjoint.

The setting and characters have promise, if the authors can do a better job with them.

[Whit · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a sucker for team building and Kimble and Flint do a great job of putting together a team of fleshed out characters that you want to keep spending time with. I think Kimble's insider knowledge of the FBI helped with the world building-the use of lingo and terminology felt natural. I hope there is a second book in the series!

[Redsteve · Rating 2 out of 5]

An interesting concept, but the writing just didn't grab me (I'm a big fan of Flint's Ring of Fire series so I'm putting this on co-author Kimble). To much FBI procedural and bureaucratic infighting minutia and the "partner banter" seemed kind of forced. 2.5 stars.

[Gail Morris · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a sideways step from what I usually read from Eric but since I also like mysteries I got right into this book and could not put it down. I hope there will be more of this type and these characters.

[Travis Heermann · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is the X-Files meets monsters from another dimension, but where this book really shines is the in-depth knowledge about FBI culture and procedures woven into the fabric of the narrative.
Plus, there are cool extra-dimensional monsters! Fun stuff.

[Daniel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not the best thing I have read that involved Eric Flint but overall a decent fantasy/crime novel. The story line ends on a clear note that it could become a series. If you like Lovecraft style stories you might like this.

[Dan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not bad, I'd read a sequel.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I made it to Chapter 12, about page 90. Which is compelling as this isn't my genre. But I would recommend it to those who enjoy monsters in Chicago.

[Marguerite Weith · Rating 1 out of 5]

Was halfway through this book and didn't even really know what it was about. The characters are chasing something and still don't even know what.

[Danny · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not his best work.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the book, I hope there are more stories like this

[Steve · Rating 1 out of 5]

I tried to get into this but couldn't take anymore.

[Felicia · Rating 3 out of 5]

not my thing. Workman-like