The Hanged Man

3.5 Stars The Hanged Man is a Steam Punk Fantasy story with Mystery elements. The story centers on a young woman who is a psychic reader for Her Majesty’s Psychic Service. The secret psychic government agency immediately put me in mind of The Rook , and I was yearning for this to be like a Historical Fiction version of that book. Which probably put my expectations too high. The Hanged Man was intriguing and entertaining, but it did have some flaws. The story is set in 1879 in London. The blurb calls it Gaslamp Fantasy, but it sits somewhere between that and Steampunk. (I’m far from an expert at identifying the nitty gritty of subgenres, so take this all with a grain of salt.) There are some of the super-science elements such as air guns and air ships, but it also has Fantasy elements. Initially, the Fantasy elements center on psychic abilities. But later in the story, more paranormal/supernatural aspects (such as shapeshifting) are dropped into the story. More on that later. The story has an alternate history setting. Many facts about London and Queen Victoria are real, but there are noticeable changes as well. If you have read any Gaslamp, Steampunk, or Urban Fantasy, then the worldbuilding will seem mostly straightforward. There was nothing groundbreaking about the ideas or the worldbuilding. So because of that, the book gets away with not going into much detail about the world which I had lukewarm feelings about. The information is given piecemeal, but since the world isn’t too complex, the story still flows along. In addition to swimming around the various Fantasy subgenres mentioned above, there is a Mystery element to the plot. Alex Pendlebury is a “reader” for the Psychic Service who can sense echoes of the emotions last experienced in a room or against an object. Basically, she is an empath who examines crime scenes and indicates if a death was murder, if it was premeditated, etc. At the start of The Hanged Man, she is called to the scene of a suspicious death which quickly leads her down a rabbit hole of conspiracy and mayhem. I liked the mystery of it, even if the author played it a tad heavy having Alex live on Baker Street. Alex is accompanied by Lieutenant Brooks whose purpose is a little murky at times other than providing muscle and a potential romantic interest. I did like his character though. And I appreciated that they didn’t have instalove. That is a really good thing considering that the whole story takes place in about a twenty-four-hour period. I liked their flirtation but was glad that the romance was more of a subplot. It would have been overpowering if this were truly a Paranormal Romance. Maybe if the story had been spread out a bit more, then there would have been more room for character development. There was plenty of action and exciting elements, but it needed a bit more meat to the story. Things felt rushed at times. I mentioned earlier that the story starts out with psychic abilities as the only paranormal element. Much later in the book, it dumps in other paranormal elements. This was my biggest issue with this book. Maybe I should have guessed that was coming since one of the character’s names comes from Dracula, but I didn’t expect it. There are a few hints that there is more going on than the main characters are aware of, but the story takes a sharp left turn late in the game. Suddenly there are shapeshifters and other worlds and magic-like elements. I don’t have a problem with any of those things. However, I do have a problem with them being added in late in the book with no real explanation. There is one character that repeatedly says he is going to explain some of the things, but the book ends without that explanation occurring. That was extremely frustrating! Don’t drastically change your world late in the book and then not even explain what is going on! And there is also the annoying trick where characters see or read something pivotal and have an epiphany, but they don’t enlighten the audience. I hate that tactic. It drives me nuts. The ending also leads up to sequel which still hasn’t been released. It isn’t a cliffhanger ending, but it definitely leaves many things open for the sequel. Unfortunately, it has been over three years with no firm publication date for the sequel. I will probably read it if it ever comes out, because I do think the series has potential. Despite being frustrated with the abrupt change in the story, I did still enjoy it overall. It was a solid debut. RATING FACTORS: Ease of Reading: 4 Stars Writing Style: 3 Stars Characters and Character Development: 3 Stars Plot Structure and Development: 3 Stars Level of Captivation: 4 Stars Originality: 3 Stars