cover image The Hunter: Book 1 of the Legend Chronicles

The Hunter: Book 1 of the Legend Chronicles

Theresa Meyers. Kensington/Zebra, $6.99 mass market (352p) ISBN 978-1-4201-2124-7

Meyers’s steampunk western packs a sizzling demonic romance into a fast-paced quest through tiny frontier towns. Brothers Winchester, Remington, and Colt Jackson take up the family tradition of vampire and demon hunting, assisted by inventor Marley Turlock and his spectro-photometric oglifiers. Colt is looking for his father’s Book of Legend, but to get it, he’ll have to battle Rathe, a vampire, fallen archangel, and demon lord described as “Lucifer’s ugly badman big brother.” He also encounters Rathe’s pawn, the succubus Lilly, and soon the supernatural sparks are flying. Meyers piles on the gee-whiz moments and eyeball kicks—including a steam-powered freeze machine, electric stun guns powered by Tesla coils, and a clockwork horse—in a well-crafted, eminently enjoyable story that will leave readers wanting more time with the Jackson brothers. (Nov.)