Iron House Hardcover – July 12, 2011

I have read all but King of Lies and will pre order Hush.He introduces Iron House by admitting that he almost didn't make it through the writing of it.It's perfectly understandable as Mr. Hart sets an extremely high bar for himself. There are moments a reader wonders if she can "live" through it, but she does as there's simply no stopping the read.. his plots are so incredibly intricate and almost convoluted one wonders at times where he's going, but he never fails at arriving, and I particularly enjoy his final sentences; they do more than "end" the book, they deliver hope. It's important because one becomes deeply involved with his characters; he doesn't spend much time describing physical characteristics, so the reader truly absorbs the characters almost by osmosis...Not many writers can do that; it can make for a challenging read, but this writer challenges himself..I loved Iron House...yes there were some difficult if not horrifying moments, and long journeys for the characters, but I can only say I loved it; I recommend it; it's just freaking brilliant.

This is my first foray into the intense writing by Mr Hart, and not sure if I will continue reading another. His writing is very detailed in describing the characters, many that are deplorable in every way. The primary protagonist, Michael, although an orphan as a child, is raised and taught to kill by his mentor, a kingpin of organized crime. Michael's story is full of violence and sadness, but he finds true love, and tries to leave the life of crime. But he is unable to do that when the only man and mentor he has loved dies, leaving him to deal with the vicious men who want him dead. The story takes off with Michael and the only woman he has ever loved running for their lives. The book is so full of evil people and violent death, I had to hurry through many of the passages. BUT, the story of Michael's past was so I intriguing, I had to continue reading to the suprising end.

This is the second novel by John Hart that I've read, and I couldn't put it down! He is such an amazing storyteller. He paints a vivid picture of the lives of all his characters and draws you into their world. Each of the prominent characters in the book are well developed and despite being flawed and all of them are remarkably flawed you absolutely find yourself rooting for them. Iron House for me was like sitting down to a four course meal prepared by a gourmet chef. The amount of thought that goes into the story he tells and how he ties all of the characters stories together is so satisfying. The book shadows the life of two brothers Michael and Julian. One is the strong protective brother and the other weak and living a nightmare of being viciously bullied by the other boys in the Iron House orphanage they live in. On the day the boys are to be adopted by a wealthy and powerful senator and his wife, Julian breaks as a result of the bullying and kills one of his tormentors. He is discovered by Michael who tells him to tell everyone that he killed the boy, and flees the home. Michael finds his way to New York and living on the streets. Smart and strong he quickly realizes that there is safety in numbers and organizes other boys on the street into a gang. A prominent head of a crime family Otto Kaitlin takes notice of the boy and takes him under his wing. Flash forward many years and a grown Michael has become Otto's right hand man and much like a son to the mob boss who is now on his death bed. Michael has fallen in love with his beautiful girlfriend Elena who is pregnant with their child. Realizing that he can no longer live the life of a cold blooded killer he receives the old man's blessing to leave the organization and pursue a normal life. Steven Kaitlin Otto's natural son and Jimmy a high ranking enforcer driven by jealousy and fear quickly let Michael know that there is no easy way out and they will come after everything he loves to prevent him from doing so. Michael ends up paying a final visit to his mentor and helps end his life and suffering. A full on war breaks loose and Michael finds himself on the run with Elena who had no knowledge of his life within the mob. After they threaten his long lost brother he finds himself in search of Julian. Meanwhile Julian has lived a sheltered life of privilege raised by Abigail and Senator Randall Vane. We learn after Michael finds him that Julian suffers from schizophrenia and has had a break after he witnessed some sort of traumatic experience. When Michael discovers a body of one of Julian's childhood tormentors from the orphanage killed in the boathouse of the Vane's sprawling estate the race begins to save himself and his brother. Along the way he begins learning more about himself and his past. The book is a nonstop thrill and will leave your head spinning. I could not put it down and can't wait to read another move from this author.

I made my way through this book, admittedly skipping ahead a lot from about halfway through to the end. Having read and enjoyed other books by this author, I was disappointed in this particular story. Very early on, Elena came across as so weak and idiotic, I lost interest fast. The dialogue between her and Michael seemed unrealistic to me, as well. I thought the story gained interest when Julian was introduced, but by the time I reached the end of the book, I really didn't care what happened to any of them.

I bought this book to read on a road trip and was very pleased with it. It has very entertaining elements of mystery and murder and I was immediately drawn into the story. I don't like posting about the story itself in my reviews because I hate when a review gives away crucial details that I would have preferred to find out on my own when reading the book, so none of that. This book has hot guys, mafia connections, horrible family members, love, action, mystery, you name it. It's well told and engaging and I loved every page.

Was not a big fan of this novel. I found it to be very dark and sad and hard to read at times. I never really connected with the main character. I never really rooted for him. Seems like the book was just filled with all bad guys, some just worse than others. The main character was just one of the less worse ones.

John Hart has an eloquent and considered writing style, he isn't shy of some dramatic and almost poetic descriptive prose; while at the same time he delivers action and tough guy drama with genuine panache. He also has an eye for a story and generally sets them up well with good chararcters at the heart of it.Iron House begins well - it has mystery, love and suspense. An over arching sense of impending doom follows the story of Michael and Elena. She is an interesting love interest and underpins his motivations well. The reveal of his past and the Iron House is neatley played - so to the introduction of the main support cast, all well delivered and sensibly written characters. With the possible exception of Stevan - we are left to assume too much about him and maybe we needed to read a little more of his personality. However, after the first 15 or so chapters the book grinds to something of a halt - as the intricacies of the story are developed sadly the pace drops to a crawl - adding in alot of driving and chatting didn't make up for it. The middle third is the books problem, as Elena makes way for another strong female charatcer so the relationships all change - it's like being back at square one, I wasn't really convince by the "investigation" element as it seemed a little too hackneyed way of getting to the truth. The book then sprngs back to life for the final 3rd, though the action climax is a smidge of an anti-climax in places.I'd liked to have seen a little more of the great Michael in action.It's an interesting and well produced book, which drags in the middle. The subtext of mother's and sons, nature vs nurture is not over played, but neither is it subtle. Overall the it had enough to keep me and most readers going but given the intricacies the twist and 'reveal' wasn't enough to truly drop the jaw. I shall read more from Hart, his accomplished style and character development are worthy of further investment.

I cannot believe this was written by the same person as the wonderful "the last child". Heavy going doesn't begin to describe it. We have to hear the sound of every raindrop, wipe every tear away, believe one brother is more super than a superhero and the other more useless than a wet rag while a huge collection of villains and thugs make both their lives impossible. Very Disappointing.

Spoiler alert!!A very well constructed book, lots of exciting twists and turns, however the torture in the latter half of the story I felt was totally unnecessary.Only for this reason am I giving this book four stars.Will definitely read more by this author.

Recommended by friends and bought for our book club. Not the normal genre we read but everyone loved it. Fast paced, good twists and well written

First book I’ve read by John Hart. Going to immediately buy another. Dark and intense with characters s that come alive.