The Deathsniffer's Assistant (The Faraday Files #1)

I received a free copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book. I had it on my wishlist on Amazon for the longest time but didn't really want to spend $4.99 for it. Luckily I was approved to receive a free galley.

The story starts off kind of sad with the death of the main character's parents in The Floating Castle Incident. Chris then takes over raising his younger sister. He is desperate to gain income and ends up working for Olivia Faraday, Deathsniffer. Chris and Olivia then take up an investigation to find the murderer of a duke, which is then followed up by several related murders. During all of this, Chris's sister Rosemary reveals herself to the world as the powerful wizard that she is, despite being uncategorized. So while Chris is running around trying to assist in finding a killer, he is also desperately trying to keep his sister out of the clutches of the government who want to "use her until she dries up." The murderer is found and was a pretty creative twist on things. Unfortunately for our characters, not all of the murders were confessed to.

The last two deaths in the story are left unexplained, leaving room for the rest of the series to unfold. My own personal opinion is that both are related to government conspiracy and that neither death was what they seemed.

Chris seems to have more power than he was categorized with and I'm interested to know how much this will be related to everything that has been going on. I have the feeling his power is actually as impressive as Rosemary's, just completely different.

I wish there was more explanation as to the whole concept of categorization. The whole world McIntyre has built is very interesting and is a nice alternative to all the stories with your average witch and wizard.

I enjoyed watching Chris metamorphose from the beginning to the end of the story. Even his supporting character Olivia began to develop. I like characters who are not flat. This series has real potential and I look forward to the next installment.

While I did receive this as a free copy, I unfortunately did not have time to finish reading it before my galley expired. I was so into the story I finally paid the $4.99 to finish reading about 60 pages. I liked it that much.

5 stars.

Review is live on Butterfly-o-Meter Books and will show up Goodreads sometime later.

In a Flutter: Spectacularly fun!
Review Meet my 4th Bomy Award of Excellence of the year, The Deathsniffer’s Assistant by Kate McIntyre. This is obviously my Mystery/Thriller year, because all of my Bomy Awards of Excellence have been from that area 😀

What could be better than an Edwardian fantasy world, where all kinds of fantastic creatures – salamanders, elementals & such – are bound into objects, people communicate via magic mirrors as if they’re telephones, and everyone in the city is categorized as one or another kind of magic user? What, I ask you, could be better? I’ll answer it too: a sassy, irreverent, uber-fun female character and a beta male side-kick who allows us to enjoy her from an outside-perspective!

While the fantasy world was delicious, what I loved all the more about The Deathsniffer’s Assistant were the characters. I know it’s not gonna be fair to our MC, Chris, who is a lovely and loyal boy, but for me the absolute star was Olivia 😀
To be fair though, let’s talk about Chris first. I’m thrilled to see more and more beta male characters in my reads. Don’t get me wrong, alpha males are really hot and exciting to read about, but I find beta males to interesting more often than not – they’re complex characters, multi-dimensional, and they make the person they’re beside shine at full value. Chris was all of that, and more. He was entirely loyal and dedicated to his little sister, Rose, to their family home. A cultured, educated, uber-polite young man, a little superficial when it came to judging people by their shoes, but what would you expect – the boy is 19 after all :) There are bound to be some immature personality traits at that age. Him getting a job, finding ways to take care of his little sister, starting life as a parent though he’s the big brother actually made this a New Adult novel, imo.
Olivia was entirely fascinating, though. Irreverent, independent, intelligent, utterly amusing and charming – you get my point. She’s the Sherlock-ian figure of the duo, the detective, the mystery solver, while Chris is the assistant. Olivia was an utter and irrevocable delight, snarky, no-BS, slightly erratic in places – because when your mind and truthsniffing are working overtime, it’s tough to be chilled-out -. I loved her a terrible lot, and found the fact she wasn’t the actual MC a stroke of genius. These are the kinds of characters that are charismatic, interesting, fascinating in fact enough to experience from their own POV, but even more so from another’s – like say their assistant, sidekick by large. So while Olivia was the star for me, she wasn’t the actual MC, and that was a brilliant move. Kudos Kate McIntyre!

The murder mystery was very interesting, very well paced imo and not predictable – which says a lot, coming from a murder mystery rabid fan such as I am. I loved everything about it, the suspects, the red herrings, their motivations, the investigative procedure – all of it! Loved, loved, loved! Aside the mystery, I sense a slightly romantic tone surrounding Chris, and I think further along in the series we will see him fall for someone. He’s at the right age, lol! I’m sadistically looking forward to that moment, because his obsession with propriety and what’s not so say while you do feel it is bound to make for some delicious romantic tension, mwahahaha. I R unabashed evil reader of doom xD

The third person, past tense narrative, from Chris’s POV was so very awesome! His almost obsessive polite behavior, but his slightly judgmental real voice, made Olivia stand out all the more as gutsy, irreverent, snary – it brought delicious contrast and tension into every scene they were both in. Loved, loved, loved the writing!

The cover is really, really cool, and the blurb was entirely hooking too. This is absolute impulsive buy material for me.

I fully, wholeheartedly recommend The Deathsniffer’s Assistant to all fantasy and mystery fans out there. It’s a smart, creative, well-written and well-thought murder mystery, with fascinating characters, good writing with the due amount of humor to lighten the literally bloody atmosphere – lol. A series I will undoubtedly follow in the future, as I will Kate McIntyre’s future work. Big, big like!

This was an enjoyable book. I’m a sucker for steampunk. It has a murder mystery, magic, a historical event that continues to haunt the main character, and several good female characters. Everyone has some sort of magic, and your job is dependent on what kind of magic you have. Christopher, the main character, takes a job as a magical note taker (he thinks the words, and they show up on paper) with Olivia, the deathsniffer, who solves murders. All the while, Chris has to try and protect his sister who is a wizard from getting taken by the state (more or less) since she is so powerful. This is another one that focuses on the characters, changes in prejudices and just how far people will go for power.

The Deathsniffer's Assistant is an intriguing story built around a late Victorian/early Edwardian type of society. What we have really are two stories woven around one young man POV: a Sherlock Holmes murder mystery and an alternate universe urban fantasy in which elementals can be magically enslaved. The world building is superb and the split focus makes for a robust read.

Story: Young aristocrat Christopher lost his parents when air elementals mysteriously unbound, causing a revolutionary floating palace to fall to the ground. Now, years later, he protects a young sister whose unusually strong wizard skills would make her a target to be used and abused - all the while trying to keep financially afloat. With funds drying up, he uses his wordweaving talent to take a job as a secretary/assistant to a Deathsniffer - a detective. As he becomes embroiled in a case of a Duchess with a dead husband, his fragile balance of protecting his sister yet also earning enough income to keep them safe will become perilously endangered. For the Deathsniffer is a force unto herself and his sister doesn't want to be hidden any longer.

Despite the proliferation of Holmesian type novels lately, this one avoids the boring "eccentric paired with grounded logical individual" archetype. Deathsniffer Farraday is quirky but also firmly grounded in reality (perhaps even more so than Christopher himself). Chris, meanwhile, is juggling so many responsibilities the he no longer has time for any of the obvious. It makes him a sympathetic character and also adds needed depth and dimension. Watson was, after all, always eclipsed by Holmes but that isn't the case here. The result is some sharp and witty dialogue, more trenchant insight than humorous anecdotes

Because this is a fantasy (or perhaps an alternate universe), world building is so important. I greatly appreciated the little details - from fire emanating salamanders to distinctive job titles linked to 'magic' abilities - word weaver for writer, truth seeker for policeman, life knitter for doctors, etc. The were many clever choices made in the writing of this book.

The mystery to be solved had many surprising turns leading to a satisfying conclusion. Tantalizing hints are also given that Christopher is more than he realizes - and has a past that he, as an unreliable narrator, is clearly not aware of at this time. Those hints make me hope the next volume in the series is soon forthcoming. In all, a very enjoyable read of a solid urban fantasy/mystery. Reviewed from an advance reader copy provided by the publisher.

This was a fun read. I do not read a lot of fantasy with dystopian worlds but the murder investigation idea caught my attention. The story reads like Victorian London with some weird creatures and different names. The categorization was a fun aspect making it a game to try and guess a profession for a person based on the name of his category.
Christopher was an interesting character. It was obvious he grew up wealthy and seems to be good looking but struggling. There are financial problems and the taking care of his sister in the best way possible makes him insecure and nervous. I did like that despite his will to make the world good for his little sister he did not get to lost in being righteous.
Though Olivia is great fun to read about I had as much trouble understanding her as Christopher did. She is a very dominant character and I am not sure I enjoyed it. I would have like to know more about other interesting characters like Rosemary and William.

a clever and original steampunk adventure

This book was intensely entertaining. Olivia is a fantastic character, and Chris was a great counterpart to her brazen personality. There was a great balance between them, I got a very "Sherlock and Watson" vibe from them. (Olivia being Sherlock and Chris clearly being Watson)

The magic element to the story was nice, and it fit in rather well, with out over shadowing everything else in the book, The steampunk elements were also really nicely placed. There was also a great balance between the magic and science.

There are many great things about this book, one being Chris's determination in keeping his sister safe, and her power hidden as long as possible. But that is put at risk when Rose saves the lives of a large number of people in public granting them national attention. But he remains vigilant to keep her safe.

I really look forward to reading the sequel.

Thank you Net Galley. A wonderful read, that strikes the right balance between fantasy and mystery. The historical setting enhances the story.
the protagonists keep you engaged with the story throughout. The writing is polished and it is hard to believe this is the author's first book. I am looking forward to more books in the series.

To sum The Deathsniffer's Assistant in one word - phenomenal.

The world of the Deathsniffer's Assistant resembles 1900s London, but is powered by captive elementals, rather than gas and steam. Apart from the Old Blood, the nobility, everyone is characterized by their magical ability. Their categorization defines their lives, their work and their future.

After the spectacular destruction of the Floating Castle, which killed Christopher Buckley's parents, he has struggled to make ends meet and care for his younger sister Rosemary. His categorization as a wordweaver means only the most menial of clerical jobs is available to him. Desperate, he leaps at the opportunity to work as Olivia Faraday's assistant. As a Deathsniffer, she investigates murders. Immediately he is thrust into the murder of Duke Viktor Val Daren. His wife, the Duchess is hiding something, but is she a killer? Is his murder politically motivated, or is the motive more basic? More bodies follow, and Christopher struggles to assist Olivia. Meanwhile his sister's talent for wizardry comes to the attention of those who would gladly misuse her abilities. Her talents make her a valuable pawn both for the established order and the reformists who fight against categorization and the current social structure.

One aspect of the novel I enjoyed was that while narrated by Christopher, he was surrounded by strong female characters. Both Olivia and her police liaison Maris are confident in their abilities and determined to enact justice, despite the vast differences in their personalities. While the categorization system is effectively a caste system, men and women are viewed as equals. Olivia is fascinating, with her manic personality, quick wit, and unique fashion sense. It is easy to see how working with her will help Christopher develop confidence in his own abilities.

The Deathsniffer's Assistant is a standalone novel, but it is hopefully only the first of many adventures featuring Olivia Faraday and Christopher Buckley. After reading The Deathaniffer's Assistant, I want to learn more about their world and its magic. Kate McIntyre is definitely an author to watch. I highly recommend this novel to anyone who enjoys fantasy and mystery.

5/5

I received a copy of The Deathsniffer's Assistant from the publisher and netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review.

--Crittermom

The Deathsniffer's Assistant is a phenomenal fantasy mystery http://muttcafe.com/2015/09/the-Deathsniffers-assistant/
9/14/15

An Outstanding Debut!...I have a weakness for books with cool settings so when I read the preview for The Deathsniffer's Assistant and it said it had a 'unique pseudo-Edwardian setting' with floating castles, I knew I just had to read this book.  I'm glad I did because it was fantastic! I was immediately drawn to the pseudo-Edwardian world. It's a combination of fantasy, steampunk and a lot of magic. Everyone is tested and categorized by their special abilities when they come of age. Olivia Faraday, the main character, is categorized as a Deathsniffer, which is basically someone who investigates suspicious deaths but she has also has some magical abilities which aid her in her investigations. Her assistant, Christopher Buckley, is a Wordweaver, which is someone who takes notes through thinking only. There are a number of other complex categorizations and magical abilities and there are also a number of elementals that power the city's water, electricity,  lights and mirrors etc. The whole world was so creative and magical! You can really tell a lot of work went into the world building and the characters too. I really liked Olivia. She doesn't just like her job, she loves it and she literally enjoys getting a new death to investigate. She likes to do and say whatever she wants whereas her assistant Christopher, is the exact opposite. He is prim and proper and likes to follow all the rules. I think their different personalities is what makes them so good together. My only problem with the book was that I found a lot of spelling and grammatical errors throughout so those really need to be fixed but other then that it was a really great debut! If you enjoy fantasy, steampunk or even mysteries you should definitely check this one out. It looks like it's the start of a series, which is wonderful because it's already on my favorites list. I can't wait to read book #2!

This is another book that I received from NetGalley, published by Curiosity Quills Press. I admit, I was intrigued by the title of the book and the whole reason I requested it was so I could figure out what a “Deathsniffer” was. I found out in short order what that ominous title meant and how it fit into the scope of the story.

The story itself was a complex and gruesome murder mystery layered in with Christopher Buckley’s personal troubles. You see, Mr. Buckley is the guardian of his younger sister Rosemary, who happens to be a powerful spiritbinder. Spiritbinders (or wizards) are a hot commodity because the foundations of society depend upon them to keep functioning (lighting, plumbing, infrastructure) and binding wizards are becoming extremely rare. Christopher is having a really difficult time because he’s broke and Rosemary keeps getting into situations where her rare power is shown to the public. In order to keep them financially afloat, he takes a job as an assistant to the Deathsniffer, Olivia Faraday who is just a little crazy, but also really good at finding murderers. Ms. Faraday gets put on a dreadful case involving a noble family that just keeps getting more and more horrific and complicated as the story goes along. Her bright, eccentric personality and tenacity made Olivia Faraday my favorite out of all the characters.

The crime solving part of the book was my favorite part because it was incredibly well done. I had guesses about who committed the crime and their motives behind it, but at the beginning I was very wrong. About halfway through I had another hunch, and in the end I was right about it but I was very surprised about the motive and the exact method of the crime. I was happy to have placed my suspicions correctly, but it was really awesome to have been unaware of so many other factors and have that big surprise at the end.

The society and the politics of the story world were both dynamic and magical. The spirits that power so much of the cities were reminiscent of the furies in Jim Butcher’s Codex of Alera series. The elemental aspect was a clear parallel, but in most other respects they were vastly different. The society was clearly written in a way that suggested great changed were in the making and the two political factions were creating upheaval. At first, I thought that the politics was unnecessary and used for filler, but as the plot progressed, it became apparent that it was actually there for a reason.

All in all, the Deathsniffer’s Assistant was a fun and different read that kept me guessing throughout. I would love to see fan art of the characters and the elementals because they were written beautifully and deserve to be made into art.

** Unable to formally review this book, as it released nearly two months ago, but will read and publish review of the next book in the series.

4.5 Star debut. After their family inheritance begins to run dry; a young man, Christopher, is forced to find a job to raise his younger sister and keep his family home intact. After losing their parents when the Floating Castle they were in crashed, Chris was forced to take on the job of raising his sister. In Tarland, every citizen is categorized by their power once they turn eighteen. Chris had his hopes destroyed when he found his categorization was as a lowly wordweaver; with little chance to earn a decent enough salary to support them. His sister, however, has a powerful gift that Chris attempts to hide from their leaders; who would have her taken away from him. for their own uses.

Christopher eventually finds employment with a mysterious and eccentric Deathsniffer; a type of Private Investigator in Tarland. His often unsettling interactions with Olivia make the story a compelling read. Olivia and Chris initially rub each other the wrong way; and don't particularly understand each other.. Chris doesn't have a lot of respect for what Olivia (as a female) does for a living. We see them change and grow as the book progresses, though it is not easy for either of them. Both are rather strong-willed individuals; and the characters show a great deal of depth..

Intriguing read, and I’m looking forward to seeing what happens next for the Deathsniffer and her sidekick Chris. THE DEATHSNIFFER’S ASSISTANT is author Kate McIntyre’s debut effort; and the first book in her “Faraday Files” series.