Reviewed by Larissa
TITLE: The Gangster
SERIES: Magic & Steam, Book 2
AUTHOR: C.S. Poe
NARRATOR: Declan Winters
PUBLISHER: Emporium Press
LENGTH: 7 hours and 3 minutes
RELEASE DATE: March 4, 2021
BLURB:
1881 – Special Agent Gillian Hamilton, magic caster for the Federal Bureau of Magic and Steam, has recovered from injuries obtained while in Shallow Grave, Arizona. Now back in New York City, Gillian makes an arrest on New Year’s Eve that leads to information on a gangster, known only as Tick Tock, who’s perfected utilizing elemental magic ammunition. This report complicates Gillian’s holiday plans, specifically those with infamous outlaw, Gunner the Deadly, who promised they’d ring in 1882 together.
The two men stand on the cusp of a romance that needs to be explored intimately and privately. But when Gillian’s residence is broken into by a magical mechanical man who tries to murder him on behalf of Tick Tock, he and Gunner must immediately investigate the city’s ruthless street gangs before the illegal magic becomes a threat that cannot be contained.
This might be their most wild adventure yet, but criminal undergrounds can’t compare to the dangers of the heart. Gillian must balance his career in law enforcement with his love for a vigilante, or lose both entirely.
The novel-length follow-up to The Engineer, in the exciting new steampunk series, Magic & Steam.
REVIEW:
C.S. Poe’s originality and crisp, descriptive writing continue to shine in The Gangster, the second installment in her creative and absorbing Magic & Steam series. This series contains a continuing storyline centered around one couple, Special Agent Gillian Hamilton of the Federal Bureau of Magic and Steam and Gunner the Deadly, an outlaw who sits atop the feds’ Most Wanted List despite his vigilantism doing more good for the world than bad. As such, you should read these books in order. Start with the novella, The Engineer, which lays the groundwork and provides the story of how Gillian and Gunner meet, and how their relationship progresses to where we meet them at the beginning of The Gangster on New Year’s Eve in 1880s New York.
Poe also brings back Declan Winters as the narrator for the audiobook of The Gangster, a no-brainer choice really, especially in light of his excellent performance on the first audiobook of The Engineer. In both books one and two, Poe drops us right into the middle of the action when the stories open, which is always a bit jarring but also engaging for the reader. However, it’s not an easy task for a narrator because they aren’t given room to ease into their character portrayals. Winters doesn’t let that hinder him, though. He’s in touch with Gillian and Gunner’s characters and intuitively knows how they’d act even in fast-moving action scenarios without any lead-in.
Winters also clearly visualizes Poe’s exceptional world-building, with its intricate, vivid imagery that brings the steampunk universe of an alternate reality New York to life in a realistic, plausible way. This is despite the anachronistic use of modern technology powered by a throwback energy source – steam. Winters brings this world to life, allowing us not just to see, but experience the desolation of a New Year’s Eve snowfall, the bustle of NYC public transportation, the dark, gritty, ugliness of the gangster underworld, and the otherworldly magic that swirls all around but can only be seen and accessed by magic wielders like Gillian, an atypical, level five caster.
The Gangster shifts focus from the mad-scientist Tinkerer, Milo Ferguson, to an eponymous gangster called Tick Tock who has somehow managed to wrangle illegal magic and bind it to tangible objects – like the bullets the Tinkerer used, and even people, like the magical mechanical man who attacks Gillian in his home. This development is alarming and has the potential for catastrophe, so Gillian and Gunner take on the dregs of the criminal underworld to try to stop it before things get out of hand.
Speaking of getting out of hand, Gillian confronts his conflicting feelings about the priorities in his life – his career and his love for Gunner. Gillian is an isolated, lonely, closed-off man – by necessity – and has cloaked himself in lies in order to survive. Letting Gunner in and allowing Gunner to give him affection and physical comfort, tilts Gillian’s world on its axis. Despite his atypically strong magical powers, Gillian has a low self-image and despondency that has at times almost driven him to give up on life. His boss, Moore, has kept him tethered through his kindness, respect, and professional support. But when that relationship comes head-to-head with Gillian’s relationship with Gunner, things start to quickly spiral out of control on a personal front as well as a professional one.
The Gangster is best enjoyed without much pre-knowledge because Poe has designed it with carefully constructed plot development and deftly timed reveals that will keep you riveted to the storyline. The end of this book contains a bombshell and an ensuing doozy of a cliffhanger. Luckily, the next audiobook for The Doctor is available. If I had to wait for the resolution of this book, I’d have lost my mind.
Winters is a boon to this already excellent story, infusing it with life and energy. His intuitive, skilled delivery with apropos pacing, clear diction, and consistent characterizations across the narrative make this audiobook an accessible, engrossing listen. He taps into Gunner’s character seamlessly. In The Engineer, he seems to be finding his way with Gunner, but here, he’s settled in nicely, giving Gunner a gruff, low, almost growly timbre with a steady, sometimes uninflected delivery that perfectly matches Gunner’s pithy statements laced with extreme self-confidence.
Meanwhile, Winters’ inhabits Gillian, the sole narrator, with depth and complexity, capturing his vulnerability and distress, which runs alongside his confidence in his magical abilities and desire to do good. It creates a conflicted character portrayal where Gillian wants but isn’t sure he deserves love and affection, and wants to do good but cloaks himself in guilt about his deception. Winters gets that and we hear it in his vocal performance.
The Gangster is a superb audiobook with a gripping story and nuanced storytelling by both Poe and Winters. I highly recommend it. Now, I’m moving on to The Doctor asap, because I cannot wait to see what happens next for Gillian and Gunner.
RATING: 
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