The Eterna Files--The Eterna Files #1

December 8, 2014
Hieber (The Double Life of Incorporate Things) kicks off her new Victorian fantasy series with this atmospheric but unfocused cloak-and-dagger affair in which rival agencies search for the cure to death. Following the unfortunate demise of an American team researching the so-called Eterna Compound, which promises immortality, teams from both sides of the Atlantic engage in ethereal espionage and spectral skullduggery. Representing America: psychic Clara Templeton, instrumental in the project’s origins. For England: police officer Harold Spire, newly appointed director of Special Branch: Division Omega. There’s also a motley crew of spies, mediums, and scholars. But as both teams track down leads, a gruesomely ruthless third faction seems ready to beat them to the prize. Hieber takes a leisurely approach to the story: neither primary group ever encounters the other, and a diagram is needed to keep the sprawling cast organized. This initial entry is mostly set-up, leading to a frustrating cliffhanger with very little resolved or explained, but Hieber has a knack for creating authentic Victorian atmosphere and colorful personalities that will keep readers coming back for more. Agent: Nicholas Roman Lewis, The Roman Group

December 1, 2014

Rival teams in Victorian-era London and New York are searching for the secret to eternal life. In London, Harold Spire has been plucked from the police force to lead a new team after the last group disappeared without a trace. He works with Rose Everheart, a researcher more open to the possibility that supernatural forces exist in the world. In America, Clara Templeton drove the U.S. hunt for the eterna compound after the assassination of Abraham Lincoln and hopes to use her ability to see spirits to help the cause. VERDICT Hieber (Strangely Beautiful) has a good feel for her time period, and the premise of Victorian spies certainly has appeal. But as is always a danger when running parallel story lines, the author fails to make the characters stand out enough from each other or the story compelling enough to keep the plights of the American and British teams from blurring together.

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