**You can see this full review and more at Book Briefs: https://bookbriefs.net**The Daemoniac is the first book in the Dominion Mystery series by Kat Ross. Earlier this year I read The Midnight Sea by Kat and I really enjoyed it. It was more of a high fantasy action adventure. This book felt completely different and I really liked this one too. Kat Ross is a very talented author. I am very happy that both of the books I have read by her have been so diverse and so excellent in their own regard.

The Daemoniac is a young adult detective mystery story with a flair of the paranormal. It felt like the anime Ghost Hunt (which I am super upset is no longer on Netflix! Why does Netflix keep taking all the good shows off? But I digress, that is a rant for another day.) mixed with the Jackaby series by William Ritter, and a touch of Penny Dreadful. I loved the atmospheric setting paired with all of the paranormal elements. I can't wait to read more in the Dominion Mystery series. I think it might be my favorite series yet by Kat Ross. It takes place in the late 1800s and 19 year old Harry is Author Conan Doyle's neice, and she paired with her friend John, are a detective duo I loved reading about. I am really on a sherlock type story kick and The Daemoniac really hit the spot.

I never know what is toot little or too much to divulge in reviews of mystery books, so I will leave the plot out of it and stick to some general highlights of the story. I loved how the story unfolded. I thought Kat Ross did an excellent job laying clues out, but at the same time making this one feel like a dark adventure. But my favorite of all is the setting. I felt like we were on the dreary streets of London in 1888, with the fear of Jack the Ripper looming and the people didn't even know about it. It was very well done. I was instantly transported to that time. There are a lot of characters to keep up with. Maybe a tad too many, however I feel like they will mostly be reoccurring characters, which will make it easier to keep track the more we see them. At times, I did wish we could strip out some of the superfluous secondary characters and focus more on just Harry and John.

Bottom line: The Daemoniac is a great read. Perfect for fans of the Jackaby series and of the Netflix tv show Penny Dreadful. I really enjoyed the ride this mystery took me on. Read it in the fall for a great atmospheric mystery.

This review was originally posted on Book Briefs