Vampires, Cannibals and Steampunk in Revenge and the Wild by M. Modesto

Author: Michelle Modesto

Series: Standalone

Released: February 2nd 2016

Publisher: Balzer & Bray

Length: 384 pages

Source: Publisher for review

Buy: Amazon

The two-bit town of Rogue City is a lawless place, full of dark magic and saloon brawls, monsters and six-shooters. But it’s perfect for seventeen-year-old Westie, the notorious adopted daughter of local inventor Nigel Butler.

Westie was only a child when she lost her arm and her family to cannibals on the wagon trail. Nine years later, Westie may seem fearsome with her foul-mouthed tough exterior and the powerful mechanical arm built for her by Nigel, but the memory of her past still haunts her. She’s determined to make the killers pay for their crimes—and there’s nothing to stop her except her own reckless ways.

But Westie’s search ceases when a wealthy family comes to town looking to invest in Nigel’s latest invention, a machine that can harvest magic from gold—which Rogue City desperately needs as the magic wards that surround the city start to fail. There’s only one problem: the investors look exactly like the family who murdered Westie’s kin. With the help of Nigel’s handsome but scarred young assistant, Alistair, Westie sets out to prove their guilt. But if she’s not careful, her desire for revenge could cost her the family she has now.

This thrilling novel is a remarkable tale of danger and discovery, from debut author Michelle Modesto. 

The first thing you need to know if and when you decide to read Revenge and the Wild is that it will be the most fun you’ll have in ages. Entertainment is pretty much guaranteed, regardless of your usual reading preferences. For a book that refuses to be labeled or in any way categorized, Revenge and the Wild is pretty universally lovable. I challenge you to be grumpy while reading it.

Review: A Study in Silks

Author: Emma Jane Holloway

Series: Baskerville Affair, #1

Released: September 24th 2013

Publisher: Del Rey

Length: 531 pages

Source: Publisher for review

Buy: Amazon

London, April 4, 1888 ~ Evelina Cooper, niece of Sherlock Holmes, is ready for her first London Season - except for a murderer, missing automatons, a sorcerer, and a talking mouse. In a Victorian era ruled by a ruthless steam baron council, mechanical power is the real monarch, and sorcery the demon enemy of the empire. Evelina has secretly mastered a coveted weapon - magic that can run machines. Should she trust the handsome, clever rake who speeds her breath, or the dashing trick rider who would dare anything she would ask?

The story revolves around Evelina Cooper, Sherlock Holmes’s niece. With her rather unusual upbringing (she grew up in a circus, no less), Evelina doesn’t fit in with London’s high society. Her interest in various steam-powered trinkets and her penchant for magic only make things worse. However, as an outsider with inside connections, she is uniquely qualified to solve mysteries, even though no one else seems to think so.

Review: Imprudence

Author: Gail Carriger

Series: Custard Protocol, #2

Released: July 19th 2016

Publisher: Orbit

Length: 354 pages

Source: Publisher for review

Buy: The Book Depository

London is in chaos.

Rue and the crew of The Spotted Custard returned from India with revelations that shook the foundations of the scientific community. There is mass political upheaval, the vampires are tetchy, and something is seriously wrong with the local werewolf pack. To top it all off, Rue’s best friend Primrose keeps getting engaged to the most inappropriate military types.

Rue has got personal problems as well. Her vampire father is angry, her werewolf father is crazy, and her obstreperous mother is both. Worst of all, Rue’s beginning to suspect what they all really are… is frightened.

When the Custard is ordered to Egypt, transporting some highly unusual passengers, Rue’s problems go from personal to impossible. Can she get Percy to stop sulking? Will she find the true cause of Primrose’s lovesickness? And what is Quesnel hiding in the boiler room?

Unforgettable adventures, an excellent fashion sense and ridiculous endearments helped Carriger’s books become the huge success they are today. Although she never strays away from her well established world, she always finds some way to keep it fresh and endlessly entertaining. Imprudence is perhaps the richest, most enjoyable example of her work after her debut, a book strong enough to pull in new fans, as well as satisfy the old ones.

Review: Manners & Mutiny

Author:Gail Carriger
Series: Finishing School, #4
Released: November 3rd 2015
Publisher: Atom
Length: 328 pages
Source: Publisher for review
Buy: The Book Depository

Lessons in the art of espionage aboard Mademoiselle Geraldine’s floating dirigible have become tedious without Sophronia’s sweet sootie Soap nearby. She would much rather be using her skills to thwart the dastardly Picklemen, yet her concerns about their wicked intentions are ignored, and now she’s not sure whom to trust. What does the brusque werewolf dewan know? On whose side is the ever-stylish vampire Lord Akeldama? Only one thing is certain: a large-scale plot is under way, and when it comes to fruition, Sophronia must be ready to save her friends, her school, and all of London from disaster—in decidedly dramatic fashion, of course.

What will become of our proper young heroine when she puts her years of training to the test? Find out in this highly anticipated and thrilling conclusion to the New York Times bestselling Finishing School series!

It is with a heavy heart that I say goodbye to Gail Carriger’s Finishing School series, albeit knowing without a doubt that this wonderful author will give us so much more to enjoy.

It was very easy to fall in love with these characters and their quirks yet again. Each of them is a small work of art, an unforgettable combination of oddities and personality traits. Sophoronia in particular is very easy to love, and so very competent to boot! I loved her in this book more than I ever loved her before. As silly as this series was most times (and really, silliness is what Carriger does best), we’ve still seen Sophoronia grow up to become a skilled, self-assured young woman. No more than a mischievous girl when we first met her, we’re leaving her as someone else entirely, a highly trained, sophisticated girl, but still with that familiar devil-may-care attitude.

Review: Prudence

Author: Gail Carriger
Series: The Custard Protocol
Released: March 19th 2015
Publisher: Orbit
Length: 343 pages
Source: Publisher for review
Buy: The Book Depository

ON BEHALF OF QUEEN, COUNTRY . . . AND THE PERFECT POT OF TEA.

When Prudence Alessandra Maccon Akeldama (Rue to her friends) is given an unexpected dirigible, she does what any sensible female would under similar circumstances - names it the Spotted Crumpet and floats to India in pursuit of the perfect cup of tea.

But India has more than just tea on offer. Rue stumbles upon a plot involving local dissidents, a kidnapped brigadier's wife, and some awfully familiar Scottish werewolves. Faced with a dire crisis and an embarrassing lack of bloomers, what else is a young lady of good breeding to do but turn metanatural and find out everyone's secrets, even thousand-year-old fuzzy ones? 

Fans of Gail Carriger, do you remember that spark of delightful, outrageous humor that was there in Soulless, but seemed to have all but disappeared in later books? It was probably somewhere collecting interest because it’s back in full force in Prudence. This is Carriger’s best work since her debut, it’s fresh, full of adventure and has just enough romance to keep us glued to our reading chairs.

Review: Waistcoats & Weaponry

Author: Gail Carriger
Series: Finishing School, #3
Released: November 4th 2014
Publisher: Atom
Length: 304 pages
Source: Publisher for review
Buy: The Book Depository

Sophronia continues second year finishing school in style -- with a steel-bladed fan secreted in the folds of her ball gown. She, best friend Dimity, sweet sootie Soap, and charming Lord Felix Mersey stow away on train to return classmate Sidheag to her werewolf pack in Scotland. No one suspects what or who would be aboard the suspiciously empty train.

Fortunately for us, Gail Carriger’s sense of humor seems to be as strong and sharp as ever as she keeps providing us with endless entertainment in this well-developed world. Waltzing with a bladed fan and using longing looks to seduce unsuspecting young evil geniuses are just some of the things our Sophronia has become quite skilled at in her years at Mademoiselle Geraldine’s Finishing Academy for Young Ladies of Quality.

Review: Sally Slick and the Steel Syndicate

Author: Carrie Harris
Series: Yes
Published: December 3rd 2013
Publisher: Evil Hat Productions
Format: Paperback, 200 pages
Source: Author for review
Buy: The Book Depository

Every hero has a story. This one starts with a girl and a racing tractor. Sally Slick knows she's meant to be more than a Midwestern farm girl. What she wants more than anything is to be an inventor when she grows up-and she has the custom-built racing tractor to prove it. But good girls in 1914 don't go off to the city in search of adventure. Everything changes when Sally's big brother comes back from Chicago with a robot in hand and mobsters on his heels. With the help of her friend, wannabe hero Jet Black, Sally will risk everything to protect the people she loves. Those big-city bad guys are about to get a giant wrench thrown right into their plans.

If I were to get stranded on a desert island and allowed to pick just one person for company, Carrie Harris would be at the top of my list. Perhaps we’d starve in a matter of weeks (FINE, days!), but we’d at least go down laughing.

Carrie’s foray into Middle Grade fiction couldn’t have been more successful if she tried, and I get the distinct feeling that this lady doesn’t need to try very hard. That’s the real beauty of her prose – her sense of humor, utterly ridiculous as it may be, seems effortless and smooth, never the least bit forced. She did, admittedly, keep it a bit in check, this being an MG novel and all, but her lovely nature still shines from every page.

Middle Grade fiction or not, Sally Slick is Harris’s most mature work to date. A more careful reader will be rewarded by the strong feminist undertones that permeate every page. Sally refuses to live by the social norms, even though she lives in rural America in 1914 and she’s only 14-years old. She wants to be an inventor, not a housewife, and she wants to race tractors with her brothers instead of spending time in the kitchen with her mother.

In Sally Slick and the Steel Syndicate, Sally and her best friend Jet take on bullies, mobsters, the Steel Syndicate, and, worst of all, older brothers. They are resourceful and smart and they always stand up for themselves. Sally is unflinchingly loyal and she relentlessly defends those she loves.

But of course, Sally is not the only shining star of this book. There is also her best friend Jet, a clumsy, awkward, geeky kid, a follower by nature, but one with a lion’s heart. It is virtually impossible not to fall in love with this kid and wish to adopt him. Geeky and awkward or not, he has a spectacular future ahead of him.

Read this book. Share it with your daughters, nieces, and really, women of any age. When you’re done, share it with the boys as well, they have a lot to learn from it. And while you’re at it, read it out loud to your family pets. Every living creature in this world should meet Sally and Jet.

A copy of this book was kindly provided by the author for review purposes. No considerations, monetary or otherwise, have influenced the opinions expressed in this review.

Audiobook Review: Heart of Iron (London Steampunk, #2)

Author: Bec McMaster
Narrator: Alison Larkin
Series: London Steampunk, #2
Released: June 3rd 2013
Publisher: Tantor Media
Lenght: 11 hrs and 32 mins
Buy: Audible

Lena Todd is the perfect spy. Nobody suspects the flirtatious debutante could be a rebel against London's vicious elite—not even the ruthless Will Carver, the one man she can't twist around her little finger.

Will Carver is more than man; he's a verwolfen, and he wants nothing to do with the dangerous beauty who drives him to the very edge of control. But when he finds Lena in possession of a coded letter, he realizes she's in a world of trouble. To protect her, he'll have to seduce the truth from her before it's too late.

When you read as much as I do, the words ‘consistently mediocre’ are nothing to frown upon. After all the ups and downs I go through with my other reads, it’s nice to pick up something and know exactly what I’ll be getting.

If nothing else, Heart of Iron is significantly closer to the actual steampunk genre than its predecessor. Through Lena, a skilled maker of clockwork toys, some steampunk elements were introduced that simply weren’t present in Honoria and Blade’s story. It’s still a far cry from real steampunk novels, but at least this time, I didn’t feel cheated.

This book is also more tightly plotted than Kiss of Steel. The humanist movement is looking to destroy the Echelon, and Lena, hunted and hurt by the Blue Bloods, decides to join them and spy for them from within. Through a series of events and manipulations, she and Will end up on opposing sides, but neither of them realizes it, although Will strongly suspects. Creating characters too headstrong and proud to communicate seems to be McMaster’s preferred way of building romantic tension. Lena and Will shared so little with each other when at least part of their problems could have been avoided with a simple open conversation. This is why I tend to avoid romance and it’s precisely what bothered me in the first installment. While Lena was slightly less difficult than her sister Honoria, she still made a mess of everything she touched.

I must say that McMaster took some very unexpected turns in Heart of Iron, things I did not see coming at all. One doesn’t expect surprises from paranormal historical romance, but after putting her characters in an impossible situation, she chose a way out I simply didn’t predict. In the end, her solution worked perfectly, and so did the unexpected, jay-dropping surprise.

Once again, Alison Larkin’s narration is nothing to write home about. She does a fairly decent job with Will and Lena (and of course, Blade and Honoria) but she still has the habit of making all the secondary characters sound horribly nasal. She could have done a better job with the sex scenes as well, but overall, her performance is good enough.

I will, of course, continue this series. The next book is about Jasper Lynch, leader of the Echelon’s Nighthawks, and Rosalind from the humanist movement. I only hope the two of them will start talking to each other openly before I pull all my hair out.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

Review: The Falconer (The Falconer, #1)

Author: Elizabeth May
Series: The Falconer, #1
Published: September 26th 2013
Publisher: Gollancz
Format: Hardcover, 312 pages
Buy: The Book Depository

One girl's nightmare is this girl's faery tale.

She's a stunner.

Edinburgh, 1844. Eighteen-year-old Lady Aileana Kameron, the only daughter of the Marquess of Douglas, has everything a girl could dream of: brains, charm, wealth, a title — and drop-dead beauty.

She's a liar.

But Aileana only looks the part of an aristocratic young lady. She's leading a double life: She has the rare ability to sense the sìthichean — the faery race obsessed with slaughtering humans — and, with the aid of a mysterious mentor, has spent the year since her mother died learning how to kill them.

She's a murderer.

Now Aileana is dedicated to slaying the fae before they take innocent lives. With her abilities and her knack for inventing ingenious tools and weapons — from flying machines to detonators to lightning pistols — ruthless Aileana has one goal: Destroy the faery who destroyed her mother.

She's a Falconer.

The last in a line of female warriors born with the gift for hunting and killing the fae, Aileana is the sole hope of preventing a powerful faery population from massacring all of humanity. Suddenly, her quest is a lot more complicated. She still longs to avenge her mother's murder — but she'll have to save the world first.

By now, everyone in the world knows that I’m terrified of faeries. I dislike seeing them romanticized; I’d much rather have them portrayed as the deceptive, vicious creatures they are. In The Falconer by Elizabeth May, though, there’s a little bit of both, and that, as it turns out, is a perfect combination for someone like me.

We join Aileana not at the traumatic event that caused her to start killing faeries, but a year later, when she’s already met Kiaran MacKay, the faery who molded her into a fighter. It’s clear from the start that Aileana is no ordinary Victorian society girl, even though she once used to be.

There is a perfect balance of light and darkness in Kiaran MacKay. He talks little of his past, his thousands of years of existence, but when he does, it’s difficult to reconcile the monster he describes with the hero we quickly grow to love. The same balance is reflected in Aileana, albeit more moderately. While it’s true that hunting faeries saves people’s life, Aileana is driven by her overwhelming need for vengeance, not by altruism. It is, however, impossible not to sympathize with her – having seen her mother brutally murdered by a faery, Aileana is forever changed.

May paints for us a very detailed picture of Edinburgh in mid 19th century, each sentence showing the amount of research that went into The Falconer and her familiarity with the setting. She also shows, rather accurately, how stiff and uncompromising the society was, especially towards women. ‘Duty first’ is the rule by which all women lived.

May does a wonderful job with the fae language as well. She rarely offers translations or explanations, but it certainly looks authentic enough and gives Kiaran and Derrick an extra layer of otherworldliness, a much needed reminder when we run the risk of seeing them as too human.

The cliffhanger, however, successfully ruined what was otherwise a fabulous reading experience. There is no resolution whatsoever, and we’re left with very little hope for Aileana and Kiaran. Secondary characters are also left with no closure, sent on errands and practically abandoned mid-flight.

Nevertheless, The Falconer is at the very least an original, beautifully written novel worthy of attention. If you are a patient sort, perhaps wait until book two is released. If not, you’ll just have to suffer with the rest of us.

Review: Curtsies & Conspiracies (Finishing School, #2)

Author: Gail Carriger
Series: Finishing School, #2
Released: November 5th 2013
Publisher: Atom
Format: Paperback, 310 pgs
Source: Publisher for review
Buy: The Book Depository

Does one need four fully-grown foxgloves for decorating a dinner table for six guests? Or is it six foxgloves to kill four fully-grown guests? Sophronia's first year at school has certainly been rousing. First, her finishing school is training her to be a spy (won't Mumsy be surprised!). Secondly, she gets mixed up in an intrigue over a stolen device and has a cheese pie thrown at her. Now, as Sophronia sneaks around the dirigible school, eavesdropping on the teachers' quarters and making clandestine climbs to the ship's boiler room, she learns that there may be more to a school trip to London than at first appears ...

Vampires, werewolves, and humans are all after the prototype Sophronia recovered in Etiquette & Espionage, which has the potential to alter human and supernatural travel. Sophronia must try to uncover who is behind a dangerous plot to control the prototype ... as well as survive the London season with a full dance card.

It would appear that Gail Carriger gets even more bold and hilarious with each new book she writes. Curtsies & Conspiracies is her most enjoyable work since Soulless, her debut, and it is by far the most outrageous and ridiculous thing I’ve read in a very long time.

By far the best thing about Carriger’s books is the language. As a non native speaker, I get to learn so many phrases and expressions, most of them outdated, but endlessly entertaining. In terms of language use in steampunk, Gail Carriger is, I dare say, the best.

It is impossible not to admire Sophronia for her ability to keep a tight rein on so many things at once. I wasn’t particularly fond of her the last time around, but this time she proved to be quite admirable. She was always a step ahead of everyone else, even when her peers resented her for it. If there’s one thing I appreciate above all, it’s an intelligent, self-assured heroine, and Gail Carriger’s always are.

A slight love triangle is forming around Sophronia. The unsuitable boy we all know and love is still very much a part of her everyday life, but another boy has entered the picture as well, one of much higher social standing. However, Sophronia is so focused on various conspiracies and blissfully unaware of it all that it’s impossible to blame her for putting herself in such a potentially painful situation. I, of course, am rooting for the underdog, but I don’t see how that could possibly work out.

Sophronia had no idea why Felix was so intent upon her. She had not yet received lessons in seduction, or she might have understood the appeal of sharp confidence, a topping figure, and green eyes. All Sophronia’s intellect was directed at something other than attracting male companionship. These things combined to make her particularly appealing to gentlemen. Soap could have told her that.

Carriger continues to ridicule high society, their endless rules and norms, things they find offensive and embarrassing. It is a constant source of humor with sharp and intelligent criticism underneath. In this too, she is unparalleled.

Revisiting Miss Geraldine’s Finishing Academy for Young Ladies of Quality in Curtsies & Conspiracies was such an enormous delight, I find myself impatient to meet with everyone again. The third book is titled Waistcoats and Weaponry and scheduled for release in 2014.

A copy of this book was kindly provided by the publisher for review purposes. No considerations, monetary or otherwise, have influenced the opinions expressed in this review.

Bronze Gods Blog Tour and Giveaway

Today we are celebrating the release of Bronze Gods, a magnificent new steampunk noir adventure by Ann and Andres Aguirre. I adored Bronze Gods both the first and the second time I'd read it (you can read my very enthusiastic review here), and hosting this blog tour is something I've been excited about for ages. Here's something about the book first:

Author: A.A. Aguirre
Series: Apparatus Infernum, #1
Release date: April 30th 2013
Publisher: Ace
Paperback, 336 pages
Buy: Amazon
        The Book Depository

Danger stalks the city of steam and shadows.

Janus Mikani and Celeste Ritsuko work all hours in the Criminal Investigation Division, keeping citizens safe. He’s a charming rogue with an uncanny sixth sense; she’s all logic—and the first female inspector. Between his instincts and her brains, they collar more criminals than any other partnership in the CID.

Then they’re assigned a potentially volatile case where one misstep could end their careers. At first, the search for a missing heiress seems straightforward, but when the girl is found murdered—her body charred to cinders—Mikani and Ritsuko’s modus operandi will be challenged as never before. Before long, it’s clear the bogeyman has stepped out of nightmares to stalk gaslit streets, and it’s up to them to hunt him down. There’s a madman on the loose, weaving blood and magic in an intricate, lethal ritual that could mean the end of everything…

The Criminal Investigation Division of the great city of Dorstaad doesn't normally allow just anyone access to their case files, but after several days of aggressive negotiations (bribery may or may not have been involved), a group of curious bloggers, myself included, has been allowed to rummage through some of the more peculiar cases that their top inspectors, Janus Mikani and Celeste Ritsuko, have worked on. While we were there, mostly unsupervised, we poked around more than was strictly permissible and found some of their personal correspondence as well. It goes without saying that neither of them was present at the time. I like my limbs right where they are, thank you very much.

 
The notes tell a story which starts right here, and continues on all the other tour stops, so make sure to check them all out. You can find the links below.

Click to enlarge

Author bio:
A.A. Aguirre is the pseudonym for Ann & Andres Aguirre, a husband-wife writing team. She specializes in compelling characters; he excels at meticulous worldbuilding. By day, she's a USA Today bestselling novelist, and he is a pharmaceuticals tycoon.

Born in Mexico, Andres spent his early years traveling and getting in trouble everywhere else. Along the way, he got a degree from Pepperdine in economics and international business. Ann was born in the Midwest and has a degree in English Literature from Ball State. She's traveled less than Andres and gotten into less trouble, but scaling Macchu Pichu should count for something, right?

Now settled, if not fully domesticated, Andres lives with his love, Ann, their fantastic kids, one whiny cat, and two wistful dogs.

Trailer:

Please visit the other stops as well. Here is the schedule:
April 30th The Nocturnal Library 
May 1st Heidi @ Rainy Day Ramblings
May 2nd Jenny @ Supernatural Snark
May 3rd Mary @ Book Swarm

May 6th Melissa @ Books and Things
May 7th Kimberly @ Caffeinated Book Reviewer

I want to thank these wonderful bloggers for helping me spread the word about this book I love so much. A special thanks to the lovely Jenny @ Supernatural Snark for the tour banner. You girls are the best!

Giveaway time! Fill out the Rafflecopter to win one signed copy of Bronze Gods. One book will be given away on each tour stop, so make sure to enter those as well. All giveaways are international.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Review: Bronze Gods (Apparatus Infernum, #1)

Author: A.A. Aguirre
Series: Apparatus Infernum, #1
Release date: April 30th 2013
Publisher: Ace
Paperback, 336 pages
Buy: Amazon
        The Book Depository

Danger stalks the city of steam and shadows.

Janus Mikani and Celeste Ritsuko work all hours in the Criminal Investigation Division, keeping citizens safe. He’s a charming rogue with an uncanny sixth sense; she’s all logic—and the first female inspector. Between his instincts and her brains, they collar more criminals than any other partnership in the CID.

Then they’re assigned a potentially volatile case where one misstep could end their careers. At first, the search for a missing heiress seems straightforward, but when the girl is found murdered—her body charred to cinders—Mikani and Ritsuko’s modus operandi will be challenged as never before. Before long, it’s clear the bogeyman has stepped out of nightmares to stalk gaslit streets, and it’s up to them to hunt him down. There’s a madman on the loose, weaving blood and magic in an intricate, lethal ritual that could mean the end of everything…

Hmm, let's see: steampunk noir, fantastic worldbuilding, characters I fell in love with almost instantly, crime scenes worthy of Patricia Cornwell, clockwork, LOTS of sexual tension and a heart-stopping conclusion. All in a single book, my friends.

Centuries ago in a land called Hy Breasil, native Ferishers and strayed humans saw marriage as a way to stop the war between their two races. Sons and daughters of the two great Courts married the conquerors in an attempt to save themselves from annihilation. Today, very little Fey blood remains and the gifts it offers are often both unwelcome and dangerous.

In the great city of Dorstaad, two Criminal Investigation Division inspectors, Celeste Ritsuko and Janus Mikani, do excellent work despite the hostility they occasionally face. They are each other’s exact opposites: she, measured, well organized and precise, excellent at drawing conclusions from evidence she pedantically collects; and he, a charmer who mostly runs on intuition and solves cases using gifts his Fey blood provides.

Ritsuko and Mikani begin as co-workers and friends and they remain friends. It is a wonderful thing they have, a purely platonic relationship built on trust and mutual understanding. There is attraction of course, but neither of them is willing to risk what they already have for something that may or may not work… probably not, considering Mikani’s track record. Neither of them admits, even to themselves, that they might be moving towards something more, a different kind of relationship, no longer safe, but risky and exciting at the same time. Theirs is a subtle, tentative dance, a slow-burning romance at its finest and one that will leave you desperate to know if and when they’ll take the plunge.

(You WILL be jumping up and down in your seat, chanting “Do it! Do it! Go for it! Kiss her, you moron! Kiss her!”)

Their characterization is superb. I find that I often use the words ‘astonishingly good’ to describe Aguirre’s work, but I can’t help it when they always apply. Bronze Gods and its characters didn’t sprout over night, they’re the result of a decade-long work, which is obvious on every page. I’ve read my fair share of crime novels and seen enough crime shows that I’m not easily impressed. I think we are all desensitized as readers and viewers, and yet these crime scenes gave me the chills. Each included a different mysterious, inexplicable device, the purpose of which was entirely unclear to Ritsuko and Mikani.

I am, as I’m sure you all know, a bit demanding when it comes to steampunk. I want well-defined worlds, age-appropriate language and at least a few creative gadgets. Ann and Andres Aguirre gave me all that and more. I need book 2 more than I need air... or bread.... or...well, maybe not blueberry muffins. But close.

I rest my case.

Bronze Gods blog tour, hosted by yours truly, will be starting on the release date, April 30th. Each stop will have a guest post by Ann and Andres Aguirre and a giveaway.

Tour schedule:
April 30th The Nocturnal Library
May 1st Heidi @ Rainy Day Ramblings
May 2nd Jenny @ Supernatural Snark
May 3rd Mary @ Book Swarm

May 6th Melissa @ Books and Things
May 7th Kimberly @ Caffeinated Book Reviewer

Review: The Friday Society

Author: Adrienne Kress
Release date: December 6th 2012
Publisher: Dial
Hardcover, 440 pages
Buy: The Book Depository

An action-packed tale of gowns, guys, guns –and the heroines who use them all 

Set in turn of the century London, The Friday Society follows the stories of three very intelligent and talented young women, all of whom are assistants to powerful men: Cora, lab assistant; Michiko, Japanese fight assistant; and Nellie, magician's assistant. The three young women's lives become inexorably intertwined after a chance meeting at a ball that ends with the discovery of a murdered mystery man.

It's up to these three, in their own charming but bold way, to solve the murder–and the crimes they believe may be connected to it–without calling too much attention to themselves.

Set in the past but with a modern irreverent flare, this Steampunk whodunit introduces three unforgettable and very ladylike–well, relatively ladylike–heroines poised for more dangerous adventures.

First things first: The Friday Society is a turn-of-the-century almost-steampunk (I’ll get to the ‘almost’ part later) that is exciting, funny and has a large number of unique, interesting characters. The idea of three intelligent young girls teaming up to solve crimes may have been used and abused far too many times, but the Victorian setting meant a new context that could have provided the necessary freshness. Unfortunately, it made things much worse instead.

Cora, Nellie and Michiko don’t have much in common, except that they’re all intelligent and very competent. Cora is an assistant to Lord White, a politician and an inventor. She’s interested in science and spends most of her time keeping his Lordship away from the opium dens. Nellie is the gorgeous assistant of Great Raheem, an accomplished and well-respected magician. She is very girly, but also very athletically gifted. Michiko came from Japan to work with a British self-defense instructor, wanting to escape from the parents that wanted to marry her off and her samurai teacher who refused to present her with a katana. She doesn’t speak much English and she’s constantly yelled at and beaten by her employer.

What turned The Friday Society from a fun fluffy read to a complete disaster was Kress’ carelessness or nonchalance towards the language. I am baffled by her constant use of modern colloquialisms in this book. I was ready to disregard the far too modern worldview of her heroines, the (unbelievably) liberal and progressive society, but language use is where I draw the line. I don’t think that ‘smokin’ hot’ was used to describe an attractive individual over a hundred years ago, and somehow I doubt that the word ‘awesome’ was used in every other sentence either. Aside from the steam-powered gadgets, steampunk should attempt to recreate an era, and that is largely done through language. Authors should either know how to do this, or not write steampunk at all.

It is a shame that Adrienne Kress didn’t do a better job with era- appropriate language. I was almost ready to forgive some of it, but then a character would say something so painfully jarring, and it would make my blood boil.

I wasn’t entirely unhappy with the abovementioned steam-powered gadgets. Cora is an inventor after all, and she had a few (very entertaining) aces up her sleeve. There were dirigibles, steam cabs, night vision goggles and other interesting things, and while they weren’t exactly described in detail, they at least worked well with the plot.

In this case, my two-star rating doesn’t mean anything other than ‘I had no idea how to rate this book’. There were things I truly enjoyed, humor and characters most of all, but in the end, even that wasn’t enough. Gail Carriger may not be much of a plotter, but no one can object to her language use or her ability to re-create the atmosphere of the Victorian era. Adrienne Kress, on the other hand, should write books in which characters can like, say ‘like’ as many times as they want.

Mini Reviews: A Conspiracy of Alchemists & Nightfall

Author: Liesel Schwarz
Series: The Chronicle of Light and Shadow, #1
Release date: March 5th 2013
Publisher: Del Rey
Hardcover, 352 pages
Source: Publisher for review
Buy: The Book Depository


A Conspiracy of Alchemists is a surprisingly fun debut, a wonderful blend of steampunk, urban fantasy and paranormal romance. It’s perfect for fans of Meljean Brook’s Iron Seas series. The worldbuilding may be slightly inferior in comparison, but that’s only because Meljean Brook is the untouchable queen of the genre. Leisel Schwartz did not disappoint with her fabulously imaginative world full of alchemists, Nightwalkers, absint fairies and warlocks. The steampunk elements were great (gyrocopters!) and the plot was highly entertaining, if a tiny bit predictable.

The romance, however, fell a bit flat. You know when you watch So You Think You Can Dance and a couple dances with technical precision, but the judges say there’s not enough chemistry between them? That’s exactly how this was: Elle and Marsh made all the right moves, but there wasn’t any spark there. I never felt the rush of expectation when they were left alone, and even though theirs wasn’t an instalove, it still wasn’t believable enough for me.

Elle was a great heroine, one I could easily admire. She refused to be limited by her gender and preferred flying airships to husband-hunting. The secondary characters were fabulously developed and I can’t wait to see more of them in the second installment, The Clockwork Heart. A Conspiracy of Alchemists has a very clean ending and it could easily have been a standalone, but I was very excited when the second book was announced.

I can’t promise you’ll remember all the details a month after you finish this book, but I can promise you’ll have a great time reading it.

Author: Ellen Connor
Series: Dark Age Dawning, #1
Release date: July 6th 2011
Publisher: Berkley Trade
Paperback, 327 pages
Buy: The Book Depository


Wow, sometimes the cover and the synopsis can be terribly misleading. Nightfall is a romance, yes, a very steamy one at times, but the primary focus isn’t the relationship between the two main characters, it’s the apocalypse underway and the (diverse) group of people brought together by horrible circumstances.

The backstory was just a bit too vague for my liking, but the action and the horrid creatures more than made up for it. Giant, cannibalistic dog-men followed the group’s every movement and the fact that they were humans before they became mindless monsters made them even more horrifying – and interesting… in a morbid sort of way.

However, it needs to be said that the true strength of Nightfall lies in its secondary characters. Obviously (well, it’s obvious to me anyway), this is what Ann Aguirre does best - for those of you who don't know, she co-authored this book with Carrie Lofty. All her characters, no matter how small their role, are fully fleshed out.

Points were lost due to a hero who took broody and difficult to a whole new level. While Nightfall is not primarily romantic suspense, the poor timing still bothered me a great deal. By the time Mason got around to dealing with his feelings for Jenna, I was both exasperated and in a decidedly unforgiving mood.

The second and the third book focus on secondary characters from Nightfall, paranormal romance-style. One of them is my absolute favorite which makes me even more eager to pick them up.

Review: Legacy of the Clockwork Key (Secret Order of Modern Amusmentists#1)

Author: Kristin Bailey
Series: The Secret Order, #1
Release date: March 5th 2013
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Hardcover, 403 pages
Source: Publisher for review
Buy: The Book Depository


As a steampunk reader, I can be nitpicky and entirely too difficult to please. However, I don’t think I’m being unreasonable when I say that Legacy of the Clockwork Key fell short of what I had expected. For starters, it read more like Middle Grade than Young Adult and was, in many ways, far too naïve and oversimplified for my liking. In truth, I’m not sure it can even be classified as steampunk; it certainly started as one, and the author approached it very ambitiously, but the execution was lacking and the end result was a Middle Grade-ish book with lots of metal in it.

In Legacy of the Clockwork Key, Meg and her small group of new acquaintances, embark on a quest to find and destroy a dangerous device created by a secret society Meg’s family was involved with. To find the location of this device, they must find and unlock clue after clue using a creative master key Meg’s grandfather left her.

I was quite enjoying this story until things turned serious between Meg and Will. It was their relationship – Meg’s constant doubts and insecurities, Will’s inconsistent behavior and lack of any real spark between them – that really turned me off. I understood why Meg would be attracted to Will, even with all his brooding and silent treatments. His attraction for her, however, made little sense as he was right to accuse her of selfishness and pigheadedness.

I was hardly one to command the attention of a man, especially sitting next to the gilded beauty Lucinda possessed. Will couldn’t possibly fancy me, so why did he watch me so intently? I’ll admit, I had noticed he was handsome when I first met him. At the time, it might have only been my shock at seeing someone my own age.

But as difficult as the characters were, I had even more trouble with the inventions. Although there were many (I get grumpy when there isn’t enough machinery in my steampunk), and although the inventory was quite impressive (automatons, a metal Stonehenge that sprouted from the ground, a huge metal maze and a metal leviathan, to name a few), it was never explained how any of them actually worked. That, in my opinion, is simply not steampunk. And some of the minor inventions were just random modern things like night vision and infrared goggles. Those were only unusual because of the historical setting, and what’s worse, I can’t imagine they could possibly be steam powered… not that actual steam was ever mentioned.

In the end, I think it’s fair to conclude that Legacy of the Clockwork Key simply lacked steam, both between the characters and in their many inventions. It’s a good book for a younger audience; I’d probably have enjoyed it when I was twelve or thirteen, but as an older reader, I found it to be mediocre and entirely forgettable.

Review: Etiquette & Espionage (Finishing School, #1)

Author: Gail Carriger
Series: Finishing School, #1
Release date: February 5th 2013
Publisher: Little, Brown BfYR
Hardcover, 307 pages
Buy: The Book Depository



Before any of you start plotting my painful and untimely death, I should point out that I’m a big fan of Ms. Carriger’s previous work. The Parasol Protectorate series is a favorite of mine, despite losing some steam in the later installments. However, I don’t think Etiquette and Espionage was up to her usual standards, and it makes me very sad that I didn’t enjoy it as much as I’d hoped I would. It took me a while to put my thoughts in order and figure out exactly what went wrong, at least for me, and even now I can only explain a part of it. In Parasol Protectorate, Carriger’s trademark sense of humor was what made the series stand out, but there was also some substance underneath, and the plots kept me engaged and interested. Etiquette and Espionage had neither, I’m afraid.

“But I have advanced eyelash fluttering to practice, and a mathematics problem concerning how to order strychnine and a lamb dinner on a limited budget, and three chapters on court etiquette to read, and my handkerchief to starch, and the quadrille to memorize!” “No one said learning etiquette and espionage would be easy, my dear.”

And it wasn’t easy, my dears. Not for our main character, Miss Sophronia Angelina Temminnick, and certainly not for me. What started out as entertaining, promising read, ended up almost suffocating me with repetitiveness and lack of an actual plot. A good sense of humor is not a band aid you can just slap over a pile of problems and hope your readers forget they’re there. It has been tried before, and as far as I’m concerned, it never, ever worked.

As a fan, I loved revisiting Alexia’s universe, but at the same time, seeing it reused left me with the impression that Gail Carriger took the lazy way out. This is the part I’m most conflicted about, but it’s also one I would have been glad to overlook had the rest been interesting enough. But in the end, the most interesting parts were those links to the Parasol Protectorate series.

It wasn’t just the world that was the same, some of the characters showed up too, albeit as much younger versions of themselves. Of all the crossover characters, I enjoyed meeting a nine-year-old Genevieve Lefoux the most and was delighted to learn that she preferred boys’ clothes even as a little girl.

There is no romance in Etiquette & Espionage, just hints of one that could develop uite beautifully in the future. While I adored the no-romance part itself, in combination with a very weak plot, it gave a pretty empty book.

It’s obvious by now that I’m the odd one out in this case, so please take my opinion with a grain of salt and make sure to read at least a few more reviews before making a decision. It’s all a matter of personal taste, after all. I’m prepared to give this series another chance because I adore Carriger’s sense of humor. Hopefully the next book will have a more exciting plot.

Review: Boneshaker (Clockwork Century, #1)

Author: Cherie Priest
Series: Clockwork Century, #1
Published: November 6th 2012
Publisher: Tor UK
Paperback, 416 pages
Buy: The Book Depository

Is there anything a mother wouldn’t do to save her son? Even if they are mostly estranged and angry at each other? Would she willingly walk into a place where the air is poisonous and hundreds of zombies roam about?

Of course she would. I would, too.

That’s the choice Briar is forced to make, and it really isn’t a choice at all. Sixteen years ago, Seattle was destroyed by one of her late husband’s inventions, and she became an outcast, a poor, single mother with no one to rely on. From that point on, Briar and her son were lucky when they could cross the street without someone spitting on them for something neither of them played any part in.
Briar’s son Zeke is only sixteen and he’s desperate to clear his father’s name, not knowing that his father really is guilty of turning Seattle into a poisonous prison. And there is no doubt in Briar’s mind, her late husband poisoned the air, flattened the city and created rotters, the zombies. But every boy wants his father to be perfect, so Zeke runs away from home to go to Seattle and prove his father’s innocence.

As much as I enjoyed the (too few) steampunk elements in Boneshaker, what I found most intriguing was the complexity of Briar’s relationship with her teenage son Zeke. I normally dislike situations that stem from lack of communication between characters, but in Boneshaker, their reasons for not sharing secrets with each other were so painful and real that I couldn’t blame Cherie Priest for deciding to write it exactly like that. It is what made these characters truly alive, as if they didn’t exist until they were around each other or thinking about each other. Despite the alternate history setting and a  few fantastic inventions, despite the zombies and everything else that was exciting, Briar and Zeke were what really kept me on the edge of my seat. When it comes to character bulding, Cherie Priest is the best psychologist I’ve come across since Ann Aguirre, which is saying something, my friends.

But it appears that everything good comes at a price, and excellent characterization was very pricey indeed. In terms of steampunk, Boneshaker leaves a lot to be desired. I realize I’m very nitpicky when it comes to this sub-genre, but if authors won’t use the endless possibilities it provides, I see no point in writing it at all. The steampunk bits did not blow me away like they did in Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences, and I expected more from Priest language-wise, to be honest. Still, keep in mind that Boneshaker won the 2010 Locus Award for Science-Fiction, so this is probably just me being unreasonable and difficult. I get like that sometimes, just ask my siblings. :)

Although Boneshaker didn’t leave me completely satisfied, I am intrigued and eager to read the next book in this series.

Audiobook Review: Timeless (Parasol Protectorate, #5)

Author: Gail Carriger
Narrator: Emily Gray
Series: Parasol Protectorate
Publisher: AudioGo
Audio CD, 10 discs
Running time: 11 hrs 26 min


Oh, I should have listened to this entire series on audio! It’s a completely different experience. With her great accents and excellent characterization, Emily Gray breathed life into a series that very much needed it in its last installment. She’s done such an amazing job that I’ll purposely seek out other audiobooks narrated by her, regardless of the genre, and enjoy them while driving to work and back. Of all the narrators I’ve come across so far, she and Holter Graham are by far my favorites.

Unfortunately, Gail Carriger doesn’t deserve such praise. Timeless is essentially plotless, and what little excitement there is pales in comparison to previous books. Everything I used to love about this series is gone – even the humor isn’t what it used to be. The Parasol Protectorate simply lost its charm. It’s a good thing Carriger decided to end the series when she did – this is where we would have parted ways anyway. By making Timeless the last book, she allowed me to say my goodbyes with a smile and a little bit of nostalgia, instead of the bitter taste so many authors left me with.

Timeless picks up two years after the end of Heartless. Alexia’s daughter Prudence is an extraordinary child and she’s keeping her biological parents and her adoptive father, Lord Akeldama, very busy indeed. She’s even managed to attract the attention of Queen Matakara, vampire Queen of the Alexandria Hive, the oldest supernatural in the world. Alexia, Prudence and their numerous entourage travel to Egypt to indulge Matakara, and hopefully, to uncover Alessandro Tarabotti’s plans for the supernaturals.
Meanwhile, Biffy and Professor Lyall investigate the murder of a Beta, but they somehow spend more time flirting with each other than actually investigating. The budding romance between these two was my favorite part of this book. I loved seeing a different side of Lyall – the reserved professor is surprisingly passionate under the surface, much to my (and Biffy’s) delight.

I never gossip. I observe. And then relay my observations to practically everyone.

After many adventures and several misunderstandings, the relationship between Lord and Lady Maccon is finally steady and calm, but never boring! After all, neither of them is very conventional and Lady Maccon becomes rather restless if she isn’t involved in at least three different conspiracies and secret societies at any given time. But the tenderness she shows her darling husband, and his complete and utter adoration for her turned this book into a satisfying conclusion, despite its many flaws.

You know I have to mention some of those flaws, right? I’ll try to make it quick, like pulling off a band aid. The most important thing is that I wanted more! Many questions were left unanswered and I’m still unclear on quite a few things. The humor… oh, the humor! I used to adore Lord Akeldama and his many fashion experiments, but he, too, became tiresome after a while. Much like the series, he just lost his shine.

In the end, I will go back to the beginning: if you’re considering reading this book, do yourselves a favor and get it on audio. Emily Gray made everything so much more interesting. As for the rest, this is one of those times when saying goodbye isn’t hard. I’m sure Gail Carriger has a lot more to offer, but in a different series and with a new set of characters.

Review: Dearly, Beloved (Gone With the Respiration, #2)

Author: Lia Habel
Series: Gone With the Respiration
Release date: September 25th 2012
Publisher: Del Rey
Buy: The Book Depository


This summer has been full sequels that outshined their predecessors. Dearly, Beloved is one of them. Not only is it funnier, better thought-out and better written than Dearly, Departed, it also affected me more strongly. The plot is well-planned and well-executed and it finally gave this series a much needed direction it lacked in the first book.

Strangely enough, I originally gave Dearly, Beloved three starts, but, upon further consideration, I decided it deserved more. Lia Habel has enormous talent for worldbuilding, and she is quite good at creating vivid imagery and leaving a strong impression on her readers. The secondary and even tertiary characters she introduced aren’t lacking in detail or in color – from the zombie girl who grows flowers in her rotting body to our dear, headless doctor Samedi, they are all both interesting and entirely unforgettable. As for the main characters, they all changed significantly, some for the better, and some (like Pamma) not. Once again, Habel doesn’t shy away from gory details. Some of the descriptions in Dearly, Beloved are utterly disgusting (and infinitely thrilling, of course). It is through blood and rotten body parts that she breathed life into her world and made it stand apart.

The only thing I can’t seem to get used to is the number of perspectives. There are even more this time: Nora and Bram of course, Pamela, but also Michael, Vespertine, Coalhouse and a newly introduced character, Laura (the zombie flower girl). All of them undoubtedly contributed something significant and as hard as I try, I honestly can’t come up with another way to tell the same story, but that doesn’t mean it didn’t feel disjointed at times.

Romance, however, is what really brought me to my knees. I expected it to be lovely after Dearly, Departed, but I didn’t expect such sweetness and maturity. Nora and Bram face everything together, they understand each other perfectly. Nothing can keep these two apart, they love each other as openly and honestly as they can, aware that time is quickly running out for Bram. And yet, even with time in mind, they (mostly) uphold the rules of propriety, they are both bold and respectful at the same time and this balance they constantly maintain is quite beautiful.

I wasn’t the biggest fan of Dearly, Departed, but everything changed with this book. I can’t wait to read more.

Review: Stormdancer (The Lotus War, #1)

Author: Jay Kristoff
Series: The Lotus War
Released: September 1st 2012
Publisher: Tor UK
Hardback, 451 pages



When I first felt myself being pulled into this story, I glanced down and saw the number 156 written at the bottom of the page. 156 pages of barely understandable, agonizingly slow and almost painfully dense prose - that’s what it took for me to start enjoying Stormdancer. But here’s the thing: now that I fully understand this book, I understand the necessity of such a beginning.

This is how the rain becomes a flood. One drop at a time.

There’s something mesmerizing and magical about a world well-built, and Kristoff’s is more detailed than most. As hard as it is to understand it at first, once you become a part of it, it is unlikely to ever let you go. It is a grim, filthy world, poisoned by blood lotus, a plant that kills the land it grows from and is used for everything from fuel to drugs. It is a world of stark contrasts – excessive wealth and excessive poverty, mythical creatures and technology. Not much in it can be described as beautiful, and yet, the beauty of it in its entirety is undeniable. It is reminiscent of the most intricate filigree work. Even if it doesn’t appeal to your personal taste, you must appreciate the skill that was necessary to create it.

And yet, in many ways, this stunning, complex world quickly becomes overshadowed by the characters. Each of them was created just like the world was – slowly, with much attention to details, in a million layers, some more important than others. Yukiko herself cannot be reduced to a one-sentence description, but what truly surprises me is that none of the characters can. They are all so many things at once, their histories interconnected, their stories all somehow related. Hatred doesn’t sprout from nothing in Kristoff’s world. Everything has an explanation, everyone carries some trauma and hurt, and every single character has hidden motives.

Among them, the thunder tiger stands out as the most fascinating by far. I must confess I’d never given much thought to mythological creatures such as griffins, but seeing Buruu through Kristoff’s eyes made me realize how blind I’d been. He is truly a magnificent creature, powerful and fiercely intelligent, yet tender and caring toward Yukiko, his Stormdancer. The telepathic connection they share is one of the most interesting things I’ve ever read about. Spending time in each other’s minds changes them both ever so subtly. The arashitora’s understanding of the human world increases, and she becomes slightly more explosive in nature. They call each other brother and sister because that’s what they truly are, and that’s how protective they are of each other.

The hindquarters of a white tiger, rippling muscle bound tight beneath the snow-white fur, slashed with thick bands of ebony. The broad wings, forelegs and head of a white eagle, proud and fierce; lightning reflected in amber irises and pupils of darkest black. It roared again, shaking the ship, cutting through the air like a katana in a swordsaint’s hands.

All good things come at a price and with Stormdancer, that price is your patience. Understanding the initial chapters or even caring about the characters won’t be easy at first, but if you persist, you will be heavily rewarded.