Book Review: Waistcoats & Weaponry by Gail Carriger

Pros: fun, quirky characters

Cons: more action than plot

Sophronia and her friends are enjoying school a year after their last adventure when Sidheag receives a distressing letter.  She disappears and when Dimity and Sophronia attend Sophronia’s brother’s engagement ball, they rejoin her and stumble upon several plots.

This is the third book in the Finishing School series, and it is best read in order as plot points from the previous books, specifically several direct consequences from book two, are important to what’s happening here.  

As with the other books, the girls are all quirky and fun to read about.  We see them apply their talents in different ways as they rise to the challenges they face.  The book is a quick and enjoyable read.

Unlike in the earlier books where the girls come across something strange and decide to investigate it, actively looking for new clues, in this volume they’re helping their friend and stumble across the mystery purely by chance.  They find out more of what’s going on in the wider political world and several of them have to make decisions that will greatly affect their futures.

Sophronia has several major decisions to make in this book regarding her future: whether she likes Felix Mersey, whose father is a pickleman (a political position Sophronia abhors) enough to form an attachment with him; what kind of future relationship she wants with Soap, whose social standing is far beneath hers but whose advice and friendship she greatly appreciates; and what patron she wants when she graduates, as Lord Akeldama’s been sending her gifts in an attempt to sway her in his direction.  

I personally found the action on the train less interesting than what happened before it.  I love the school and the dynamic there, and was a bit sad that so much of the book took place off of it.  Having said that, the train did show off the girls’ prowess and contained some fun action sequences.  

I’m really looking forward to book 4, Manners & Mutiny, which I believe will conclude the series.

Book Review: Curtsies & Conspiracies by Gail Carriger

Pros: fun characters, interesting mystery, dry humour

Cons:

For Parents: minor violence, kissing

Mademoiselle Geraldine’s Finishing Academy for Young Ladies of Quality makes course for London after picking up some gentlemen from Bunson and Lacroix’s Boys’ Polytechnique.  They’re to see the results of an experiment in navigating the aetherosphere, something that would greatly reduce travel times.  But not everyone wants the experiment to succeed.

In many ways this is a light-hearted Harry Potter, if Harry went to a school for spies in a dirigible set in a steampunk Victorian England, cared more about fashion and Hermione was the protagonist.  This is the second book of Gail Carriger’s Finishing School series, and it maintains the same level of propriety crossed with rule breaking as the first.  The humour is dry, the sort you acknowledge with a snort rather than a guffaw, despite how unbecoming either action would be in polite society. 

Sophronia and her gang of misfits are such fun characters, though due to exam results, she finds herself working alone more than she’d prefer, in this volume.  It was also nice to see her encounter real consequences for the kind of work she’s training to do, making her wonder if this really is what she wants.

The mystery involves several threads, some of which harken back to the events of the previous book.  There’s also the knowledge at the end that though things were resolved, there are still some questions to be answered.

If you haven’t read these books, you’re missing out.

Book Review: Etiquette and Espionage by Gail Carriger

Pros: fun, quirky characters, quick moving plot, historical tidbits added, good inclusion of a dark skinned supporting cast member that kept to historical conventions without being racist

Cons: the ending is too sudden (and too soon!)

For Parents: minor violence

Sophronia's antics have given cause for her to be sent to a finishing school.  But what her proper mother doesn't realize is that Mademoiselle Geraldine's Finishing Academy teaches more than just which spoon to use for soup.  It also teaches skills in espionage.  And Sophronia's first lesson comes when the carriage she and two fellow students are taking to the school is attacked by flywaymen looking for a prototype in the possession of one of the passengers...

The book is a fun romp, with quirky characters and a quick plot.  The school is located in an unusual place that makes for a wonderful setting and the mischief Sophronia and her classmates get into trying to figure out what the prototype is and where it's been hidden, is great.

I was a bit concerned by the opening as Sophronia is VERY over the top, but the plot quickly requires it and she never got on my nerves.  Nor did any of the other quirky characters.

It was impressive how the author added Phineas B. Crow, aka Soap, to the cast.  Sophronia knows it's improper for her to associate with someone of a lower class - and a boy to boot, but she doesn't care about that, or the dark colour of his skin.  She's simply curious about him and the world at large.

The ending came too suddenly, and much too soon, for me.  I can't wait to see what other adventures Sophronia and her friends get up to.

Etiquette and Espionage hits stores February 5th.

Book Review: Blameless by Gail Carriger

Pros: quirky characters, action

Cons: soap opera feel

As this is the 3rd book in the series, the synopsis contains spoilers.  This is not a book you can pick up without having read the previous two.

Alexia, Lady Maccon, begins this book at her mother's abode, being estranged from her husband due to the 'baby inconvenience'.  Though faithful, her husband's werewolf state ought to make him unable to father a child.  The vampires aren't happy about Alexia's pregnancy, and without the protection of the Woolsey Pack she's in trouble.

So she does what any self-respecting soulless would do while under attack - take a trip to the continent to see if anyone there can explain how she conceived.

While the characters are still quirky, their personalities are toned down a bit in this novel so at no point do they grate on your nerves (which happened a few times in Changeless).

The plot, while organic as per the other books in the series, feels a bit tighter in this book.  Carriger's writing, already good, has improved.

The only 'negative' I had was that the story is starting to feel like a soap opera.  Which can be fun, but can also go too far.  It's worked so far, I hope Carriger can keep the books from becoming farcical rather than pleasantly campy.

Changeless - Book Review

By: Gail Carriger

Pros: interesting world examined in more detail (we learn more about the supernatural council and get out of London), engaging writing

Cons: heavy handed characterization made some people feel like caricatures rather than characters (this lessened as the story progressed), Alexia seemed a little dense at times, cliffhanger ending that can be considered distasteful

I try not to be overly influenced by other reviews when choosing my books. Unfortunately, sometimes a negative review can overshadow your own thoughts and feelings on a particular work, whether it be a book, movie or art.

That was the case with reading Changeless for me. I'd read the 2 star review given it by RT (Romantic Times) and a friend who loved Soulless (the first book in the series) as much as I did had difficulty with the ending.

Every time someone was introduced or something happened I wondered, 'is X going to happen at the end?' It meant that the ending didn't bother me as much as it did others because the "what if's" I'd considered were much worse than what Carriger ultimately did.

But I'm getting ahead of myself. In Changeless, soulless Alexia Maccon has been married for 3 months and at odds with her werewolf husband on a number of issues. The plot starts quickly with a report that supernaturals within a specific area of London have suddenly become human - temporarily.

News from his former pack in Scotland prompts Lord Maccon to head home. Alexia's investigations into the supernatural affair cause her to soon follow after.

This book wasn't as much fun as Soulless. The opening had heavy handed characterization to the point that everyone came across as caricatures. I was surprised that, though she had council meetings twice a week, Alexia lived at Woolsey Castle, 2 hours from London - each way - rather than at their home in town. The number of surprise visitors they hosted was also high considering the commute.

Had I not spent the first 3rd of the book trying to figure out what the 'bad ending' was going to be, I'd have enjoyed the story a lot more. The plot was quick moving and interesting - though I figured some things out well before Alexia did, which is surprising as she's usually quite intelligent.

Still, it was fun and the ending, rather than turn me off, has me hoping for a good resolution in the forthcoming Blameless.

*** SPOILERS ***
















For those of you whose curiosity is peaked and who don't intend to read this book, here's the 'twist ending' and why I was ok with it.

Alexia's husband is technically dead. Werewolves are killed by the bite that turns them. They die and if they have excess 'soul' they become werewolves. If they don't, the bite is the end for them.

Now, as a soulless, Alexia's touch 'humanizes' the supernatural. But apparently, though they look human and lose their supernatural powers under her touch, they're still dead. In other words, Lord Maccon can have all the sex he wants, but he can't father a child.

Which causes Alexia problems as she discovers, at the end of Changeless, that she's pregnant. She's also never slept with anyone but her husband. Unfortunately, he no longer believes that and so casts her out.

After wondering if she'd have an affair with Major Channing, have an affair with Madam Lefoux, get raped, see Ivy murdered, etc. this sounded like the lesser of many evils. In fact, it rather explains the title Blameless for the next book. But it's entirely possible that had I not spent the first part of the book so occupied with guessing the ending I would have found Lord Maccon kicking out his pregnant wife more objectionable.

The other reason it perhaps didn't bother me was that despite being a cliffhanger I'm expecting everything to be sorted out in the next book. Most romance novels have something like this in them (a feature I usually dislike) but I can see the use here. It certainly had me devouring the excerpt from the next book that's at the back. And seeing quick witted and even quicker tongued Alexia deal with the accusations of scandal should be fun. It took me a while to read this book because I was afraid I would hate the ending and not want to read the next book (which has happened before). As it is, Blameless will trump my reading pile when it comes out because I REALLY want to see how things will resolve themselves.

Gail Carriger - Author Interview

Novel:

Soulless

Website: http://www.gailcarriger.com/


1. Pitch the first novel of your series.

Soulless is Jane Austen does urban fantasy meets PG Wodehouse does steampunk. It features a soulless spinster confronting Queen Victoria's grumpy werewolf investigator over the issue of lisping vampires.

2. What are your favourite three books?

The Forgotten Beasts of Eld by Patricia McKillip, The Hitch Hikers Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams, and The Woman Who Rides Like a Man by Tamora Pierce.

3. What made you want to be a writer?

A healthy does of insanity mixed with a reckless disregard for my own survival topped with ingrained escapist tendencies.

4. In the books you’ve written, who is you favourite character and why?

I adore Lord Akeldama because he is so deliciously fun to write – all that mad italic-wielding action. I also like Professor Lyall because he has hidden depths and wears a waistcoat of plenty, and Ivy Hisselpenny for her sheer ridiculousness.

5. If you could, would you change places with any of your characters?

Good gracious no! Victorian London, even with the supernatural mucking about, is no place for an independently minded female with a mad passion for exotic foodstuffs. That said, if I could actually be Lord Akeldama I might be tempted, I'd enjoy leading such an outrageous life.

6. What was the first novel (published or unpublished) that you wrote and how long did it take to write it?

I believe I wrote a cerebral and undoubtedly allegorical novel about calico cats and flying carpets. It took me a couple of days and was, my mother claims, a masterpiece of modern literature. I was eight.

7. What was the hardest scene for you to write?

In Soulless it was definitely the nookie scenes. I don't mind admitting it – I hate to write nookie. I always end up embarrassing myself.

8. If you still have one, what’s your day job?

I moonlight as an archaeologist. No really, that's the truth. I just got back from the Peruvian Highlands where I've been analyzing the pottery from a fascinating long-occupation site (Wari – Inca – Colonial). I start teaching a crop of unsuspecting undergraduates in just a few weeks, poor things.

9. What is your university degree in?

I have a BA in Archaeology, an MS in Archaeological Materials, and an MA in Anthropology. I got the book contract and left academia before finishing my PhD. Oddly enough, I have absolutely no regrets.

10. When and where do you write?

When I'm on a deadline I write in the afternoons from about 2 to 6 at my desk at home. If I'm doing really badly at making my daily word count I remove myself to a nearby independent coffee shop. If I'm doing really, really badly than it's off to the library.

11. Do you have any advice for hopeful authors?

Honestly and rather crudely? 1. Sit your arse in that chair and write. 2. When you're done writing only then do you get to edit. 3. Give it to three highly critical people to attack with red pens. 4. Fix it and submit it. 5. Let it go, sit your arse back down and write something else as different from the first as possible. 6. Wash and repeat.

12. Any tips against writers block?

Read something non-fiction that relates in some way to what you are writing. Writing SF? Read the latest Scientific America. Fantasy? How about a book on medieval cooking? The other thing to do is to put a note in the margin, skip the part that is giving you trouble, and just keep writing.

13. How do you discipline yourself to write?

I use shameless bribery: cup of tea if I finish the chapter, sushi every 25k, new shoes when I finish the first draft. I also punish myself. If I haven't made my word count I can't watch TV. Not even if it's Project Runway.

14. How many rejection letters did you get for your first novel or story?

Counting both agents and editors, my first book (which remains unsold and unsellable) collected at least fifty rejections over about six years. As a result, I developed my "let it go, sit your arse back down and write something else different" rule. During those six years I'd managed to sell a few short stories. I realized editors only bought comedy from me. So I wrote a comedic novel. Soulless got picked up out of a slush pile within two months.

Soulless - Victorian Dress-up Doll

When I saw this announced on the Orbit page I assumed it was a book cut out doll. It's not. It's a computer game where you can put different undergarments, dresses and accessories on the main character of the book Soulless, Alexia Tarabotti.

Check it out here.

And remember, the book hits stores October 1st!

Soulless - Book Review

Soulless is a novel that will appeal to readers of steampunk, urban fantasy and paranormal romance. A fast paced novel filled with vampires, werewolves, tea and parasols.

The main character, Alexia Tarabotti, is feisty and fun reminding one of Buffy the Vampire Slayer at some times and Elizabeth Bennett at others. A clever reworking of the Victorian era.

I only wish the book had come out when I wrote this review (in May) rather than in October, because then we'd be that much closer to the release of Gail Carriger's next novel.

And be sure to check back here next month when I post an interview with Ms. Carriger.