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thereadinghammock's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
I love the Parasol Protectorate universe Gail has created in these books. The characters are hilarious, delightful, and run the gamut of personalities and persuasions. And a mystery that can stump even the intrepid Alexia Maccon? A juicy story indeed! Following the trail of a "mass humanity" incident to her husband's old pack in the Scottish highlands revisits a fun character from the Finishing School series (years later, mind you) and introduces several other new and fascinating characters along the way. Madame LeFoux is a delightful conundrum to Alexia, and watching the Frenchwoman flummox Alexia with her flirting was fun to watch.
The mass humanity incident being related to a mummified preternatural was a fun twist, but what threw me for a loop was that ending revelation and argument that followed. While I do fully understand Connell's confusion and disbelief that the child could be his, the vitriol he spat at Alexia and his dismissal of anything she might say to defend herself was horrific and left such a sour taste in my mouth as a reader.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Pregnancy, Gun violence, and Sexual content
marsh_mall0w's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Sexual content and Body shaming
Minor: Pregnancy and Vomit
booksthatburn's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
CHANGLESS is a pretty good book which is utterly ruined by a terrible ending.
CHANGELESS begins with annoyances and crises, the regiment has appeared on the lawn and a mysterious plague of mortality has fallen upon London’s normally supernatural residents. This introduces Madame Lefoux, a hat-maker and inventor who affects masculine dress as a matter of course. There’s an entirely new storyline related to Madame Lefoux, Ivy, the mortality plague, and a sudden need to travel to Scotland. This doesn’t wrap up anything left hanging, though it is nice to see Alexia and Conall as a married couple. Several things related to the mortality issue and Conall’s past are introduced and resolved. This isn’t the final book and has a very sudden cliffhanger which demands to be addressed in the next volume. Alexia is still the main narrator and her voice is consistent, though there are some sections following other characters. I like Madame Lefoux, she's a great addition to the ensemble of characters.
There’s enough backstory given that this could mostly make sense if someone started here and hadn’t read the first book, but this book thrives on banter and relationships, so it will be much more impactful for anyone who started the series at the beginning.
Because the setting is based on real-life Victorian England (and Scotland), but with supernatural elements and steampunk, it ends up engaging with Great Britain as an empire and not just a country. The regiment which shows up was returning from serving the British military in India, apparently some kind of colonialist possession, though I’m not sure how precisely it aligns with the real trajectory of that situation. There are also mentions of British military presence in North Africa. The main characters are supernatural representatives in Queen Victoria’s government, but this is the first real reference to British colonization in the series.
I hate the ending. It’s technically in keeping with the various characters’ personalities, but it’s sudden and stressful and I’ve never liked it.
CHANGELESS begins with annoyances and crises, the regiment has appeared on the lawn and a mysterious plague of mortality has fallen upon London’s normally supernatural residents. This introduces Madame Lefoux, a hat-maker and inventor who affects masculine dress as a matter of course. There’s an entirely new storyline related to Madame Lefoux, Ivy, the mortality plague, and a sudden need to travel to Scotland. This doesn’t wrap up anything left hanging, though it is nice to see Alexia and Conall as a married couple. Several things related to the mortality issue and Conall’s past are introduced and resolved. This isn’t the final book and has a very sudden cliffhanger which demands to be addressed in the next volume. Alexia is still the main narrator and her voice is consistent, though there are some sections following other characters. I like Madame Lefoux, she's a great addition to the ensemble of characters.
There’s enough backstory given that this could mostly make sense if someone started here and hadn’t read the first book, but this book thrives on banter and relationships, so it will be much more impactful for anyone who started the series at the beginning.
Because the setting is based on real-life Victorian England (and Scotland), but with supernatural elements and steampunk, it ends up engaging with Great Britain as an empire and not just a country. The regiment which shows up was returning from serving the British military in India, apparently some kind of colonialist possession, though I’m not sure how precisely it aligns with the real trajectory of that situation. There are also mentions of British military presence in North Africa. The main characters are supernatural representatives in Queen Victoria’s government, but this is the first real reference to British colonization in the series.
I hate the ending. It’s technically in keeping with the various characters’ personalities, but it’s sudden and stressful and I’ve never liked it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Blood, Gore, and Body horror
Moderate: Grief, Colonisation, Racism, Sexism, Blood, Violence, Cursing, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Sexual content
Minor: Pregnancy, Drug use, War, Vomit, Sexual harassment, Infidelity, Alcohol, and Body shaming
mjwhitlock18's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
3.5
Second in the series, this easy to read, humorous, paranormal steampunk fantasy sees Alexia settling into life with Lord Maccon, all while trying to solve a mysterious change in the supernatural set. Not quite as entertaining as the first book, but still a great sense of humor We see more of Alexia’s pragmatism, along with the some favorite side characters from the last book and some great new additions (you know I love a sapphic, masculine-dressing, inventor/scientist). Ivy was even more annoying in this one, to the point that it brought me out of the story at times. The not-so-surprising surprise ending left me intrigued and also angry with one gruff werewolf.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Sexual content and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Pregnancy
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