Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.89 AVERAGE
3.89 AVERAGE
Good continuation of Soulless. It contains the hilarious humor of the first. I felt like the pacing of this one through me, but it recovered around 55%.
The plot was solid and I’m intrigued to see how it will return in the future. I also loved the addition of the side characters — they crack me up. Conall needs a bit of a wallop, but I can’t wait to start the next book.
The plot was solid and I’m intrigued to see how it will return in the future. I also loved the addition of the side characters — they crack me up. Conall needs a bit of a wallop, but I can’t wait to start the next book.
This is such a creative fantasy series, and the two main characters, Alexia and Conall, are so intriguing and such fun. The core mystery of the supernaturals in London and Scotland suddenly experiencing humanization overall was pretty good, but my reason for taking away rating stars really has to do with some of the incredibly annoying side characters that are assumed to be humorous and are most definitely not. The less we see of the awful Ivy Hisselpenny in future books the better, but she is not the only one who needs to be scaled back a bit. These side characters actually detracted away from my overall enjoyment of this book, which is bit unfortunate. The ending of this book was an incredible cliffhanger however and extremely well done, and I can’t wait to read the next book in the series to see what happens with Alexia and Conall. 3.5 stars.
I loved it. The characters continue to be a joy and the humour, sharp.
The story was all right, it gave some interesting revelations but didn't hold my interest too much. I only really cared about the characters.
The story was all right, it gave some interesting revelations but didn't hold my interest too much. I only really cared about the characters.
Even better than the first (hard as I found that to believe). This time, the locale is switched, primarily, to Scotland and fortunately our heroine is no fish out of water. Her intellect, indomitable will (surely, not stubbornness) and recently upgrade parasole now have to find out the cause of the recent spate of de-supernaturalization that's affecting the UK.
Witty, full of character, drama, and a lovely plot.
Honestly these books are the perfect quarantine read. They're entertaining without being too emotional, diverting without being disturbing, and they're quick reads, which makes me feel like I'm accomplishing something.
In the past I would have criticized them for flippancy, but right now flippancy is about all I can handle.
In the past I would have criticized them for flippancy, but right now flippancy is about all I can handle.
This is the second book in the Parasol Protectorate series and is as much fun as the first, despite a rather underhanded cliffhanger ending. In this part of the series, Alexia, the new Lady Maccon, is awakened mid-afternoon by her husband yelling. Now, Lord Maccon yelling is not an unusual thing, but at mid-afternoon, he, like any decent werewolf, should be asleep. When he finishes yelling, he leaves, without telling her where he is going or why. So, like any good Victorian wife, Alexia follows him. It turns out that something is causing the supernaturals in London to lose their supernatural abilities, something that only Alexia, being soulless, should be able to do. She tracks Connall and the mystery ailment to Scotland, and his family pack, who he had left years before. With her are her sister Felicity, her best friend Ivy Hisslepenny (and her hats!), her French maid Angelique, and her husband's valet. And from there, as they say, hijinks ensue.
This second book in the series is no less fun than the first. Alexia is in top form, quite concerned, as any proper Victorian lady, with fashion, manners, and parasols. Of course, with Lady Maccon, nothing is quite as it seems, especially the parasols. Armed with intelligence and biting civility, she manages to get the best of everyone, including her husband.
The alternate, steampunk inspired Victorian setting is at times dark and foggy; at others, bright and full of gadgets. Characters are true to their Victorian heritage, if sometimes a bit over the top, but that is part of the fun. The mystery has twists and turns, and is resolved well. Pacing is good. There is not a lot of fast-paced action, but the story moves forward quickly.
The problem? The tagged-on cliffhanger ending. Not that I don't like cliffhangers, but in this case, it is all too obvious that this was added to push the next book in the series. It seemed a little contrived and felt like a bit of a cheat. I would have read the next anyway, simply because I like the books. Still, it is not enough to make me say don't read this. It is a romp and quite enjoyable.
This second book in the series is no less fun than the first. Alexia is in top form, quite concerned, as any proper Victorian lady, with fashion, manners, and parasols. Of course, with Lady Maccon, nothing is quite as it seems, especially the parasols. Armed with intelligence and biting civility, she manages to get the best of everyone, including her husband.
The alternate, steampunk inspired Victorian setting is at times dark and foggy; at others, bright and full of gadgets. Characters are true to their Victorian heritage, if sometimes a bit over the top, but that is part of the fun. The mystery has twists and turns, and is resolved well. Pacing is good. There is not a lot of fast-paced action, but the story moves forward quickly.
The problem? The tagged-on cliffhanger ending. Not that I don't like cliffhangers, but in this case, it is all too obvious that this was added to push the next book in the series. It seemed a little contrived and felt like a bit of a cheat. I would have read the next anyway, simply because I like the books. Still, it is not enough to make me say don't read this. It is a romp and quite enjoyable.
Book is totally readable. Enjoyable especially if you like big words.
*4.25 stars*
Still really loving this series! I'm giving it a slightly lower rating than the first because of the ending, as I know it's going to cause some drama in the next book that I'm not entirely fond of.
Honestly though, besides that I have the same thoughts on this book as I did on the first one, so I'm just going to direct you to my review on Soulless. Same great wit, same amazing protagonist, Alexia, and same fun storyline!
Highly recommend this series to anyone, especially if you're interested in getting into steampunk.
Still really loving this series! I'm giving it a slightly lower rating than the first because of the ending, as I know it's going to cause some drama in the next book that I'm not entirely fond of.
Honestly though, besides that I have the same thoughts on this book as I did on the first one, so I'm just going to direct you to my review on Soulless. Same great wit, same amazing protagonist, Alexia, and same fun storyline!
Highly recommend this series to anyone, especially if you're interested in getting into steampunk.
Also posted on Rally the Readers.
4.5 Stars
With all of its acerbic wit, lovably quirky characters, Victorian England setting, and explosive chemistry between preternatural Alexia and werewolf Lord Maccon, Soulless became an instant favorite of mine. I was desperate to get my hands on Changeless, but fate was a bit cruel and made me wait five days for a copy to arrive. In the meantime, I tried to retain my sanity because I needed to read this so badly.
I love the writing style of this series so. Much. I’d be perfectly happy talking all proper-like all the time if only everybody else wouldn’t think I’d gone completely batty. The prose certainly give the books an irresistible charm but without coming off as gimmicky. Seriously, I can’t read enough of it.
Our indomitable heroine Alexia, now Lady Woolsey, acquits herself splendidly once again. She’s armed with an upgraded parasol that’s more lethal than any parasol she’s carried in the past, which is a necessity for someone who flirts with danger as often as Alexia does. In this installment, she can’t even enjoy a nice dirigible ride to the Highlands of Scotland without running into trouble. Of course, so much of the fun in reading about Alexia’s adventures is waiting to see how she’ll manage to escape her latest scrape.
The steampunk gets turned up a few notches in Changeless, especially with the introduction of Madame Lefoux, inventor extraordinaire. It’s Madame Lefoux who, at Lord Maccon’s request, outfits Alexia’s new parasol with all sorts of ingenious weaponry. There’s also quite a lot of intricate detail, and maybe just a mite too much, about the aethographor, kind of the steampunk version of the telegraph. Overall, though, the technology of this world is fascinating and only one of the many reasons why I wish I could live in it.
One nitpick that I have about Changeless is how minimally some of my favorite characters from the first book appear in it, like Professor Lyall, Lord Akeldama, Biffy, and Floote. Even Lord Maccon is off-page for a while, much to my dismay. I also must vent my feelings over the ending of Changeless: NOOOOOOOO!!!! I’m rather peeved at a certain character right now. I shall, however, put all my faith in Gail Carriger to set all to rights with the next book, which I am very happy to report I have on hand so as to avoid another horrible delay in continuing this wonderful series.
4.5 Stars
With all of its acerbic wit, lovably quirky characters, Victorian England setting, and explosive chemistry between preternatural Alexia and werewolf Lord Maccon, Soulless became an instant favorite of mine. I was desperate to get my hands on Changeless, but fate was a bit cruel and made me wait five days for a copy to arrive. In the meantime, I tried to retain my sanity because I needed to read this so badly.
I love the writing style of this series so. Much. I’d be perfectly happy talking all proper-like all the time if only everybody else wouldn’t think I’d gone completely batty. The prose certainly give the books an irresistible charm but without coming off as gimmicky. Seriously, I can’t read enough of it.
Our indomitable heroine Alexia, now Lady Woolsey, acquits herself splendidly once again. She’s armed with an upgraded parasol that’s more lethal than any parasol she’s carried in the past, which is a necessity for someone who flirts with danger as often as Alexia does. In this installment, she can’t even enjoy a nice dirigible ride to the Highlands of Scotland without running into trouble. Of course, so much of the fun in reading about Alexia’s adventures is waiting to see how she’ll manage to escape her latest scrape.
The steampunk gets turned up a few notches in Changeless, especially with the introduction of Madame Lefoux, inventor extraordinaire. It’s Madame Lefoux who, at Lord Maccon’s request, outfits Alexia’s new parasol with all sorts of ingenious weaponry. There’s also quite a lot of intricate detail, and maybe just a mite too much, about the aethographor, kind of the steampunk version of the telegraph. Overall, though, the technology of this world is fascinating and only one of the many reasons why I wish I could live in it.
One nitpick that I have about Changeless is how minimally some of my favorite characters from the first book appear in it, like Professor Lyall, Lord Akeldama, Biffy, and Floote. Even Lord Maccon is off-page for a while, much to my dismay. I also must vent my feelings over the ending of Changeless: NOOOOOOOO!!!! I’m rather peeved at a certain character right now. I shall, however, put all my faith in Gail Carriger to set all to rights with the next book, which I am very happy to report I have on hand so as to avoid another horrible delay in continuing this wonderful series.