Book Review: Changeless by Gail Carriger

Hi readers, 

I know this post should have been up last Monday but I wasn't feeling well. So, now I'm a week behind in my reviews of this series, however I'm ahead in reading, which is good news because I've been researching what other novels Gail Carriger has written and I'm going to write about that when I review the last book. 

This book continues from book one: Soulless. I'd so recommended reading that review first because I don't plan to go into vast details about characters etc. The plot of Changeless is that Lord Maccon takes off to Scotland as a strange effected starts happening in London; the immortal suddenly become mortal. Alexia of course becomes involved in it and ends up setting off to Scotland to follow the strange effect and her husband. There she learns of her husband's last surviving relative from a long ago marriage. She also solves the mystery of the strange effect, which turns out to be an Egyptian mummy and leads into learning more about the soulless state. The twist at the end is also very good, though there are hints throughout the book about this that readers will pick up on, but I'm not going to spoil it here. However, in book 3 I shall have to write about it because it's an important plot point.  

I did enjoy the plot of this one as we get to learn more about Lord Maccon's past and werewolves. The change of setting to Scotland was also refreshing and new characters are introduced too, which all adds to giving a freshness to the second book. The pace felt just as fast as the first one with things going wrong quickly throughout and a mystery to be solved. The second plot line involves things happening behind Alexia and her life seem to be in danger. This to does get resolved, but I feel there is more to it. And of course having now read the 3rd book I know this sort of carries over.

The new characters that get introduced are really good. The first is Madame Lefoux who is a French scientist that dresses as a gentleman. I enjoyed her character and the fact that she likes men's clothing. She also has a connection to Alexia French maid, who actually isn't all she seems.... I love Madame Lefoux creations and underground lab. The second character that I want to talk up as Lord Maccon's great a few times granddaughter. She has been made leader of his old pack, even though she's not a werewolf and badly wants to become one. She is interesting because of her attitude towards things and the fact like nearly all female characters in this series she is going against the Victorian ideals of gentle women.

Like the first book I love the use of different dialogue and the Scottish accents. They are much more broad this time and it took my brain a few seconds to figure out the words. But it was easier enough to understand. It just makes the characters and settings more real.

There is slightly more steampunk elements this time and I enjoyed the traveling on dirigible scenes and the messaging machine. Was again the steampunk was light and in the background, meaning that characters could be more focused on. I do hope that the steampunk will grow stronger throughout the next three books, but I wouldn't mind if it did remain in the background.   

Overall, this is a good second book and I still find the characters enjoyable. The change of setting and the additional new characters as well as the two plots helps make it feel fresher.

Next week: the 3rd book Blameless.

Thanks for reading. 

Image from: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6933876-changeless

Book Review: Soulless by Gail Carriger

Hi readers,

Today, I'm kicking off a review of a series of books called The Parasol Protectorate subtitled; An Alexia Tarabotti Novel, with the first book; Soulless. I have reviewed series of books before on this blog, namely the Black Dagger Brotherhood, which is still ongoing and actually I'm not sure I've reviewed them all come to think of it!

But it's been awhile since I last read a series all in one go. I think this is because I have this habit of wanting to have all the books and being able to read them one after another. I think my brain finds it easier and I don't have to keep the memory of character, settings and plot details in my head for months or years as I wait for the next book/s to be published. Does anyone else do this too?

Anyway, I'm not sure how I found out about this novel, but I did read it close to the time it was published or within two years. I did enjoy it the first time I read it then upon finding out it was a series I had to collect the others. However, I just never got a round to reading them afterwards. Well, the time has come and I've started now and hopefully, got something of a time table to read them all in and review them!

The Parasol Protectorate novels are set in an alternative Victorian history where the supernatural has come to the surface and been mostly accepted. Alongside, this is is a bit of Steampunk and I say this because it features mostly in the background and in Soulless appears very little. Which is why if you are someone who's into the supernatural genre and wants to get into Steampunk then this series would be a good start. Or if you find Steampunk a little hard to get into for whatever reason and/or you are looking for a new Steampunk book to read then it's really worth a go.

The narrative is in third person and follows the heroine, Alexia Tarabotti, who is described as a half Italian spinster who has no soul, on a mission to find out where the lone vampires and werewolves have disappeared to. I really like Alexia, she is a great female character who doesn't seem to let the Victorian suppression of women get to her. She stands out above the rest and is seemingly happy with the fact she's been 'shelved' and won't ever marry. This gives her liberties which she wouldn't have otherwise, but it also leads into the situation she ends up in at the start of the novel.

Having sneaked off from a ball to have tea in the library, she is attacked by a vampire and accidentally kills him. She is saved by a werewolf, Lord Maccon, who then helps to cover the situation up. It turns out her mother, step-sisters and step-dad don't know she is soulless. In fact not even her best friend, Ivy, who has a very poor but funny choice in hats knows about it. Alexia then ends up helping to investigate why she was attacked as Lord Maccon is part of a BUR - Bureau of Unnatural Registry and it's part of his job. This all leads to the discover of a group of scientists who are experimenting on the supernatural.

There is a second plot line sees Alexia and Lord Maccon falling in love. I was a little worried that this would draw too much away from the main story, but it actually works well. They have a kinda cliched friendship were they don't seem to get on, but they actually enjoy annoying each other. Their interested and love for each other slowly comes though and I loved the scandalized (well, it would have been in the 1800's) scene were they are caught kissing by Alexia's family and have an argument about getting married. Which of course then does happen!    

The plot is really well written, funny in many places and serious in others. I love the revealing of the mystery behind what is going on and it just keeps you reading on. The setting works really well too. It does feel like Victorian London and the description of all the places just lets you imagine this alternative history highly. The description of character and clothes is very well done too. I love all the dresses Alexia wears and every time Ivy shows up in a new hat which is often so ugly the other characters' reactions are just priceless.

Speaking of, the other characters are really good. They all seem to be written as if they were the main character and their dialogues work well. Lord Maccon is Scottish though he tries to sound more London, but I love how it comes through in small doses. His background is kinda kept in the dark, but I think this might appear in one of the other novels. The other characters also seem set up for more, but their development is good anyway.

The ending actually makes Soulless feel like a stand alone book. I was thinking there'd be a cliffhanger or lead into book two, but the ending is kind of closed. I actually like that as it makes me feel more satisfied about finishing it.

Overall, I really enjoyed reading this book. I'd so recommend it to everyone, even if you are not big or the supernatural, or steampunk or history or romance as there feels to be something for everyone in this novel and even if you dislike all those genres the characters and plot are just really good.

Thanks for reading and next week I'll review book 2!          

Image from: http://www.gailcarriger.com/books/parasol-protectorate-series

Book Review: Heaven by Christoph Marzi

Hi Readers,

I finished this book the night before I went to London, so about two weeks ago now. I brought at the same time as Angelfall and it was another recommended by my best friend when we saw it in the book shop. I wanted to read it because it seemed an interesting fast read. However, I didn't like it as much as Angelfall. 

So this novel is about two teenagers who meet on the roof tops of London and the girl, called Heaven, which is actually her nickname, has had her heart stolen, but somehow she has survived and been able to run away. David, the young man, decides to help her find her heart and the person who stole it. I really liked this idea and at first I thought it was like a modern and different retelling of Snow White. You know, like what had happened if the hunters man had cut out Snow White's heart and she had lived? No. Turns out this story is based around a 'lost' fairy tale; The Fallen Fairy's Heart which the plot states the Earl of Rochester wrote.

Which in itself is pretty interesting and a good plot device, but it didn't help me like this story any better. Anyway, the two main characters do cross paths with the 'murderers' and find out that they are stealing hearts to give to someone. I won't spoil the ending, but it wasn't what I wanted and it felt very weak compared to the rest of the book, even though the ending is happy enough.

The characters get to visit my favorite and still most wanted place to go Highgate Cemetery. The description of the place was well done and also the horror feelings came through. That was my favorite part of the book really.

I'm not going to say that my problems and the overall problems with the book are because it's a young adult novel as that's unfair. I just think the writing style and some of the plot is to blame. I got really into this book and even after I found out the story was based on this 'lost' fairy tale and the idea that fairies are a part of the sky, but then soon after that it just got a bit dull for me, even with the twist about Heaven's parents and other people being murdered, I'm just not sure what is was, but maybe it dragged a little too much. Also, it doesn't help there's a very unrealistic scene at the end of the book. I get the author was going for the dramatic final, but a fight on the London Eye -that's the big Ferris wheel in London, if you didn't know- just didn't do it for me.  

The development of Heaven and David was very good and their falling in love was done nicely in the background. They both grew on me and I liked learning more about them. The villain characters interested me enough with their mystery, but the actual villain, we never got to spend enough time with and even though we learned his story and why he was after Heaven's heart, I thought more could have been done with him. I liked the ghost character who appears as well, Heaven's butler and the owner of the bookshop. In fact, it did seem like the background characters had been given enough attention to make them feel like they were more then just there support the main characters.

The narrative style started to bug me after awhile because a lot of places and street names are brought up. I guess that's useful in a way if you have been to London because you know where these places are. If you haven't been either you are aware of them or you have to guess. I just felt like being told where the characters were all the time bogged down the story. I loved the descriptions of London from the rooftops, though I did find myself humming the chimney sweep song from Mary Poppins  a few times! Doesn't help there's a quote from the song on the dedication page either. But it's very fitting.

The pace was a mix of fast and slow really, but that didn't give me too much trouble because it seemed to be well balanced. There some okay twists in the story too and you do get a mystery feel from the narrative. There is a lot of reference to other books and stories, mainly Dickens. I get this because he was well known for writing about London and the parts people didn't want to see. I think though the author has just assumed you have read Dickens' novels and there for you'll be able to picture/understand the use of Dickens' characters' names and references. The narrative is told in third person, so that we can get a switch between characters at important moments, though I do wonder if it had been better in first person from the point of view of David.

The dialogue of the characters felt real enough, but I think there might have been too much swearing for me. Which is odd to say in a young adult book and coming from me as well, but sometimes it just felt over used and I dislike that. Other then that though, there was nothing special about it.  So, no needed to fear not being able to understand a London cockney accent!

Overall, I want to say I did like this book. I liked the ideas behind it and the mystery too. The problems was, it just didn't grip me all the way through like it should have done. I didn't get the wanting to put it down urge, I just wanted to finish it, but that seemed to take a lot longer then it should have done. I'd recommended this book to teenagers interested in this kind of thing, but if you wanted a fantasy style story set in London I'd say go read Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman, to this day that story is still with me. (And I just found out I never did a review of it, that needs changing!)

Thanks for reading and I'll see you next week for a new book review.

Ps. if you've got the time please check out my other blog;  https://thestoryfiles.wordpress.com/

Image from: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12735319-heaven

Life Update: Adventures In London!

Hi readers,

I survived London! It was super busy everywhere, but I didn't get lost, which for me is a big bonus. I was so scared that I was going to get lost, because it was the first time I was alone during the day. My mum had invited me to join her for a four day break away, but she was actually working, so during the day I was alone and off on my own adventures. I think it helped that I planned all the places I wanted to go and printed out maps. Also, I went on a tour bus for two days!

So from the beginning, We got an evening train from Manchester to London which was just over two hours. We then took the underground to Black Friars and walked to the first Premiere Inn hotel. The room was small but nice. In the morning, after breakfast, packing and going to my mum's teaching venue. Then I went to the nearest tour bus stop which was next to St. Paul's. I then went around the center of London for three hours. I did take some photos, but they didn't turn out that great. Anyway here are some;

I saw some of the tower of London, which I did want to visit, but it was expensive to get in! 

I went over the London bridge and the river Thames. 

I saw the London Eye which I went on last time.

And I also saw Big Ben again. 

I then went to St Paul's Cathedral. I really wish you could take photos inside, because it's just amazing. I love the crypt too. I also wish I could've spent more time there too. I did go to the top and I took some photos of the London city view, but then I caught in a snow storm and a thunder storm! I was cold and wet by the time I got back inside. I had a cup of tea in the crypt and feeling better and with he weather sunny again, I walked up and down Fleet Street window shopping. 

St Paul's

And a view from the top.

   

I had to meet my mum at 4pm, because we were staying in a different hotel for the rest of the stay. It was still a Premiere Inn, but it was in Holborn, which was really nice. We had a walk around then went for tea in the hotel which was good then we went to bed because my mum had an early start in the morning and I was very tried. 

In the morning, I found out I could get the same tour bus company from Holborn. However it did a different route and because I'd planned to do some museums, it didn't go where I wanted to. I did wait almost an hour for it though! The traffic in London is really bad and you spend most of your time not moving in it. Over an hour later, I made it to the St Paul's bus stop again and switched bus routes on to the one from yesterday because it went past the National History Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum.  

It took me over three hours to reach the stop. It was all down to traffic and the tour bus driver having to have a break and switch out with another driver. Also, my last bus home was at 4pm -4:30pm and I would need two again! At was already around 12pm too. I did the V&A museum first because I knew I'd want more time in the National History. It was a huge place with lots of different things to see, but it just didn't keep my interested up. Maybe it's because I knew there was something better next door! 

Animals and dinos are much more my thing and really enjoy the National History museum. It was super packed though and my feet were killing me. I wish I could've spent more time here too. I got some okay photos, but most of the time people were in the way or the glass just caused issues.

 A really cute bat

My favorite dino

I decided not to get the buses back but to try the Underground. It worried me that I was going to get lost and I'm a nervous of escalators, plus it was the first time I'd been on one alone. However and even though it was the start of rush hour, it wasn't too bad. I was able to figure out where I needed to go and usefully, the train only went one way from the station I was at and it went to the Holborn station. Also, it took only like twenty minutes for me to get back! So, I decided in the future to use the Underground next time I go.

This is the Underground outside the Tower of London. It's not the one I gotten on, but the only photo I had. 

The next day, I went to the British Museum. This was my third visit, but they had lots of new stuff and other stuff I don't remember. I had lots of fun, even though it was busy. I did mean to go to two more which where on the London Uni campus, but I was feeling too tried and my feet hurt too much. Instead, I went to a small park and chilled out till it was time to met up with my mum and catch the train home. It felt like a shorter trip, but I was super tried when I got home. I went to bed almost straight away. 

Here are the photos from the British Museum; 

Overall, London was really good. I enjoyed it and the tour bus was very useful. Though, the Underground - once you get use to it- is better. The museums are very good, but do take a lot of time! Plus, there's lots of people everywhere all the time. I was surprised at all the green areas though and there are so many little parks you can go to, though it's still hard to escape the noise of the city. I'd love to go back and explore some of the more different areas.