20 September 2013

Soulless - Gail Carriger


Soulless was my introduction to Steampunk, a genre which has held me hook, line and sinker. After reading this book, which was loaned to me by a friend, I would definitely like to make further explorations into the genre.


Soulless (Parasol Protectorate, #1)Alexia Tarabotti was a character I found frankly hilarious, I don’t know if she was designed as such or if she became so accidentally, but I couldn’t help giggling at her quirks. I loved her mannerisms as she did her level best to fit into a Victorian London not so different than our own, but with some quirks of its own.

The only fault I could find with Alexia was the emphasis placed on her British-ness. It was a bit like a part of her had been written using soaps as the only guide and it became a bit caricature-ish. The supposed culture of ‘Oh he’s been shot, but maybe if we give him some tea he’ll get up and be hunky dory again’.

I loved Lord Maccon, his completely bewildered aggressiveness was fascinating to watch unfold. And pairing him with Professor Lyall was pure genius. They’re a lot like a more balanced, but more hot headed, Sherlock and Watson duo. Brilliant!

The story was as compelling as the characters who it revolved around. Artificially created Vampires, who’d have thought it? It’s a take on Vampires I’d never have thought of, even after watching the alternate reality episode of Buffy where she never came to Sunnydale and the Harvest went ahead leading to the building of a machine which basically milked human blood.

I was really content with the ending, although some of the reasoning behind it I found aggravating. I think if it had been a stand-alone novel I would have been more than happy, but I’m very glad the series is continuing. I particularly liked the part where Ivy blushed.

All in all a brilliant story!

Rowen

No comments:

Post a Comment