Romancing the Inventor

Romancing the Inventor
by Gail Carriger
ebook, 149 pages
Published Nov. 1, 2016
9781944751067

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Imogene Hale is a lowly parlourmaid with a soul-crushing secret. Seeking solace, she takes work at a local hive, only to fall desperately in love with the amazing lady inventor the vampires are keeping in the potting shed. Genevieve Lefoux is heartsick, lonely, and French. With culture, class, and the lady herself set against the match, can Imogene and her duster overcome all odds and win Genevieve's heart, or will the vampires suck both of them dry?

This is a stand-alone LBGTQ sweet romance set in Gail Carriger's Parasolverse, full of class prejudice, elusive equations, and paranormal creatures taking tea.

I received a copy of the ebook from the author in exchange for my honest review.

First off, I've read Gail Carriger's Parasol Protectorate series, The Finishing School Series, and the new Prudence series. Basically, what I'm trying to say is "I'm a Gail Carriger fan". 

Romancing the Inventor was such a breath of fresh air for me. One of my favorite things about Carriger's books is the characters. She write such diverse and colorful characters and Genevieve LeFoux has always been a favorite of mine since she debuted in Changeless. The constant sadness that came along with her character made me always quietly root for things to turn out well. She became even more of a favorite after reading some of her childhood in the Finishing School Series. To finally get to read Genevieve's happy ending was just wonderful.

Imogene, the main character of the story is lovely. character. She's strong willed, a romantic, and optimistic. She's trying to find where she fits in the world during a time period where women are supposed to be with men (and that's that), where classes don't mix. She constantly is saying she isn't special, only that she's "good with sums". Yet, there's something fresh and sweet about her, especially when staying strong defending herself against those who think she's trying to move up in the Hive household.

I thought the budding romance between Imogene and Genevieve was sweet, romantic, and completely natural. This was not my first forray into an LBGTO romance, but it definitely left me with more of a sweet happy feeling after reading, because of how well these two characters fit together.

In my opinion, Carriger's done it again with creating a novel in her series that is a romance, but is sweet and realistic, and just a lovely piece of standalone work. 

Soulless (Parasol Protectorate #1)

Soulless: A Parasol Protectorate Novel
by Gail Carriger
Orbit 2009

Summary (from Goodreads):
Alexia Tarabotti is laboring under a great many social tribulations. First, she has no soul. Second, she's a spinster whose father is both Italian and dead. Third, she was rudely attacked by a vampire, breaking all standards of social etiquette.
Where to go from there? From bad to worse apparently, for Alexia accidentally kills the vampire -- and then the appalling Lord Maccon (loud, messy, gorgeous, and werewolf) is sent by Queen Victoria to investigate.

With unexpected vampires appearing and expected vampires disappearing, everyone seems to believe Alexia responsible. Can she figure out what is actually happening to London's high society? Will her soulless ability to negate supernatural powers prove useful or just plain embarrassing? Finally, who is the real enemy, and do they have treacle tart?

SOULLESS is a comedy of manners set in Victorian London: full of werewolves, vampires, dirigibles, and tea-drinking

Review

I first read Soulless in graphic novel form, illustrated by one of my favorite artists, REM. After I loved the graphic novel so much, I decided to check out the actual novel, wondering if the graphic novel had been based on a different script like the Vampire Kisses graphic novels. Come to find out, the graphic novel is pretty much like the actual novel. It was very interesting to read both and compare the differences of the two, but at the same time each of the forms shine in their own way.

Soulless is unlike anything I have ever read. It combines things that interest me: victorian era, supernatural creatures, and steampunk science. Not only that, but Ms. Carriger does a wonderful job of writing Alexia's sarcastic and whitty nature making her interactions with Lord Maccon wonderfully fun to read. Not only that, but I love ALL the characters of Soulless, even the "bad" ones. Each character has it's own quirks and personalities. I absolutely adore Lord Akeldama, Alexia's flamboyant vampire friend and there hasn't been too many novels out there that has achieved what Ms. Carriger has on the likeable characters front.

Soulless was a quick read due to whitty dialogue and fast paced action scenes, I definely reccomend this book if you are a fan of Meg Cabot, as it reads similar to Cabot's writing style.

5/5