Emma Jane Holloway

I got a copy of this book to review through NetGalley. I have absolutely loved this series so far and this book was no exception. It was the best book of the series and just absolutely wonderful.

Evie is at University studying like she’s always wanted, but she’s not getting to study what she wants and she is still the pawn of the Gold King and trapped at the University by the magical bracelets she is forced to wear. Nick is missing and presumed dead. Tobias is also ensnared in the Gold show more King’s trap and is stuck working as his Maker. Imogen remains in a coma and undergoes a frightful journey of her own to escape the imprisonment of her soul. The Baskerville affair is finally starting to reveal itself and leads to an awesome final showdown between the leaders of the Baskerville affair and the Steam Barons.

Wow...this was a wonderful series. It’s full of gadgets, magic, intrigue, mystery, action, adventure, and a bit of romance. I loved it. This is a long book, but it never lags...it was impossible to put down and was just a wonderful read. There are so many mysteries revealed. We finally learn what the Baskerville Affair is and who the Schoolmaster is.

Evie goes through a lot of changes in this book and some of them are pretty dark. She ends up having to use the dark side of her magic in a big way to survive. And man when Evie goes dark she does it all the way. I was amazed at how much she changes and how she ends up balancing everything in the end. I also loved that there isn’t a love triangle anymore, all of that is resolved in the second book. Evie loves Nick and Nick loves her and that is that.

Tobias features a lot in the story. He has moved on with his life as well and is trying to make a life with Alice. I do wish Alice had featured in the book a bit more, I love her character as well. Anyway, Tobias is the Gold King’s maker and torn between protecting his family by doing what the Gold King wants and helping the rebellion. Tobias walks a fine line and does it fairly well.

Imogen also features a lot in the story but it a totally different way. She is in a coma for most of the book and is fighting in a different place to free her soul. I won’t say too much about this except to say that Imogen ends up having a tough streak that I never knew about before and faces some truly scary scenarios.

We also learn a lot more about the different Steam Barons in this book. The Blue Baron, Violet Baron, and Scarlet Barons are all in the story a lot. However, the best part of the whole book is when we get to meet the Black Kingdom leader. The Black Kingdom has long remained a mystery, but finally that mystery is unveiled and it is more awesome that I could have imagined….I loved it!

Of course there is the epic final battle between the Steam Barons and the rebellion. This was full of delightful gadgets and truly awful inventions, it was fantastic.

My only complaint is that there are some things that aren’t wrapped up all that well. For example Tobias and Imogen both have a lot of loose ends. Then the way things end with Evie and Nick is just begging for more adventurous stories about the two. There are so many side characters that I want to read more about!

Overall an absolutely wonderful read, I adored this whole steampunk series. It was epic in proportions, had some humor, was complex, had wonderful world-building, excellent characterization and was just wonderfully done. I really can’t recommend it highly enough, as a series it was one of the most fantastic reads of the year for me. It was just beautifully written and finely crafted and just perfect. show less

3.5/5 stars

Evelina Cooper is the niece of Sherlock Holmes. But not in the world we know, in an excellently crafted and fleshed-out world where steam power dominates and those who control it, the Steam Barons, rule nearly all. The Steam Barons decide who has power and who does not, and they harshly suppress any other forms of power, technological and magical. This gives them unprecedented control, and the ability to make even the nobility bow to their will. But not everyone is happy with show more this. There's a thriving black market for mechanical items and a shadow organization trying to undermine the Steam Barons. And, in hiding, there are magicians.

This leads us to Evelina, living with the Roths (best friend Imogen, rakish Tobias, and their parents, the quiet Lady Bancroft and the mercurial Lord Bancroft). A servant girl is killed and mysterious intruders abound. There are plots upon plots, all of them leading back to that one, dead, servant. Evelina wants to solve the mystery herself, Lord Bancroft wants her distracted so she can't, and a Steam Baron has hired Sherlock Holmes to investigate something that will lead him straight to the Roth's doorstep. The mystery is oh-so-tangled, and at the end, even when it is solved, some things remain unclear and many things are painful for those left standing.

I like this book because of the world building, because the characters make hard decisions, and because even though I figured out parts of the mystery I had no idea about the ultimate solution. I like Evelina, with her circus and magic background, and her determination to get an education, and for her willingness to pay the cost. I liked her magical and technological friends, Mouse and Bird. The villain was truly evil, the Steam Barons frightening, and the love both uplifting and sad.

I'm very interested to see what happens with Imogen. I'm suspicious of her dreams of being confined in a box. With the mysterious automatons Lord Bancroft tried to hide, the one Tobias destroyed, and that so much magic and mystery took place when Imogen was so ill and her twin sister died. I wonder what she is. Is she Imogen or is she a creation of technology and magic?

(Provided by publisher) show less

The past few years we've seen an insurgence of popularity for Sherlock Holmes. We've also seen a growth in strong female protagonists in all sorts of literature. A Study in Silks brings those together. The story follows the adventures of Evelina Cooper as she comes of age in London Society while also trying to solve a murder and other mysterious that may or may not be related. In addition to catering to the newly invigorated popularity of Sherlock Holmes and female heroines, this book also show more covers the Steampunk fascination as well as dabbling in magic and mysticism of the urban fantasy genre.

The book quickly and elegantly establishes the relationship and character of Evelina Cooper as the niece of Sherlock Holmes who grew up in a circus, has magical abilities at her fingertips, enjoys tinkering with gears and motors and is now living as a guest in the home of Lord and Lady Bancroft. A lot of details that come together to make an interesting character. Due to her circus upbringing, Evelina is not likely to have a chance in high society. But the more "respectable" nature of her Holmes relations and her friendship with the daughter of Lord Bancroft has given her the possibility of at least socializing in higher circles with the remote chance of eventually being admitted as a member of that higher echelon of society. Of course, that all hinges on how respectable Evelina keeps herself and whether or not she can hide the fact that she possesses magical talents (a force which is shunned and despised in society) or that she has unladylike desires such as going to school or inventing machines.

Since we are in a "Steampunk" alternate London. the book sets up a new form of political and economic influence known as the Steam Barons. Essentially London is segmented into neighborhoods each beholden to a different Steam Baron for the energy to run their households and businesses. The Steam Barons provide electricity, heat, water and even a degree of "protection" to those who respect them and pay their dues. This group is very wary of magic for its defiance of science and they definitely don't take kindly to amateur tinkers coming up with their own inventions outside of control of the Barons. Naturally this means that Evelina's natural tendencies may not fit well in this society.

Before too long, the book has thrown us a few mysteries to be solved. First, Evelina stumbles across evidence of a mixture of "dark magic" and mechanical inventions within the Bancroft home. Second, a young woman is found murdered in the front foyer of that same home. Even worse, though no one else can detect it, Evelina discovers traces of magic on the corpse. The murder and the presence of magic could both mean ruin for the family. With this in mind alongside her innate curiosity, Evelina sets out to solve the mystery.

The book does a lot of "world building" by establishing and manipulating history and relations between the various powerful influences. The plot continues to get more and more intricate as time goes on. By the end of the book there are multiple different mysteries to be examined and solved. As a reader, it was not a difficult leap of faith to assume that these different mysteries would be interrelated but the author did a good job of keeping each thread unique and individual such that there always seemed to be the possibility of more than one distinct problem to be solved. And in fact, even though these various mysteries were related in many ways, they also stood on their own with plenty of intrigue and problems.

In addition to a TON of intricate plot points and world building, the book is also filled with a lot of characters. While Evelina is definitely the main character of the book we also spend some time navigating the streets of London through the Point of View of some of the secondary characters. None of the characters receive the same treatment and backstory as Evelina but most of these secondary characters are rather interesting and have multi-faceted motivations and characteristics. Not terribly surprising (given that we are dealing with a story of a young woman about to "come of age" in society), there are a couple of primary male characters each vying for the affection of young Evelina. The love triangle isn't at the forefront of the story and each of these characters also have solid actions in the core plot of the book, but there is definitely a romantic plot full of intrigue and entanglements.

Amid all of her adventures with Steam Barons, street thugs and magical beings Evelina shows herself nervous but capable. About midway through the book we meet a strange new character named Dr. Mangus. He apparently has old ties to the Bancroft family and has come to London searching for….something. His motivations are unclear and it seems evident that he isn't tied to the murder but it is also readily apparent that he isn't someone to be trusted. Before long it becomes clear that he will be Evelina's nemesis. As Sherlock has his Moriarty, Evenlina will have her Mangus, or at least so it seems.

Speaking of Sherlock, he does make a small cameo in this novel. Throughout the course of Evelina's investigation there is always the possibility that Holmes may show up. She communicates him and Dr. Watson via letters and it seems he is off working on a case in Bohemia. When he does finally show up in person, Holmes seems willing to act as a bit of a sounding board for Evelina to help her solve the case. Naturally he does stick his ego out a bit to point out some "obvious" things that may have been missed, but mostly he lets Evelina do her work.

The Steampunk, historical romance, Holmes-ian mystery and urban fantasy elements were all enjoyable and well crafted. The biggest problem I had was that it felt like the author was trying to do "too much." She did a good job of drawing all of the elements together and making a cohesive and interesting story but part of my wondered if perhaps some portions could have received better treatment if another portion had been excluded. At the same time, the way everything fit together is very intriguing and I really had a lot of fun with it. I did like Evelina as a character. She's not as analytical and emotionally disjointed as her Uncle Sherlock and as a result the way she approaches the adventure and the mystery results in a number of problematic situations.

There were also a number of times that I felt like things were stretched a bit too far or came about due to some very convenience coincidences. Still, the plot was engaging and left me wanting more which seems odd considering this novel is over 500 pages. It did feel a bit long and disorienting at times, especially when doing the heavy world building with the Steam Barons and the magical elements. The plot and characters were well enough executed that even the lengthier segments could be overlooked for overall enjoyment. The book does end with a pretty hefty cliffhanger and a number of dangling threads to be resolved. Fortunately you don't have to wait long for the sequel. The book is actually part of a trilogy and it looks like the author and publisher are set to release books two and three over the next two months.

Overall this was a fun mystery adventure with a lot of exciting elements all bundled together into a single package. I look forward to seeing what happens next.

****
3.5 out of 5 stars show less

What a perfect book for me. Steampunk and mystery with a touch of Sherlock Holmes are just what the doctor ordered!

This is a gritty world, one where the class divide is broad and enforced harshly. Evelina Cooper is a wonderful heroine, niece to Sherlock Holmes, and doing her best to be part of the best of Society despite her ... eclectic ... background. I loved the mystery, loved the heroine, and admired the world-building. The writer knows her craft, and it shows.

Highly recommended for show more fans of steampunk who enjoy a dose of mystery with a spunky main character. show less