Shelley Adina

4 1/2 stars

Loved this third book in the The Regent’s Devices series! This exciting conclusion to the war with Napoleon has Loveday, Celeste, Emory, and Authur headed to London with new titles and a new mission.

Loveday and Celeste won the Prince’s Prize for designing an amazing airship. Now, they’ve become The Prince’s Own Engineers, an elite team of scientists tasked with building a fleet of the new ships to defeat Napoleon once and for all. But along with navigating the competitive show more nature of the new team, they must also conquer the ton at Almack’s and perhaps find love. There’s also traitors in their midst who are stealing plans & sabotaging the ships. It all comes down to a surprising end battle that will keep you quickly turning the pages.

This is a fabulous book for YA & adults alike. It’s the perfect introduction to steampunk and Regency romance. I loved seeing the friends visit London’s famous sites and even dance the scandalous waltz.

The slow burn romances that have been simmering throughout the series really come to fruition in this book. I love the way the close friendships between Celeste & Emory and Arthur & Loveday develop into more. The relationships are built on mutual respect & admiration as well as attraction. There’s even a fake engagement.

The collaboration between the two authors is seamlessly well written. They’ve taken great pains to include the dialogue, customs, & traditions of the Regency period with a fun, fantastical steampunk twist.

With sweet romance, suspense, mystery, spies & saboteurs, and new inventions to help win the war, this book was so hard to put down. It’s definitely one series you’ll want to read and introduce your STEM loving middle grade/YA daughters to. I’m hoping there are more adventures in store for these heroes! I received an arc from the authors. All opinions are my own and I was not required to provide a positive review. show less

I was so surprised with how much I enjoyed this novel!

This is the first true clean steampunk read that I’ve read, and I have to say that once I got into it I really enjoyed it! It’s such a wonderfully creative spin on a regency read and I am so here for it! I wish I would’ve been able to read the first few books in this series before I read this installment, as it did take me a bit to get my bearings as far as the characters, and the unique situation they find themselves in, but the show more overall language as well. I think I would’ve had an even greater appreciation for the story as a whole if I would’ve read the series in order, but there is enough backstory to make this a standalone.

A double romance equals double the love and charm as we follow Loveday and Celeste and the gang through a myriad of inventions and adventures as they help in the fight against Napoleon and find what their hearts truly desire. And can we just stop for a second and appreciate this cover?! It’s absolutely breathtaking!!!

I really loved this story. The air of adventure and industry is endearing, the characters are uniquely charming, and I was smitten from beginning to end with this unique novel.

*I have voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book which I received from the author/publisher through JustRead Tours. All views and opinions expressed are completely honest, and my own. show less

Lady of Devices by Shelley Adina is like if Mary Poppins and the Lost boys got together and decided to take down London’s Underworld. I loved it.

Claire Trevelyan is a young woman who is just graduating from school, and getting ready to go out into high society to find a husband and start a household… not that she wants anything to do with any of it. On the night after she graduates her father comes home defeated and admits to everyone that the petroleum company he was deeply invested in show more has foundered and he has nothing. After his death while “cleaning his gun,” Claire finds herself out on the streets looking for somewhere to stay. She inadvertently becomes the leader of a gang of children and builds herself into a notorious figure called the Lady of Devices.

I loved the language in this book. It feels vibrant and alive despite being set in Victorian England. I did find it interesting that in this story the American revolution never seems to have happened, or at the very least was unsuccessful. The combustion engine is a folly worthy only of madmen and dreamers, and steam is what will fuel the world. The world Miss Adina creates is lush and whole and something you just want to jump into and run around going “Whoot!” (especially since no one would know what to do with you at all!)

Her talent at being the children’s “governess” is really ironic after she twice says that she was definitely not going to be a governess. there is a humor that runs throughout the story. and no scene feels misplaced or unimportant. Even the outcast Wit, Peony Churchill, and her poker lesson are important to the story. All of the elements are woven together in a way that makes you wonder what great things there are waiting in the sequel Her Own Devices. show less

Magnificent Devices is a steampunk series centered around seventeen year old, Claire Trevelyan who is about to graduate from school and make her societal debut. The series has inventions and villains and lots of strong women who are resourceful and resilient and content to make their own way in life.

Claire Trevelyan is one of the best heroines I've seen and definitely one of the most realistic. At the beginning of Lady of Devices she is a smart, kind girl who lacks confidence and refuses to show more upset the status quo - for all that she believes in intelligence being more important than blood. She has strong opinions but refuses to act on them for fear of her mother and the society she doesn't actually believe in. But, while she begins this way, circumstances lead her to adapt and mold herself into someone new. Throughout the first book she develops a spine - trying new things, overcoming her limitations and rising above what society expects. By the end of Lady of Devices she has started to embrace her role as "governess" and not only agrees to work with Andrew Malvern (which is what she wants to start with) but is willing to voice this in front of her peers.

I really love this series. It's funny, quirky and has a lot of heart. Claire's struggles can be frustrating at times but she approaches it with kindness and a fierce sense of morality. You know, except that time she accidentally killed Lightning Luke.

“I recommend we give your former leader a decent burial.” Claire took command of the situation before the tales got any taller. “Is there any among you who would like to say a few words?” No one moved. Evidently he was not held in high regard among his confederates. How did one go about burying the man one had accidentally killed? “Are we possessed of a shovel?”

Adina, Shelley. Magnificent Devices: Books 1-4 Quartet: Four steampunk adventure novels in one set (Magnificent Devices Boxset) (Kindle Locations 2127-2129). Moonshell Books, Inc.. Kindle Edition. I loved the relationships she begins to develop with the Mopsies and Willie and Snouts and Tigg and Rosie the Chicken. And...Jake.

Here Jake’s photographic memory proved invaluable— and it was he who, on the Wednesday after their arrival, finally returned her engineering notebook, her pencils, and dear Linnaeus to her.
“I figure you ent gonna cut out on us now, Lady,” he said gruffly as he handed them over.
“No.” She clutched the books to her chest, resisting the urge to check that no pages had gone missing. “I’m glad to see your confidence in my character is improving.”
He shook his head, and his chocolate-brown eyes met hers. “You either keeps yer word or I goes to the bobbies and tell ’em it was you what kilt Lightning Luke.”
Clearly she did not have to look as far as the road or the river for justice to be meted out to her. She was harboring it right here.

Adina, Shelley. Magnificent Devices: Books 1-4 Quartet: Four steampunk adventure novels in one set (Magnificent Devices Boxset) (Kindle Locations 2211-2217). Moonshell Books, Inc.. Kindle Edition. I loved that they become "flock-mates", determined to look after each other and work together to achieve their goals. It was also really nice to see Claire find somewhere to belong that doesn't mock or dismiss her ideas.

The world building was interesting and the science fascinating. This is a great book to recommend STEM industries to young girls. I'm not sure how much research the author did and how correct the science parts are - but it encourages curiosity and scientific inquiry and promotes the idea that girls can be not just interested in but accomplished at STEM industries. Claire is always busy asking why and it was perfection.

If there’s anything I hate, it’s someone telling me ‘don’t’ without saying why.”

Adina, Shelley. Magnificent Devices: Books 1-4 Quartet: Four steampunk adventure novels in one set (Magnificent Devices Boxset) (Kindle Locations 214-215). Moonshell Books, Inc.. Kindle Edition.

Plus her thoughts on the role of women in society were divine.

“Little girls should be seen and not heard.” If Claire had heard that once, she’d heard it a thousand times, and every time it irritated her more. Girls should certainly be heard. It was their voices that the world was missing.

Adina, Shelley. Magnificent Devices: Books 1-4 Quartet: Four steampunk adventure novels in one set (Magnificent Devices Boxset) (Kindle Locations 2480-2482). Moonshell Books, Inc.. Kindle Edition.

I hated Lord James. He was a prat of the highest order. His dismissal and mockery of Claire's intelligence and his general comments about women were disgusting. I did like that Andrew rebukes him for it. But I didn't really like Andrew either. For all he seems to be open to the idea of female intelligence and curiosity - he still is carelessly dismissive of her theories - even if he manages to refrain from commenting in front of the children. Just because he has not come up with anything new - doesn't mean she won't. Honestly the hints of romance just irritated me. I'd prefer Claire finds her own way in the world without worrying about a man.

Overall this was well written, interesting and imaginative steampunk novel. It's a great addition to any young girl's library - or just any female. 5 stars. show less