Philippa Ballantine

There are those books that suck you in completely and pull you deep down into their depths. When you stop reading it is almost painful because you were submersed in the world that you were reading about. And the characters....books like this make me feel like I know these characters. That maybe they were once intimate friends of mine. This is one of those books for me! Stepping back into The Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences was like visiting old friends but only better because I swear that I show more enjoyed this book even more than the first!

I LOVED The Janus Affair! Loved it! Everything that I enjoyed about Phoenix Rising was back in this second book and there was more! That's right...more! In this book, Eliza and Wellington begin to secretly investigate the very odd and mysterious disappearances of a few leaders of the feminist movement. Secretly investigate because it seems like these disappearances are being ignored by the Ministry. And Eliza and Books are still in hot water for all of the trouble that they managed to cause from their last case. As always trouble is underfoot whenever these two get their hands on a good mystery.

One of my favorite things about this book was the growing and changing relationship between Books and Eliza. I'll try to be as spoiler-free as possible but it really was what MADE this book for me. I loved the fractures and misunderstandings that were abundant and played an important role in this book. I felt like each step of the book was leading up to something, and that something happened at the end of the book just like I had hoped! Did I say that I loved this book already??? I seriously did! I had a hard time putting the book down and found myself wondering how I am going to possibly wait for the next book to come out. Aack! I may end up rereading these two books to help hold me off until book 3 comes out. But back to my thoughts on it. The steampunk aspect was fun to read about it...I loved reading about all of the different gadgets and gizmos. Although there were a few times that the technical parts of explanation went way over my head, I felt like it really added to the story. I've got to add that I really like the mystery that is included in the interludes throughout the book. I feel like these interludes are giving us hints on whats to come in the series. It is very intriguing! Reading this book was such a fun-filled adventure with unexpected twists and turns and so much more! I can't get enough of these books and I'm really eager to see what kinds of trouble Eliza and Books can get into next. Because you just know that somehow they are going to get themselves in more trouble. It is bound to happen. And I'll be there to read all about it!!

All in all, a deliciously good read and a great follow-up to the 1st book! I highly recommend this series if you haven't tried it yet. Especially if you are thinking about dipping your toes in the steampunk genre. You won't be disappointed! As for me, I'm going to be impatiently waiting for the next book to come out. Highly recommended!

Bottom Line: An unputdownable read! Already a favorite series of mine and we are only on book 2!

Disclosure: I was lucky enough to receive an e-galley of this through Edelweiss and the publisher. show less

There is something about team books that draw me in. More than just the fact you can often have two entirely different personalities being forced to work together because they truly are stronger together then apart. I think that it can lead to some very telling social problems. Sorcha, for instance, is extremely powerful as an 'Active' (or the 'brute strength'). She'll kick anyone's butt and do it with a smile, or rather smirk, on her face. She cannot however react normally in a social show more setting. She has Nynnia convinced that if she goes near her, Sorcha will flay her alive, is in a failing marriage with her original partner Kolya and tends to crush Merrick's (her current partner) spirit more often than not. Her lack of perfect is kind of why I like her however. She doesn't try to change or convince others she is anything she's not.

Merrick on the other hand is like an over-eager puppy at times. He's younger, inexperienced and doesn't always censor his mouth (or thoughts) well enough. He's a 'Sight', the directing force to Sorcha's blunt force. Basically without him Sorcha can't direct all her power and without Sorcha, Merrick doesn't have any physical power of his own. Ballantine doesn't set them up as romantic interests. For one, Sorcha is married (unhappily or otherwise). For two, Ballantine is at pains to emphasis that not all Pairings have to be romantic. They can happen, but if there's a souring on one end, there'll be a souring at the other as well.

Instead Sorcha has a sort of love interest in Raed, aka the Pretender, a quasi-Pirate who helps Sorcha and Merrick out. A lot of what Raed says is subterfuge and misdirection; he isn't the most truthful of people, but he has his reasons. I didn't feel like there was a lot of substance to him though, didn't feel like there was a concrete reason why Sorcha would risk a whole ton load of trouble to start something with him.

The world of Geist is an intriguing blend of fantasy, paranormal and history. It's not really any more of one genre than another, nor is any of it emphasized above each other. Fans of history may be able to spot all the historical references that were slightly skewed to fit in with the world, while fans of fantasy will be able to spot the magic's used and fans of the paranormal will marvel over the 'undead' that Sorcha and co. fight. It has a little something of everything in other words.

I look forward to the next book in the series and finding out more about Nynnia (who is more than she appears, try understanding what though, cause I sure didn't) and seeing where Sorcha's marriage goes, her partnership with Merrick (which is highly irregular) and the burgeoning feelings for Raed. show less

I wish I could say that I liked this novel better than I do, as the authors really tried to build some interesting protagonists, develop a screw-ball relationship between the two, and give you an interesting set of interlocking conspiracies. Part of the problem is that Steam Punk is rapidly setting into a formula, but the main issue is that the middle of this book kind of dragged for me, and that's the kiss of death for what should be a fast-paced thriller. I'm still interested in the next show more book in the series. show less

Very, very original premise and world-building (enough to warrant multiple "very"s!), but less original plot, with some rather confusing gaps. Oh well. Hopefully most of those questions will be satisfied in the sequel(s), so I'll just have to pick those up when next I have the chance! (What was that I said a few days ago about not buying more books...? That I'd never stick to it? Yeah, sounds realistic.)