Suzannah Rowntree

Actual rating 4.5
Excellent prose and character work, with that character work being tightly interwoven into the story’s narrative themes, which are in turn tightly interwoven into the narrative plot. The Lady of Kingdoms also happens to be one of those rare, superbly paced books that intermingles action scenes, intrigue scenes, and character interaction scenes with none feeling rushed, taking too long or ever being less than entertaining, and without any scene ever feeling like fluff or show more filler. show less

I am quite frustrated that this book is marketed to people who love Gail Carriger -- it's just nothing like -- too dark, lacking in humor, bleak in outlook and a little too flimsy in world-building. It's not a bad book, not at all, but the comparison makes it unsatisfying in the extreme. On it's own merits -- I like how it ties in with history. I like the feistiness of the main characters. I like the potential romance. I like the loyalty of women.

Ohhh boy, this book is--wow.

It's dark and deep and fabulously so, especially for a novella. The biblical undertones are fantastic, and subtle. SO good.

I'm not familiar with the original story, so it was interesting to have this as my first exposure to it. I'm certainly curious to go look up other iterations of it now!

Anarchist on the Orient Express
by Suzannah Rowntree
This is book number 2 in the series. Miss Sharp, our main character and maid/bodyguard for Princess May accompanied the Princess on a tour through Europe. This is where they encounter some rebellion, anarchists, and a bomb thrown at them. Also, the monstrous side of life such as vampires.
The amnesia Miss Sharp has about her past is partly filled in. She meets some family and friends of her past but doesn't recognize them. I won't say which show more ones. I really enjoyed these books. Just enough supernatural to be fun. Enough mystery and adventure to get a thrill. show less