Vered Ehsani

An decent distraction read that will likely appeal to genre fans. I needed the distraction as I was waiting in the emergency room with my mom who had broken her arm (for those of you who know of my broken finger last year, you can tell I come by my grace honestly). So without damning it with faint praise, it worked for me, in this situation, where my normal critical thinking skills were otherwise occupied. That doesn't mean I would have tolerated just anything, however. The tv in the E.R. show more room stayed 'off.'



This is the first in a series staring Beatrice, investigator for a clandestine Society of Paranormals. The head of the society is a werewolf, so right away we're keyed in to the dimensions of the occult. Beatrice is also haunted the ghost of her dead husband, Gideon. Alas, fortunes in the household have changed dramatically, and they must follow Father as he accepts a post in Africa. On the boat, Beatrice meets an effusive young woman. Initially off-putting with her refusal to bow to Victorian decorum, Beatrice realizes she might not have much opportunity for socializing out in the bush and should make the best of it.

"We hadn’t been formally introduced, but I was so startled that rather than ignore the person (the socially appropriate response to such an intrusive and offensive question), I turned to face a young woman with a pleasant, rosy countenance, a charmingly plump figure and dark-blue eyes."

It's light, it's generally cute and ought to appeal to those who enjoy Gail Carriger's Parasol Protectorate. I feel like there's might have been thing going on here with the Magical Negro and White Savior which was sadly unsurprising. Take Victorian attitudes about non-white races, and what is an author left with? Still, there's also fierce lions, a robot and a gently developing love interest, so it has plenty to keep one distracted--although for me the love interest description became an irritation. Why must authors use 'taunt' and 'smirk' when they mean 'tease?' I counted at least four instances of 'smirk' after this one.
"He smirked as if delighted to be the object of my attention."

It's not particularly intense, which is nice for those times when one's read is interrupted by emergency room staff. There is the feeling of the novella about it as the ending felt a bit rushed--but that could have been us getting ready to leave the E.R. It could have been the author juggling a bit much to wrap everything up, but at least there are subsequent books available.

Two and a half stars, rounding up for keeping my mind busy show less

A self-published steampunk adventure in the same vein as the dire Ministry of Peculiar Occurences novella I reviewed earlier. However, this is much better written and distinctly more coherent. It does seem to start in media res, so it's probably worth checking the author's website for the free prequel. Not bad, and interesting enough for me to make a start on case 2.

I was unaware of this book until very recently, and it surprised me in many ways (all of them good). I have read her paranormal steampunk set in early Nairobi and loved them, so I was surprised to see that this is set in current times in Vancouver. I really enjoyed the imaginative turn taken with the afterlife/ghost theme as it is so different from the ordinary yet is written so clearly that my imagination visualized everything easily. The characters certainly are and become real very show more quickly. I plan to read more in this series because it is so interesting!
I have the audio, and I am certain that the soft spoken delivery of Steven Jay Cohen really did add many positives to my enjoyment.
I requested and received a free review copy via AudioBookBOOM from the publisher, author, or narrator. show less

urban-fantasy, paranormal, historical-fiction, were-folk, ghosts, sly-humor, Africa, Kenya
Another marvelous book by one of my favorite authors, one that stretches my imagination in very good ways. Meet the African god of death, a ginormous spider who can spin a silk rope to reach the Sky, the god of lightning, Bea's flying horse, and lots more fascinating characters, all set in Victorian Nairobi. Great fun with a side order of education, it seems like each new book is my favorite until the show more next one arrives! As for the plot, the publisher's blurb gives hints and there is no need for spoilers here. Enjoy! show less