Audiobook review: "Etiquette & Espionage" by Gail Carriger

Title: Etiquette & Espionage
Author: Gail Carriger
Publisher:   Hachette Audio, 2013 (print available from Little, Brown Books for Young Readers)
Narrator: Moira Quirk

When Sophronia is told she will be sent off to finishing school, she is not pleased. Not at all. However, after a decidedly odd interview with "Mlle Geraldine," it quickly becomes clear that Madame Geraldine's Finishing Academy for Young Ladies of Quality is not exactly what it appears to be on the surface. As it turns out, the school is not only a place young girls are trained to become ladies, they are also trained to become intelligencers. Classes include etiquette and how to execute a proper curtsy, as well as the use of seduction, stealth, and proper fighting techniques. In addition to all this knew knowledge, Sophronia and her friends do some intelligencing of their own regarding a missing prototype, an older schoolmate who failed to Finish and has been sent to study with the debuts, and other mysterious activity.

This first book in Gail Carriger's new series for teens is just delightful. Fans of her adult series, Soulless, would be well advised to pick this one up as well. Who can resist a fine comedy of manners mixed together with steam technology, the art of espionage, how to manipulate and obtain information, all while still being presentable for afternoon tea or ready to dance a quadrille at a ball? Oh yes, mustn't forget the werewolves and vampires. This book has action and humor in spades.

Sophronia herself is an excellent heroine, and a character I look forward to watching develop over the course of the next books in the series. She's resourceful, intelligent, has a good heart, and does not shy away from getting her hands dirty if necessary. I loved a lot of the secondary characters too, namely the sootie Soap, the young French engineer Vieve (age 9), and the loyal and easily scandalized Dimity (who also, I might add, is the daughter of evil geniuses and describes herself as "a good girl," to their chagrin).

Honestly, I think I like this one more than Soulless, though that might be because I listened to the excellent narration by Moira Quirk. Her accents and inflections completely made this for me, and I would highly recommend that anyone who had trouble getting into this series try the audio. This is one of the 2014 Top Ten Amazing Audiobooks for Young Adults for a reason.

Disclosure: I downloaded this audiobook through my local library and OverDrive.

Audiobook Review: "Behemoth" by Scott Westerfeld

Title: Behemoth
Author: Scott Westerfeld
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio, 2010 (print version available from Simon Pulse)
Narrator: Alam Cumming

Starting off where Leviathan ended, we're thrown back into the world of Darwinists and Clankers, this time with the added bonus of Ottomans who have sort of combined the aesthetic of the Darwinists with the mechanics of the Clankers. For those of you new to this world, this trilogy takes place in an alternate steampunk past during the Great War, or World War I as we call it today. Darwinists are people from the United Kingdom who use genetic engineering to create animals that work as tools, including entire ships and weapons of war. Clankers are Germans and Austrians, among other peoples, who use advanced mechanics and machines as those tools.

In Behemoth, Deryn (disguised as a boy named Dillon in order to be in an airman in the army) is dealing with her growing feelings for Alec, the prince and heir to the Austria-Hungary throne (she is one of only a handful who knows his true identity). Alec, on the other hand, is treated as a prisoner of war aboard the Leviathan, and he must find a way off the ship if he is to keep his secret and fulfill his destiny. Things get complicated when a new friend joins Alec along the way, and as he and two of his men explore the city of Istanbul and join a band of resistors, Deryn muddles through the city on her own after a successfully completed yet badly ended mission. As they find their way to each other, they soon realize the fate of the Leviathan and the English army's fate lies with them.

There was a lot I loved about this volume in the Leviathan trilogy. The number one thing is probably not going to be as loved by most anyone else, but I'm going to say it anyway. There was a character with my brother's name. You might not think that's totally crazy, but here's the thing: My brother's name is Zaven. You don't see many characters with Armenian names like that unless it's a book about Armenian history. And Zaven in the book is Armenian! I loved that bit.

Anyway, Westerfeld does a fantastic job of continuing his story. There's plenty of action, a little romance, the most confused love triangle I've seen since Twelfth Night, and a new alternate culture to explore. I kept hoping that more secrets would be revealed, just because there are so many that either we as readers are privy to that the rest of the characters are not, and those that are mysteries to us as well as the characters.

Quick note on the audio: I love Alan Cumming. I love him in pretty much everything he does, and I love how he can get accents pretty much spot on. He does a fantastic job with the narration. The only thing he did wrong was mispronounce the Armenian word "Nene," a form of the word grandmother. But other than that, he is everything I love in a narrator. Or maybe that's my bias talking.

I'm looking forward to the final book in the trilogy, Goliath, especially on audio since it is once again narrated by Alan Cumming. I'm interested particularly to see if Westerfeld writes anything about the Armenian genocide, which happened in 1915; Behemoth ends in the year 1914. I'm not sure if the next book will go that far into the future, but I'm eager to see.

Disclosure: I got this audiobook from the library.

"Soulless" by Gail Carriger

Title: Soulless: The Parasol Protectorate, #1

Author: Gail Carriger

Publisher: Orbit, 2009

Where and why: I borrowed it from a friend who said it was awesome. And it sounded awesome.

I thought it was about time to post a new review, instead of my ramblings. This book's a bit different. It's written for an adult audience, but it won the Alex Award, an award given to books written for adults that would appeal to teens. I have to agree, this would be great for a teen audience.

Alexia Tarabotti, a 26-year-old spinster with Italian blood (scandalous!), is dragged into some shady dealings; all simply because she has no soul. Her soullessness has an interesting effect on the supernatural—she neutralizes their powers. Now she must deal with Lord Conall Maccon, a deliciously dreamy yet completely infuriating werewolf in charge of a government department that deals with supernatural issues. Not to mention the danger that comes along with knowing far too much than is good for her. Unfortunately, she does love to know too much.

This was a quirky, fun read set in steampunk Victorian-era England in which vampires, werewolves, ghosts and the preternatural all exist in society together. The proper language and manners set a great tone—appropriate to the setting, and hilarious. Especially since inappropriate things tend to happen to Miss Tarabotti, constantly.

There are lots of reasons this would resonate with teens. It has all the usual stuff, like romance, intrigue, mystery, and vampires, werewolves, not to mention all the delicious-sounding descriptions of food I wish I could afford to eat all the time. Alexia loves food and doesn't care who knows it—something I wish I saw more of in teen lit. Plus, it's chock full of laugh-out-loud humor. I found myself giggling constantly.

Alexia is extremely intelligent. She knows all there is to know about "modern" machines (which, of course, are very different from what you'd expect in Victorian England, since this is a steampunk fantasy), and she's very interested in all things science—another reason to cheer for her. Not many science girls out there in the teen lit world (if I'm wrong, feel free to correct me in the comments!).

She also doesn't care at all what her family thinks of her. They constantly wish she were more mild, less imposing, less intelligent, less obnoxious, and prettier. Her mother and half sisters are quite insipid, and it's funny to see the way they react to Alexia's exploits and manners.

I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this book to teens out there who are looking for something supernatural, funny or steampunk. If you like any of these things in books, you'd probably like this one. I have the second one, Changeless, waiting for me to finish my summer course so I have time to read it. Can't wait!