Monday, May 23, 2011

Review: Soulless

This book counts towards the Shifter challenge.




Miss Alexia Tarabotti is a spinster in Victorian London. After all, who would want a woman with scandalous Italian heritage and far too much wit than is strictly good for her?  And that doesn't even mention the secret that Alexia is a preternatural - she doesn't have a soul, which gives her the ability to neutralize the powers of supernaturals like vampires and werewolves.  As a result of this power, Alexia is unwillingly dragged into a supernatural struggle.  With vampires and werewolves disappearing and murderous new beings appearing, all of London is in danger - none more so than Alexia herself.  With her trusty parasol in hand, Alexia will have to take on evil scientists and monsters she never imagined - not to mention one very handsome Alpha werewolf who is taking quite an interest in her...

Entertainment: 

Hands-down awesome.  A funny, witty, clever, steampunk-supernatural novel with a cool heroine, some action scenes, and a great romance.

Plot: 

I actually expected the romance to be much more marginal and the action to be the focus of the story, not the other way around, so that was a little surprising.  But it worked out all right and made for an enjoyable story.  There were twists, there was dramatic tension, there was romantic tension, and there was a nice ending.  Or at least I thought it was nice.  Overall, a well-done plot.

Characters: 

I liked Alexia, I loved Lord Akeldama, I thought the villain was pretty good, and I thought most of the side characters were quite well done.  I'm still neutral about Lord Maccon, the love interest, but other than that I liked the rest of the cast.

Writing: 

I loved the "quaint" writing, the clever dialogue, and the entertaining, light-hearted tone.  That said, there were a few things that bothered me: some obvious anachronisms, and an odd narration style. When the two romantic leads were together, they alternated narrating the story by switching viewpoints each paragraph, which was a little jarring and kind of confusing.  That said, though, Soulless was pretty well written.

End Result: four stars.  A good book, definitely worth your time.

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