Soulless by Gail Carriger HBIC Review - Parajunkee

H B I C R E V I E W  - by Parajunkee

Soulless (The Parasol Protectorate)

Downloaded to my Kindle from Amazon.com - paid for by me.
Author's Website

PJV's Quickie POV:  A charming and very witty mix of a multitude of sub-genres.  Soulless kept me fixated on the plot while entertaining me throughout with laugh-out-loud moments and I think I might have even blushed a few times.  Even the author description was entertaining in its hilarity.

Review: Miss Alexia Tarabotti has accepted her spinster status and the fact that she is not in possession of soul like a true lady.  Her mother and two half-sisters might be veritable dim-wits and they even might have given her the worst room in the house, but life isn't that bad.  She has a wonderful library left to her by her deceased father (the originator of her soulless status) and she is allowed a bit more freedom now that she is a spinster.

Miss Tarabotti's life has taken on a certain pattern, that is of course until she kills a vampire - and all she really wanted was to get something to eat! Lord Maccon, a werewolf, whom seems to be just barely civilized, is sent to investigate the murder of the ill-fated vampire and the shenanigans begin.

This novel is in possession of a wonderfully witty tone, a boat-load of refreshing secondary characters and descriptions that suck you in and make you believe you are in the Victorian age. I enjoyed everything about this book.  The plot is deep and well thought out.  The main characters are wonderful and very likable. The tone is consistent with gritty humor and almost a sexy innocence. The dialog was excellent! I'm usually not a historical fan, but I'm a fan of this book.  Can not wait to read Changeless. 

Problems with the book were few and far between.  The author does tend to be a bit long winded, but the descriptions paint a wonderful picture.  I thought the epilogue was a bit too much, could have edited a bit of that out.


Recommendations: This is an adult novel, but is not over the top in the sexual escapades or violence, I would not be opposed to passing this on to a teen. Pick a sub-genre any sub-genre, fans of urban fantasy, steampunk, historical - take your pick fans of any and all of those genres should read this book.  I must state that I am not the biggest fan of steampunk or historical and I still very much enjoyed this book.

BWB Rating 4/4

Blog with Bite Discussion Questions:

1. With the rise in popularity of steampunk trends, do you think the dialog and environment created in Soulless fitting within the paranormal genre?

I think the novel worked perfectly.  The unique steampunk/urban fantasy world was a refreshing take on the normal paranormal tones that are rampant in books these days.  This was a very unique perspective and I don't believe books should be fettered to any particular parameters set by other novels in the genre. 

2. For better or worse, Soulless throws together a lot of unconventional story elements. What ones worked for you? What ones didn't? Will you be reading the next book in the series, Changeless?

They all seemed to work for me, I highly enjoyed this novel and I loved the mix of story elements. I thought the comedic tone worked very well with the Victorian setting, mix that all together with the paranormal aspects and it was even more entertaining. I will be reading Changeless, if I didn't have some review deadlines I would have downloaded it today.

3. The comedic tone of the novel was ever present even when the novel was at it's darkest plot-threads. Do you think this added to the depth of the novel and characters or did it trivialize the plot?

During the climax when all the action took place the comedic tone wasn't as prevalent but the lightness of the author's voice was still there.  This may not have conveyed the severity of the situation like another novel might have - SPOILER - they were draining her friend of all his blood and still there was a light tone, which might have trivialized it a bit.  But I think I grasped the intensity of the climax.