Historical, fantasy, and mystery are my top three favorite genres, so a steampunk mystery should be right up my alley! Read on for my full review ...
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| © 2023 Moonshell Books |
Author: Shelley Adina
Published: 2023 by Moonshell Books, Inc.
About the Book:
"A painting holiday in steampunk Venice. A villa on the canal. A body in the water?
Lady Georgia Brunel, widowed a year, has been looking forward to her holiday in the Duchy of Venice with her companion, Millicent Brunel. The clockwork city's annual art exhibition is in full swing, and old friends and new acquaintances make for an exciting social whirl. The married Sir Francis Thorne would pursue her if he dared. Several members of the nobility, including those with connections to Lord and Lady Dunsmuir, make entertaining companions. And Georgia will never admit that Dustin Seacombe, the disheveled and irritating Texican Ranger who steps on one's gown and will not confide his business in Venice, is the most interesting of all.
And then early one morning, the body of Sir Francis washes up on the water stairs at the Brunel villa. An empty gondola floats nearby. Many assume it is an accident. The Duchy police assume a lover's quarrel, with Georgia as their suspect. For there are powerful factions in the city who want this case solved and submerged as soon as possible. Georgia and Millie must act quickly to clear her name and discover the real murderer, before Georgia finds herself dancing with death instead."
The Artist Librarian Review:
I'm a longtime fan of steampunk costuming and cosplay, but I haven't read many steampunk novels. Though The Clockwork City was my first steampunk mystery, it definitely won't be my last! Thrust into the amateur detective role to clear her name when she falls under the polizia's suspicions, Lady Georgia is a plucky protagonist, in a similar vein of Nancy Drew or Miss Marple. Shelley Adina also shines in establishing her fantastical steampunk re-imagining of Venice as a clockwork city with gondola filled waterways. I don't want to spoil any of the plot, but fans of the golden age of detective fiction or cozy mysteries looking to
expand their horizons might enjoy this fantasy tinged, yet
historically-inspired, steampunk novel!
[Disclosure: I received a copy of this book for review purposes via Just Read Tours.]
About the Author:
"Shelley Adina is the author of more than 50 novels published by Harlequin, Warner, Hachette, and Moonshell Books, Inc., her own independent press. She writes steampunk adventure and mystery as Shelley Adina; as Charlotte Henry, writes classic Regency romance; and as Adina Senft, is the USA Today bestselling author of Amish women's fiction. She holds a PhD in Creative Writing from Lancaster University in the UK. She won RWA's RITA Award(R) in 2005, and was a finalist in 2006. She appeared in the 2016 documentary film Love Between the Covers, is a popular speaker and convention panelist, and has been a guest on many podcasts, including Worldshapers and Realm of Books. When she's not writing, Shelley is usually quilting, sewing historical costumes, or enjoying the garden with her flock of rescued chickens."
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