This is the second book in a series, I reviewed the first book, The Clockwork Scarab, HERE. If you don't want the first book to be spoiled, then don't read this review.
....I again, have no disclaimers going into this book. ....I DON'T KNOW. I'M READING PUBLISHED BOOKS, BACK UP OFF IT.
An amazon summary, "After the Affair of the Clockwork Scarab, Evaline Stoker and Mina Holmes are eager to help Princess Alix with a new case. Seventeen-year-old Willa Aston is obsessed with spiritual mediums, convinced she is speaking with her mother from beyond the grave. What seems like a case of spiritualist fraud quickly devolves into something far more menacing: someone is trying to make Willa "appear lunatic," using an innocent-looking spiritglass to control her. The list of clues piles up: an unexpected murder, a gang of pickpockets, and the return of vampires to London. But are these events connected? As Uncle Sherlock would say, "there are no coincidences." It will take all of Mina's wit and Evaline's muscle to keep London's sinister underground at bay." AMAZON LINK OF JUSTICE
So, spoiler alert, they kind of solved the mystery in The Clockwork Scarab, but really just uncovered a grander mystery in the scheme of plot. Yep.
Irene Adler summons Mina & Evaline to the library once more and they're off to visit the Princess herself. Dylan tags along and saves the Queen's life (more on that in the book). The Princess asks the girls to get to the bottom of Willa Aston's obsession with spiritual mediums. Willa is spending a ludicrous amount of money on the spiritual mediums; the Princess suspects foul play.
The girls embark on discovering the truth and get twisted up into some pretty gnarly scenes.
Oh... and Evaline encounters a vampire. Evaline also has a bout of questionable behavior trying to locate Pix.
The boys are back; Dylan is working on advancing medical sciences, Pix is mixed in with vampires (and other questionable characters), and Inspector Grayling has bouts of frustratingly dashing moments (to Mina).
Back to Willa; her brother has gone missing (presumed dead), her parents are gone, and she's surrounded by people who are probably just after her fortune. There are a few options for her situation: Willa is cray cray, the spirit seances are working and she is speaking with her mother, the seances are lying cheats, or ghosts exist and are communicating with her. It's a bit of a gamble which could be the truth in this setting/book.
There are a lot of little moments that build the entire story. The narrator voices between Mina and Evaline have grown more distinct (except when one of them swoons over a man) and their mild obsession with fashion has grown a bit more pronounced.
If you liked the first one, you're going to like the second one. The overall mystery of the books start to thicken throughout the story as more and more is revealed about London.
Personally, I think the books are starting to get a little too busy. There's a lot between the settings, the characters, the fashion, the supernatural, the time travel, and the romance for it to be a fully coherent story. There is so much shrouded in mystery that I wonder if the author can be bothered to explain all of it.
However, the second book ended with a cliff hanger that I was expecting.....but I'm a bit excited to see how it plays out in the third book. I shall embark on that endeavor when the book becomes available. BWAHAHAHAHA. Maybe. I don't know, only time will tell.
Happy reading!
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