Steaming by Vanessa Barger

Title:  Steaming

Author:    Vanessa Barger

Publisher:  Decadent Publishing Company, LLC  

Publication Date:    March 2011

ISBN:   9781936394920   

Genre YA Steampunk

Length:   42,000 words

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Heat Level:    1

Other: A few kisses

Reviewer:  Suki

My name is Cornelius Latimer, and I have fallen in love. The object of my affection isn’t tall and blonde with all the right curves. It isn’t even human. My love belches smoke and breathes fire. My world runs on steam and hard metal, and I am a master of both. My Uncle, Rufus Harrison, has funded my expeditions. He’s gifted me with a lab containing all the parts and space I could possibly need. For weeks I have been toiling over my journals, crafting my biggest and best creation yet. It’s heady, this feeling of power. But I made a fatal error. I told a friend about my machine. And now someone who should not know, does. I should tear everything apart, but I can’t.

Steaming from Vanessa Barger was a surprising page turner. I say surprising because it took me a while to get through the first few pages, honestly there was a moment when I didn’t think I could read more, not because it wasn’t well written, it just wasn’t my style of writing. But once I got about a chapter in, WOW the adventure begins and NEVER EVER stopped until the very end. Cornelius is naïve, young, insecure and a bit of a loner. He prefers his gadgets and inventions to the people of London.

UNTIL…until that fateful night at the ball when a beauty catches his eyes and he is smitten. But as you can imagine, things don’t go as planned. The Time Keeper is the perfect steampunk villain and tBea is the perfect Steampunk heroine/co hero.

I was genuinely drawn into the characters and the plot. I enjoyed entering the world Ms Barger created and couldn’t be more pleased that I didn’t let my initial feeling stop me from reading what was a very enjoyable read. The steampunk aspect wasn’t over played in the story,  many steampunk books forget that the plot must be there for the steampunk to work. This book set in nearly any time period would have worked, the story was that strong. The author left the door open for a sequel, one that I will buy on its release day.

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The Demon's Princess by Jessie Colter

Title: The Demon’s Princess

Author: Jessie Colter         

Publisher: Wild Horse Press

Publication Date:

ISBN: 978-1-4528-8914-6

Genre: Y/A Paranormal Romance

Length: Novel

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Heat Level: Sweet

Reviewer: Sky

Date: 9/28/10

Imagine waking up in 1896 to find that you’re still Lucinda, just with a different last name and an entirely different life. You’re now a debutante, a Southern belle, with a couple of very interesting suitors and your expectations have changed.

That’s the premise for this very entertaining young adult romance by Jessie Coulter. Her character must grow up very fast, since she’s now a marriageable young lady and has to adapt to the completely different rules of society at that time and in that place.

I really enjoyed The Demon’s Princess. The characters have a depth not always found in y/a paranormals. Lucinda is a mature young lady who has a practical and a passionate side in romance. And having to make a choice between the two – or three – very interesting and extremely sexy guys in front of her will take her the rest of the way to adulthood. 

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Woman of Honor by Nicole Zoltack

Title: Woman of Honor
Author: Nicole Zoltack
Publisher: Desert Breeze Publishing
Publication Date: March 2009
ISBN: 1-936000-03-2 or 978-1-936000-03-6
Genre: Historical Fantasy
Length: novel
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Heat Level: sweet
Date: December 2009

Woman of Honor is the first in the Kingdom of Arnhem series and tells of a young girl’s desire to honor her brother’s memory by becoming a knight. The tale outlines the story of Aislinn’s adventures from a child of seven to adulthood in the twelfth century. There are glimpses of mythic creatures and such, but the book primarily focuses on Aislinn and her personal struggles as she strives to become worthy of the title Lady Knight.

Woman of Honor has all the best elements of an epic adventure – danger, self-discovery, unrequited love, true romance, and noble expectations. I found Ms. Zoltack’s world intriguing. The writing style and storyline flow nicely and the characters work well. Caelan, Geoffrey, Aislinn and many of the other knights-in-training demonstrate the attributes necessary for true honor. Although I occasionally struggled to suspend disbelief early in the novel - some tasks seemed impossible both physically and mentally for a child of seven or eight - the majority of Ms. Zoltack’s novel proved a delightful read. I left the story with a few unanswered questions about shadow warriors and Alce, but if I did not there would be no reason to read the next installment in the series. Woman of Honor provides a refreshing escape from the standard, making it a novel worth enjoying more than once.

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