Crossing Over: Historical Fantasies Full of Humor and Adventure

Hey all. It's been awhile since my last Crossing Over post. If you're not familiar with Crossing Over it's a feature that stemmed from my desire to recommend an adult book with crossover appeal based on a YA or sometimes Middle Grade book that are similar. I hate that we pigeonhole books into a specific age range and so I try to combat that. Plus it's basically an if you liked, then try but for crossover books. It runs once a month (usually) here and I pick the books based on the theme of what I'm reading. So this month my theme is historical mystery and honestly that was a pretty hard one for me. I feel like I don't read a ton of adult historical fiction and the ones that I do are very different from the YA I read. So I had to repeat a book. But it's been almost a year since I used it and the comparison is just so perfect I had to.

Jackaby by William Ritter
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This book is set during the mid-19th Century and is about a women who gets a job working for a paranormal detective. It does a great job combining all those elements together to make something you would not think would work but totally does. There's a great setting full of historical vibes, supernatural creatures, and a great mystery. The series definitely gets better and more complex as it goes on which makes it even more enjoyable.

But I think my favorite part of this book may have been the characters. This is a book that is full of fantastic and complex characters. Seriously, most of the characters in this book were incredibly fun and super likable. I instantly fell in love with Jackaby with his wit and Abigail for her sarcasm and pluck. Plus the secondary characters are all so delightful. And the romances. I'm not one for shipping but I ship these ships for sure.

Plus this is a book that is so much fun. It's full of action and adventure but it is also full of humor. I found myself laughing out loud while reading this book and it is the perfect palatte cleanser because it is just so fun. It doesn't take itself too seriously but if you're a historical fantasy, how can you.

In general, it's a good read and an interesting mystery. It's a done of fun and one of my all-time favorite series. If I have not done my job and convinced you to read it yet then you haven't been paying enough attention over the years.

Soulless by Gail Carriger
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This book is set during the mid-19th Century and is about a women who gets a job working as what is essentially a paranormal detective. It does a great job combining all those elements together to make something you would not think would work but totally does. There's a great setting full of historical vibes, supernatural creatures, and a great mystery. The series definitely gets better and more complex as it goes on which makes it even more enjoyable.

But I think my favorite part of this book may have been the characters. This is a book that is full of fantastic and complex characters. Seriously, most of the characters in this book were incredibly fun and super likable. I instantly fell in love with Alexia Tarabotti with his sass and Conall Maccon who is gruff and so kind. Plus the secondary characters are all so delightful. And the romances. I'm not one for shipping but I ship these ships for sure.

Plus this is a book that is so much fun. It's full of action and adventure but it is also full of humor. I found myself laughing out loud while reading this book and it is the perfect palatte cleanser because it is just so fun. It doesn't take itself too seriously but if you're a historical fantasy, how can you.

In general, it's a good read and an interesting mystery. It's a done of fun and one of my all-time favorite series. If I have not done my job and convinced you to read it yet then you need to read any of my Gail Carriger reviews because I've loved all of them

Besides the fact that both of these are historical  mysteries that involve paranormal elements, I would say that the main similarities are that they are light-hearted and fun. I really love books that don't take everything to seriously and can make me both laugh and be on the edge of my seat and these totally do that. Plus they combine so many things that shouldn't work and totally do. I love both series and totally recommend them.

Have you read Jackaby and/or Soulless? What did you think? What historical fantasies with crossover appeal do you like? Leave me a comment with your thoughts. Thanks for stopping by and HAPPY READING!

Book Review: Soulless by Gail Carriger

Title: Soulless Parasol Protectorate #1 Written by: Gail Carriger Published: October 1, 2009 by Orbit (Amazon / Goodreads) Synopsis: Alexia Tarabotti is laboring under a great many social tribulations. First, she has no soul. Second, she's a spinster whose father is both Italian and dead. Third, she was rudely attacked by a vampire, breaking all standards of social etiquette.  Where to go from there? From bad to worse apparently, for Alexia accidentally kills the vampire—and then the appalling Lord Maccon (loud, messy, gorgeous, and werewolf) is sent by Queen Victoria to investigate.  With unexpected vampires appearing and expected vampires disappearing, everyone seems to believe Alexia responsible. Can she figure out what is actually happening to London's high society? Will her soulless ability to negate supernatural powers prove useful or just plain embarrassing? Finally, who is the real enemy, and do they have treacle tart?  SOULLESS is a comedy of manners set in Victorian London: full of werewolves, vampires, dirigibles, and tea-drinking.

I have wanted to read this book for a very long time. It's been on my TBR for years. Like I learned about it when Borders were still around (RIP Borders) and yet it took me this long to read it. But I am so glad I took the time to read it because it was seriously fantastic.

I have previously read Carriger's YA series which, while written later, takes place chronologically before this series. And honestly, it was great to jump back into Gail's writing. It's full of humor, adventure, and mystery.

One of the things I loved this book is how effortlessly it combined so many different things to create a unique and compelling world. First and foremost, this is historical fiction set in the Victorian era. It addresses so many of the themes I love about books of that period especially when it comes to women and their changing place in society. But it also had great supernatural element. This is a world inhabited by vampires, werewolves, and ghosts. Carriger makes all of that seem both ordinary and interesting with complicated history, lore, and rules around the creatures which inhabit high society along with humans. And finally, it's a steampunk world. There wasn't too much of those elements but it added another interesting wrinkle to the book. But on the whole it all work together to create something so fascinating.

The plot too was absolutely fascinating. This is a book full of action and adventure. Our main character is constantly finding herself in some kind of scrape that she has to either fight her way out of or use her intellect. It made for an interesting plot and kept me on the edge of my seat. It also had a ton of mystery. Little things throughout the story all let up to a big reveal at the end which wasn't super surprising but did keep me engaged.

But I think the best part of this book was the characters. Carriger really knows how to write some quirky and fun characters. First we had our main character of Alexia Tarabotti. And I instantly fell in love with Alexia. She was such a fantastic tough female protagonist. She's sassy and spunky in the best possible way. I love that she's not afraid to show how physically tough she can be put at the same time it is her brains and resourcefulness that helps her more often than not. I also love that she has a mouth on her and that it often gets her into as much trouble as t gets her out of. She doesn't totally fit in with the society types but that just made me root for her even more. I honestly loved her.

I also loved the secondary characters. I of course rekindled my love for Lord Akeldama in this book. He was one of my favorites from the Finishing School series and it was fantastic seeing him a lot more here. And there were a few more characters from the Finishing School series that pop up and it was fun seeing them again (I'm sure most people had this in reverse). But I would be remised if I didn't also mention Lord Maccon. I am not one for romantic moments but I loved every second of this relationship. The flirting, the kissing, the scandalous moments. It was all amazing and had me swooning. I think a lot of that had to do with the banter between the characters and also the fact that I really enjoyed Lord Maccon. He's gruff and no nonsense but also really caring and sweet. I am a fan. Big fan of all these characters.

Soulless was an absolutely fantastic read and a great book that effortless combines history, mystery, and fantasy. It's hilarious and full of action, the characters are amazing, and the world is so engaging. I wasn't planning on reading the rest of the series right away but it's so good that I think I'm hooked and need to read it all now.

I give Soulless by Gail Carriger 9.5 out of 10 stars

Buy/Borrow/Bypass: BUY! If you are like me and you have been wanting to read this series but haven't taken the time, change that. This book was amazing and I can't wait for more. If you are a fan of steampunk and haven't checked this out or are looking for a good historical fantasy I definitely recommend this series. 

Have you read Soulless? What did you think? Leave me a comment with your thoughts. Thanks for stopping by and HAPPY READING!

Crossing Over: Steampunk Supernatural Adventures

Hey all. It's time for this month's Crossing Over post. If you're not familiar with Crossing Over it's a feature that stemmed from my desire to recommend an adult book with crossover appeal based on a YA or sometimes Middle Grade book that are similar. I hate that we pigeonhole books into a specific age range and so I try to combat that. Plus it's basically an if you liked, then try but for crossover books. It runs once a month (usually) here and I pick the books based on the theme of what I'm reading. So this month my focus is twofold, steampunk and science fiction but when thinking about which one I was going to do for this post the obvious choice was steampunk.

Something Strange and Deadly by Susan Dennard
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I really enjoyed this series but if I am being entirely honest, I didn't love the first book. It's a series that gets better as it develops. But by the last book I was totally invested, both emotionally and intellectually in the outcome of the book. And I am still not over that ending!

This is a book the effortlessly combines a bunch of different elements that you wouldn't think would work well together and they do. Not only is it historical fiction with great elements about society and a woman's place in it, but it also has fantastic steampunk elements, and a mysterious plot that revolves around supernatural creatures. That's right, there are zombies in this book.

The best thing about this book however is the characters. It is a book full of interesting and likable characters, starting with the main character. Eleanor Fitt is a young women who has never really felt like she fit in with her society, but she's tough, plucky, and resourceful which makes her a great heroine. There also some fantastic secondary characters in the Spirit-Hunters, and a good love to hate relationship courtesy of one Daniel Sheridan who is pretty swoonworthy. Not to mention some great villains who are pretty odious and characters that walk a very fine line between good and evil, which I always like.

Throughout the series you are taken to different places throughout the world including France and Egypt, all in the name of adventure and mystery. It really is a great series that combines history, mystery, and fantasy really well.

Soulless by Gail Carriger
My Review to Come/ Add to Goodreads

It feels strange to mention a book that I haven't finished in one of these posts (I'm almost done!) but I really couldn't not mention it. I mean it is a really great steampunk story and has a ton of crossover appeal. Plus it does remind me a lot of Something Strange and Deadly so I think people who like one will really enjoy the other.

Soulless is a book the effortlessly combines a bunch of different elements that you wouldn't think would work well together and they do. Not only is it historical fiction with great elements about society and a woman's place in it, but it also has fantastic steampunk elements, and a mysterious plot that revolves around supernatural creatures. That's right, there are vampires and werewolves (amung other things) in this book.

The best thing about this book however is the characters. It is a book full of interesting and likable characters, starting with the main character. Alexia Tarabotti is such a spitfire. She doesn't quite fit in with her society, and that goes deeper than the fact that she preternatural. But she's tough, plucky, and resourceful which makes her a great heroine. There also some fantastic secondary characters. Great friendships in Ivy Hisslepenny and Lord Akeldama (the names in this book, you guys) and a good love to hate relationship courtesy of one Lord Maccon who is pretty swoonworthy (I will always and forever be Team Werewolf). Not to mention some great villains who are pretty odious and characters that walk a very fine line between good and evil, which I always like.

And a cursory scan of the covers for the rest of the series makes me think that I will also be taken to different places throughout the world including France and Egypt, all in the name of adventure and mystery, I hope. But seriously, even though I am not done I am really loving this book. It does a great job in how it combines history, mystery, and fantasy really well.

These are both good examples of books I think can combine genres really well. I'm all about historical fantasies and these take that and add steampunk elements their great. The obvious choice when recommending crossover Gail Carriger books is to recommend her other series like the Finishing School series which is like a lower YA or the Custard Protocol which is YA and I hope to read when I am done with this series. But like I said, I think the Something Strange and Deadly series is really similar.

Both series combine steampunk Victorian settings with supernatural creatures to make books full of adventure and mystery. Both books have spunky female heroines who are trying to navigate their places in society while fighting for or against these supernatural threats. Plus both main characters use a parasol as their weapon of choice. I think if you enjoyed one of these series, you should totally try the other.

Have you read Something Strange and Deadly and/or Soulless? What did you think? What steampunk novels with crossover appeal do you like? Leave me a comment with your thoughts. Thanks for stopping by and HAPPY READING!