After reading
the first book in this trilogy, ‘A Conspiracy of Alchemists’ I had hopes for
the second installment. Sadly, the things that disappointed me in the first
book didn’t get any better in this one. Elle Chance, the main character, now
married to Hugh Marsh, has not matured. She still refuses to take advice or
even listen to people, acting like a sullen 14 year old. As the Oracle, she can
hear the voices of all the Oracles before her- a source of great wisdom- and she
banishes them because she is tired of listening to them. Hugh, with his powers
bound because of his marriage, is bored with life as a mortal, especially with
Elle still running her airship business; a number of reviewers have condemned
Elle for continuing to fly after her marriage, but Hugh knew she was an avid
pilot before he married her! And the couple hasn’t learned to talk to each
other.
The ideas
presented in the story are good- Hugh has gone missing, and someone is
kidnapping people, replacing their hearts with clockwork, and using them as a
zombie army. But while there is a lot of action, it frequently fails to thrill.
It’s like the author was just getting it out of the way, doing a job. Adele the
absinthe fairy has a part, but it’s an unsatisfactory part. Baroness Belododia
the vampire plays a large part in this novel, but she’s not enough to save the
story. It’s just… flat.
I’m torn about
reading the next installment when it comes out. Will Elle and Hugh mature and
become a team? I’m not sure I care enough to find out. I probably will end up
reading it, because there is so much potential here, but it will be with some
trepidation.
This book was given to me by the Amazon Vine program in return for an honest review. The fact that I got it from them in no way influenced my review.
The above is an affiliate link. If you click through it and buy the book, Amazon will give me a few cents. This in no way influences my review.
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