Timeless

Timeless by Gail Carriger

(Parasol Protectorate #5)

Published: March 2, 2012 by Orbit

Alexia Tarabotti, Lady Maccon, has settled into domestic bliss. Of course, being Alexia, such bliss involves integrating werewolves into London High society, living a vampire's second best closet, and coping with a precocious toddler who is prone to turning supernatural willy-nilly. Even Ivy Tunstell's acting troupe's latest play, disastrous to say the least, cannot put a damper on Alexia's enjoyment of her new London lifestyle.

Until, that is, she receives a summons from Alexandria that cannot be ignored. With husband, child, and Tunstells in tow, Alexia boards a steamer to cross the Mediterranean. But Egypt may hold more mysteries than even the indomitable Lady Maccon can handle. What does the vampire Queen of the Alexandria Hive really want from her? Why is the God-Breaker Plague suddenly expanding? And how has Ivy Tunstell suddenly become the most popular actress in all the British Empire?

This series is one of my all-time favorites. It's the perfect mix of tea, parasols, the paranormal, and utter insanity, all wrapped up in a humorous bow! Timeless is the conclusion of the Parasol Protectorate series, but Gail Carriger will be back in 2013 with a new series about Prudence, as well as a new YA series. How does she even have time to drink tea?

Spoilers ahead if you haven't read the first 4 books!

• Prudence - Every time Prudence either appeared in a scene or opened her mouth it was hilarious! I was initially a bit worried that having a child might change Alexia and Connall, but it proved to make them even more entertaining.
• Biffy - Some scenes in the earlier books were dull when not centered on Alexia's exploits, but Biffy's new life is fascinating and I really liked reading about him.
• plot - This book answers questions that have been building throughout the series, and in Alexia's life and relationships.
• nicknames - The names Prudence came up with for everyone that knows her parents are adorable!

• Madame Lefoux - Ever since a certain automaton incident, Lefoux has gone from being a cool inventor to an annoying weirdo that shows up at the most inopportune times.
• Lord Akeldama - In the last book or so, Akeldama also got annoying - ever since Alexia moved in with him and he became more of a central figure in the story. Now he's also showing all of the irritating and sneaky sides of his personality, instead of just the amusing parts.

• "What do you call yourselves?"   "The Parasol Protectorate."   Biffy smiled. "I am enthralled by the concept of a society named after an accessory. Do go on my lady."     - pg. 102  Biffy + Alexia
• Prudence grabbed her mother's head, one chubby hand to each cheek, and directed her attention at her own intent little face. "Tunstellings! Silly," she explained. "Eeegypttt!"   Alexia nodded slightly. "I agree with you on all points, my darling."     - pg. 229  Alexia + Prudence

4 robots

Great conclusion to a must-read series!

Acquired: bought

Heartless

Heartless by Gail Carriger

(Parasol Protectorate #4)

Published: July 1, 2011 by Orbit

Lady Alexia Maccon, soulless, is at it again, only this time the trouble is not her fault. When a mad ghost threatens the queen, Alexia is on the case, following a trail that leads her deep into her husband's past. Top that off with a sister who has joined the suffragette movement (shocking!), Madame Lefoux's latest mechanical invention, and a plague of zombie porcupines and Alexia barely has time to remember she happens to be eight months pregnant.

Will Alexia manage to determine who is trying to kill Queen Victoria before it is too late? Is it the vampires again or is there a traitor lurking about in wolf's clothing? And what, exactly, has taken up residence in Lord Akeldama's second best closet?

Read my review of book 3: Blameless, here.

My review of book 2: Changeless, is here.

       I love this series, something proven by the fact that I am still so into the story at the 4th book. Usually the 4th book is where I start thinking the story is gonna get dragged out forever and dump the series altogether. I just found out that Gail Carriger has planned for Timeless (coming March 2012) to be the last book in the series and I'm already reluctant to let go of these characters. This book is just as hilarious and absurd as the first 3 books. If you haven't read Soulless, go do so now! (There's a great deal over here if you need to catch up.)

Reasons I love this book:

• Alexia- I love her so much! She's insane and hilarious in the way she interacts with everyone around her so calmly and considers humans like her sisters to be out of their minds. She's always held her own, but here she's 8 months pregnant and still not willing to sit still. In her eyes, if she has her parasol she's good.
• backstory- we finally get some backstory on Lyall which is nice since he's always so calm and put together. Here we get to see the lengths he is willing to go to for those he cares for.
• Akeldama's house- SPOILERS! An 8 months pregnant Alexia waddling back and forth between 2 houses on a drawbridge and living in Akeldama's closet? Hilarious! END SPOILERS!
• Ivy- surprisingly, Ivy turns out to be quite useful and more competent than ever before
• I love that I can never tell what's going to happen. These books are so off the wall crazy and I love it. I never see any of the plot twists coming!

Huh, what?:

• Madame Lefoux's machine- I was shocked when the purpose of her machine was revealed! Has she lost her mind?
• Countess Nadasy- she's a vampire queen so clearly she's already crazy but she steps it up in this book
• Felicity- for a glimmer of a second she seems almost tolerable, but is quickly proven to be even more annoying than I'd thought possible
• Lord Akeldama- usually a great characters, he reveals his selfish side near the end of this book and looks like a total jerk. He is always aware of what his actions will cause, making his move even more despicable. 

The boyfriend factor:

• My boyfriend has always loved these books. He despises Felicity even more after reading this one.

Favorite quotes:

• "We had to lock him somewhere, and that room has no windows."              "I understand. But claw marks are murder on wallpaper."       - Alexia + Professor Lyall  pg. 136
• "Any child as difficult as this one has been from the start must, perforce, be male."     Alexia snorted. "As if my daughter would be calm and biddable."    - Alexia + Conall   pg. 231

5 Robots

I absolutely love this series and highly recommend it!

Acquired: Bought

Blameless

Blameless by Gail Carriger

(Book 3: The Parasol Protectorate)

Published: September 1, 2010 by Orbit

Quitting her husband's house and moving back in with her horrible family, Lady Maccon becomes the scandal of the London season.

Queen Victoria dismisses her from the Shadow Council, and the only person who can explain anything, Lord Akeldama, unexpectedly leaves town. To top it all off, Alexia is attacked by homicidal mechanical ladybugs, indicating, as only ladybugs can, the fact that all of London's vampires are now very much interested in seeing Alexia quite thoroughly dead.

While Lord Maccon elects to get progressively more inebriated and Professor Lyall desperately tries to hold the Woolsey werewolf pack together, Alexia flees England for Italy in search of the mysterious Templars. Only they know enough about the preternatural to explain her increasingly inconvenient condition, but they may be worse than the vampires -- and they're armed with pesto.

     So after the crazy cliffhanger that the 2nd book left off with I was definitely excited to continue the series. This book is just as absurd (maybe more so) and awesome as the previous books in the series and I'm looking forward to the 4th one. See my review of Changeless (2nd book) here.

Reasons I love this book:

• the cover- these covers continue to wow me and I love the colors on this one more than any of the others
• Alexia- I know, I've said this before, but she is one awesome heroine with an attitude and stubborn streak not to be taken lightly
• infant inconvenience- the very fact that this is how Alexia refers to her pregnancy makes me laugh
• action- there's a lot of action and more fight scenes than the previous books (yay!)

Huh, what?:

• Biffy- don't get me wrong, I love Biffy- I was simply shocked by what happened to him!
• the preceptor- he give me the creeps- being coldly polite, calling Alexia "My Soulless One"- doesn't that make your skin crawl a bit?
• resolving the cliffhanger- SPOILERS!- this takes way too long for my taste, although I was somewhat satisfied that it becomes less of an issue fairly early on

The boyfriend factor:

• my boyfriend tore through this one, mainly driven by his need for the cliffhanger to be resolved, and was a little disappointed when he realized he wouldn't have immediate access to the 4th book

Is this the end?:

• No, and I'm not liking the wait time until the 4th book releases on June 28 of this year, because to me that's a long wait

Favorite quotes:

• "Floote, what is going on? Do they think I am contagious? Should I assure them I was born with a nose this size?"                  -Alexia, pg. 207
• She reworked her assessment of her attackers: homicidal mechanical dripping ladybugs- ugh.      pg. 38

5 robots

The awesome Alexia returns with even more sass and more action!

Acquired: Bought

Changeless

Changeless by Gail Carriger

(Number 2 in Parasol Protectorate series)

Published: April 1, 2010 by Orbit

Alexia Tarabotti, the Lady Woolsey, awakens in the wee hours of the mid-afternoon to find her husband, who should be decently asleep like any normal werewolf, yelling at the top of his lungs. Then he disappears - leaving her to deal with a regiment of supernatural soldiers encamped on her doorstep, a plethora of exorcised ghosts, and an angry Queen Victoria.

But Alexia is armed with her trusty parasol, the latest fashions, and an arsenal of biting civility. Even when her investigations take her to Scotland, the backwater of ugly waistcoats, she is prepared: upending werewolf pack dynamics as only the soulless can. 

She might even find time to track down her wayward husband, if she feels like it. 

       I decided to start reading this series (which starts with Soulless) after reading tons of great reviews that made me curious about it. These books are great, just be aware that they are adult books found in the regular Science Fiction section, not the Young Adult section. There's nothing graphic, but there is sex. 

Reasons I love this book:

• the cover- I know this doesn't actually effect the story, but this series has some of my favorite covers. They're designed by Lauren Panepinto, who made this video showing her design process. I found it fascinating so I thought I'd share. Take a look if you haven't seen it! (Bonus: Watching it here means no nasty Youtube comments!)                        

• the mystery- basically the plot I suppose, but whatever you call it, it's great. Also, once you read it you'll know why the title is so fitting. 
• Alexia- I love this girl: her parasol weapons, the banter with her husband, being stubborn and never doing what she's told, taking absolutely no nonsense, and not giving a care about long-established pack protocol
• the lighthearted nature of this series is such a refreshing change- some paranormal books take themselves so seriously, but not this one

Huh, what?:

• Ivy and Felicity (but mostly Felicity)- they annoy me almost as much as they annoy Alexia, and their competition for Tunstell's attention makes them sound like teenagers. The only thing keeping them from driving me nuts is the way Alexia deals with them.
• the Kingair Pack- You betrayed us! No you betrayed me! It's a little tiring after awhile. 

The boyfriend factor:

• My boyfriend loves these books. He always asks me for things to read so I gave him Soulless, thinking he might like it. After reading Changeless he bought me Blameless just so he could read it and now he's telling me I need to read it immediately. 

Is this the end?:

• No way after a cliffhanger like that! It was infuriating and one of the best/worst cliffhanger endings I've ever read. Best because it's a bomb of a cliffhanger, worst because it made me so mad!
• The 4th book, Heartless, comes out June 28th of this year. 

Favorite Quotes:

• "Does this thing work as an umbrella? she asked Madame Lefoux on her way back, waving the parasol.                                                                                                                                                 The inventor looked sheepish. "I forgot that part."                        pg. 207
• "I believe your husband just smashed one of the hall tables into a thousand pieces with his fist." She cocked her head. "It was an astonishingly ugly table, but still, one could always give it to the deserving poor, couldn't one?"                                pg. 373

5 Robots

This is a series I will definitely be keeping up with, even past the dreaded 4th book in a series doldrums!

Acquired: Bought