Bec McMaster

In the third book in the London Steampunk series, Rosalind Hucker is the humanist revolutionary known only as Mercury, and she’s willing to do anything to fight for the rights of humans in London. After she’s falsely blamed for an act of terrorism, she and her outlaw band of freedom fighters have gone into hiding. While on a mission aboveground, she runs afoul with her greatest adversary and the only man worthy enough to revive her frozen heart.
Sir Jasper Lynch, Guild Master of the Nighthawks (the police force that patrols the city), has only three weeks left to find and capture Mercury, or he will be executed. He’s also a rogue blue blood (a person illegally infected with the craving virus) and has kowtowed to the Echelon (the London aristocracy of blue-bloods) for years. He finally tracks Mercury down but never expected the humanist leader to be a woman. After she seduces him and escapes, he vows not to be made a fool of again, but then he hires a new secretary at the office, not realizing that the secretary and Mercury are one and the same.
Wow! I absolutely loved these characters. Rosa is a remarkably strong woman. Whether she’s acting as the sexy kickass Mercury or the intelligent, seductive Mrs. Marberry (the secretary), she wrapped the stoic, coolheaded Lynch around her little finger. Lynch was immensely attracted to both women, and he was constantly fighting with himself and feeling guilty for each time he furthered his relationship with each woman. Though he wasn’t technically cheating on either of them, he was in his mind, and it threatened to tear him apart. Both Rosa and Lynch have tragic pasts, which shaped them into the dedicated, stubborn people they’d become.
I enjoyed the cast of secondary characters, especially Garrett and Perry, two of Lynch’s fellow Nighthawks, whose book is coming up next. Leo Barrons was awesome as always and is my favorite character throughout the series. The main characters from the previous two books didn’t play much of a role in this one, which was disappointing, but I understand why there weren’t around. I liked how this book painted the Nighthawks (whom are mostly rogue blue bloods) in a positive light since not all blue bloods are cruel and vindictive, even the ones in the Echelon.
Though the story ends with a HEA, I’m surprised there hasn’t been a mention in any of the books I’ve read so far about the differences in the H/h’s lifetime expectancies. Blue bloods are kind of like vampires and they do age, but at a slower rate. For example, Lynch has been a blue blood for 40 years, infected with the virus at age 15, so he’s technically been alive for 55 years. He looks as though he’s in his 30s. By the time Rosa grows old and dies, he’ll be middle-aged.
Anyway, Ms. McMaster’s writing is strong and concise with enough description that doesn’t overpower the plot. There are some fragment sentences, but each fragment is actually a continuation of the previous sentence. There aren’t many sex scenes in this series (all occurring in the second half of the books), but sexual tension sparks hot between the H/h in each story.
5 Stars

Disclaimer – I borrowed this ebook from the library. I am not paid or compensated in any way, shape, or form for this honest review. I will not change or alter this review for any reason unless at my discretion.
… (mer)

In the fifth book in the London Steampunk series, Lady Aramina Duvall is living a double life. As the Duchess of Casavian and the only female blue blood on the Council of Dukes (the ruling body of the Echelon, the London aristocracy), she has to watch her back at every turn and hide her emotions and feminine needs behind an icy veneer. Mina wants to destroy the House of Caine, but the Duke of Caine’s dashing son constantly throws her off balance. She doesn’t know if she can trust Leo Barrons, but both her heart and her body secretly wants him.
Leo is also a blue blood (a person infected with the craving vampire-like virus) and serves on the Council in his father’s stead. Along with several other people, he’s secretly planning to destroy the prince consort and end his reign of tyranny. Even though the Houses of Caine and Casavian hate one another, Leo is obsessed with Mina and can see beneath her cold, calculated shell. But then Leo is ousted from the Council and the prince consort demands his head. Believing Mina betrayed him, he fears everything he’s worked for is about to go up in smoke. Instead, it starts the revolution.
Leo and Mina have great chemistry, but there’s not a lot of romance in this book. The main plot focuses more on the revolt with the H/h’s love story second.
Leo is a strong, guilt-hardened man who’s lost everything and is determined to keep the one bright light in his life—Mina—even though he doesn’t really trust her. Though he lost so much, he gained more in return, and it was really nice seeing him finally be open with his sisters, brother, and their extended family. Leo was already one of my favorite characters, and now he’s tied in with Blade as my favorite hero.
Like most of the heroines in this series, Mina is very secretive and refuses to accept the help she needs for the longest time. Her inability to trust stems from countless betrayals in her past that makes her uncertainty and coldness understandable. Since she’s a blue blood, she has increased speed and strength, and I loved that she and Leo worked together as a team.
Blade, the hero from book one, and his rookery gang played a large role in this story, and it was great seeing him and Honoria again. I definitely enjoyed seeing Charlie and Lark together, and the wedge that finally drove between the young couple is quite heartbreaking. Will and Lena, Lynch and Rosalind, and Garrett and Perry (the other heroes and heroines from the series) had minor roles, but I understand that the book would’ve been way too crowded if everyone played a big on-page role in the revolution.
I was really looking forward to Leo’s story, but I’m a little disappointed. Though I loved all the revolt scenes as the humans and rogue blue bloods/the Nighthawks finally fought back and stood up for their rights, Leo and Mina’s relationship mimicked the stories that came before (the hero being willing to trust and start a relationship while the heroine refuses to give him a chance).
There are some unanswered questions/loose ends, the biggest one being how the humans, blue bloods, and verwulfen will coexist and make peace. That will probably be addressed in the spin-off series, but I really would’ve liked to have read what changes will be made in this book since it wraps up the London Steampunk series.
4 Stars

Disclaimer – I borrowed this ebook from the library. I am not paid or compensated in any way, shape, or form for this honest review. I will not change or alter this review for any reason unless at my discretion.
… (mer)

In the fourth book in the London Steampunk series, Perry Lowell is hiding from a dark and painful past, and she does her best to avoid the Echelon—the London aristocracy of blood-drinking blue bloods. As a rogue blue blood (a person illegally infected with the craving virus) and the only woman officer in the Nighthawks (the police force that patrols London), she’s closed herself off to her feminine desires and prefers to act like a man. Perry has been secretly in love with her partner Garrett Reed for years, but she’s never expressed her feelings for him.
Garrett is fully aware of Perry as a woman, but that wasn’t so until a month earlier when their platonic friendship took a hit. As the Acting Guild Master of the Nighthawks, it’s up to him and his fellow Nighthawks to solve the murder of two young women. But as he’s unraveling the mystery, more and more questions are brought to light, some of which revolve around Perry and her past.
I really liked Garrett. He’s struggling to make headway in his new position as guild master, and the virus in his blood is growing stronger every day, which is threatening his life and sanity. Though he has secrets, he was mostly open about them with Perry and was willing to give a relationship between them a chance.
In the previous book, Perry was a tough, take-no-bull kind of woman, but she was so vulnerable in this story. She kept so many secrets, not trusting anyone, and refused to hand over important information in the murder case. She kept pushing Garrett away, and it grew frustrating after a while.
As usual with books in this series, the sexual tension between the H/h is ripe throughout the story, but there are only two sex scenes near the end.
Though I enjoyed the story, I sometimes had a hard time following what was going on because there wasn’t a lot of description in some scenes. The repeated use of he/she instead of names also led to confusion. There are some unanswered questions, but there’s also a big lead-in to the next book, so I’m sure those loose ends will be tied up soon. I cannot wait to read book five in the series!
4 Stars

Disclaimer – I borrowed this ebook from the library. I am not paid or compensated in any way, shape, or form for this honest review. I will not change or alter this review for any reason unless at my discretion.
… (mer)