Cherie Priest

**Based on audio books.
These books have really not been what I expected. I imagined steampunk adventure and these are more steampunk historical fiction drama with just a little bit of fantasy (magical realism? a little science-gone-wrong?) thrown in (and, to be fair, there are moments of "action/adventure" in all three books, with the first one probably being the quickest paced). But I've nevertheless enjoyed them, especially once I shifted my expectations. Priest does a fantastic job with the characterizations (most certainly helped along by the narrators who have read the first 3 books) and the scene, and I well-pictured everything that was happening, who was speaking, as well as emotions and all the subtleties that make a book something you can sink into. The next 2 in the "series" (they can each be standalone novels, but there are loose connections between them, including a handful of characters who recur in non-essential ways and, of course, the world) I have in paperback (not audio), and I am definitely looking forward to seeing if the excellent narrations are met by Priest's writing. Four stars.… (mer)

Libby and May's friendship was something I dreamed of having as a child, I still wish I was able to become such good friends with someone that if something happened to them that well I would still be reminded of them no matter what. It was heartbreaking to think of Libby's passing in the book and how everything May went through, how she also lost Princess X, the story and drawing that May and Libby created together, that very same week.

Suddenly years later it just appears again, causing May to get pulled along in search of someone who she thought was lost forever, but is this Libby? Or is this someone who has taken their precious character and now has creative control? The story itself while you would think is far fetched actually isn't and Priest is an author who keeps you turning each page wanted to find out more, leaves you hoping (alongside May) that we could solve this mystery and have closure.

It's been a while since I've read a book that has so many up to date references that it was slightly refreshing to read. Usually so much pop culture in a book has me rolling my eyes, but more of these are said in passing or taken as a everyday thing. Priest's writing didn't feel forced, but organic and had the story flow really well.

One of the things I loved was the lack of romance, this was a mystery and friendship book and Priest did not try to force two characters into something that would have stuck out like a sore thumb, and would have been obvious that it was added for the purpose of just having a romance. I like that she leaves it to your imagination if you wanted two characters (which surprisingly I did) to develop romantic feelings.

There were two things that stopped me from giving this review a full 5. One was that it took a little while before May actually started to get anywhere in her investigation, I would have liked her to start things up a bit sooner and maybe add a bit more action into some of the elements. While it was not devoid of any action, there were a couple of scenes that were really action packed and had me continue reading (despite my bed time), but I felt there could have been more. Another thing was the ending, while it wrapped up the current story it still left me feeling like I didn't have enough closure, what will happen to these characters? I need to know if everything would be okay!!! I don't think Priest will be writing a sequel, it would be hard to picture what it could be about. For Priest's first YA book I think she did a really good job… (mer)

This was a truly creepy book. I really liked it. Lizzie Borden is a character I would read about again in a heartbeat. I love the twist on the original history. I loved the nasty creatures and Lizzie's bad ass ax. One of the creepier books I have read during the last year. It had a little of everything. Great characters, a love story, and things that go bump in the night.

Priest is a great writer. Her biggest talent is her ability to adapt and change styles to fit the story she is telling. She can put some mean sentences together and I found myself rereading paragraphs out loud because I loved the way the words sounded together. I might go back and listen to the audio book someday. One of my favorites this year and if you are in the mood for some creepiness this book is for you.… (mer)