Such a strong and fast pace read. I love the characters and the plot. The story was complex and unique and i can't wait to read the sequel next ( )

Such a strong and fast pace read. I love the characters and the plot. The story was complex and unique and i can't wait to read the sequel next ( )

I enjoyed this book but it did take me a long time to get into it. I didn't really get into it until the 2nd half of the book. There is a lot of mystery in the beginning about everything that's going on but you can quickly find out what's going to happen. It is very predictable and I guessed most of the ending; there were only 2 things that I didn't see coming (though looking back, I probably should have realized what was going to happen).

There were only 2 characters in this story that really got on my nerves, Clarence and Eleanor's mom. I really want to get rid of Eleanor's mom. She's one of those stuck up, tries to pretend to be rich and have everything all together to impress everyone else when they're sinking in bills/debt type of person. All she cares about is money and influence; I just really want to smack her at times. Clarence is sort of like the male version of Eleanor's mom, except he's actually rich.

I really liked the spirit hunters and I liked Daniel and Eleanor together. I thought they were cute together and I can't wait to see what happens with them in the next book. I liked how the story ended, there were no major cliffhangers. I think it wrapped up nicely for a first book in the series. Even though there were no major cliffhangers it still really made me want to read the next book. With that being said, on to book 2. ( )

So I guess I've been on a Susan Dennard kick and I am so happy that I have. Her ability to weave worlds and tackle different genres such as Fantasy and in this case horror and steampunk I really love. Author's who can multi-genre always have a big one up on other authors for me. Anyway on to the book.

The book opens up with Eleanor trying to meet her brother at the train station, only he doesn't show, then the dead comes. I like that it opens up a bit with action even though Eleanor is not an action hero (yet). Eleanor at first was maddening, she was mousey, shy, and a little rude which is such a bad combination for me. Eventually, we see Eleanor start to open up and actually show her backbone and that she had the ability to think about situations rather than just take them at face value. Being able to actually read and see Eleanor grow was really great and I love that Dennard did that (and did it well).

The background characters were great, and I wish that we had more interaction with some more but I didn't mind it. The one thing I did mind was the romance and the 'twist' of who the necromancer was. First, I felt the romance was sudden and quick. It went from a casual sudden attract to FEELINGS, I wish that Dennard would have pushed it until the second book to give it a bit of a foundation. I saw the twist a mile away and knew exactly how that was going to go since the beginning of the book, this is the reason why I didn't give this book a higher rating.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and will read the second one. ( )

It was fine as far as zombie horror goes, but it was a little predictable and I kinda hate the love interest.

Also a bit annoyed with that historical fiction staple; the Evil Corset. Yes, tightlacing corsets was uncomfortable and bad for you, but most people didnt wear them that way. If they fit when and were worn sensibly a corset was basically like wearing shapewear and a bra...probably dont work out in it but it wont kill you. Sorry pet peeve. ( )