Building up steam

My momentum is definitely back on track. Another amazing book deal on Amazon made it irresistible to pick up Shelley Adina's whole collection of Magnificent Devices for $8.99. I was completely entranced by the first novel and can't wait to read the whole series in one mass sitting. I'm not very patient to wait for the author to publish every couple of years, but I am trying to get better about it (and am incredibly glad I don't have to work on it now).

Her Own Devices by Shelley Adina

I was not disappointed by the follow up to Lady of Devices. The charming rag tag party kept me turning pages. A book that entices you with the tagline "escaped lunatics" has to be going somewhere. I managed to devour the whole book in two days with breaks for the 8-5 and some household chores. Our heroine makes me appreciate the sensibility a woman can have while remaining feminine. The gentler breed has always been creative, so engineering seems like a very fine field for Lady Claire to aspire towards. Her progression from the first novel can clearly be felt as an excellent development of character writing.

Lady Claire makes the most of her sudden adulthood. Even though she struggles at times with how to best secure her station, she stands firm on her decisions and does not capitulate to bullying. The struggles felt very real to me and the moments of weakness something I have witnessed in every human. We, especially women, all care what others think of us. We crave others' fine opinion of ourselves. How do we judge if we have created the correct path for our lives without the judgment of others? An all-knowing overseer of the universe or the reflection of what is known to us? Shelley Adina has made a fine example of how to correctly address the urge to fall in with our peers. It is quite acceptable to want a good opinion but not at the abuse of others. 

The ending of the story was not what I was expecting. The author certainly made it obvious that something was slowly going amiss and by the time the end of the novel crept up on me I had been completely hoodwinked that there was no more book to read. Bravo! I felt a little lacking in Mopsie antics this go round, but the overall arch seems to include a bright future for the pair. With so many orphans (and rescued chickens) running around it would be hard to cover all their stories in 222 pages.

Here is to Magnificent Devices!