Blameless (Parasol Protectorate Series #3)
4.4
341
5
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Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9780316401760 |
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| Publisher: | Orbit |
| Publication date: | 04/01/2014 |
| Series: | Parasol Protectorate Series , #3 |
| Pages: | 416 |
| Sales rank: | 83,198 |
| Product dimensions: | 5.75(w) x 8.50(h) x 1.25(d) |
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Blameless (Parasol Protectorate Series #3)
4.4 out of 5
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341 reviews.
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And now for something completely different! Soulless kept us nicely within the realms of London. Changeless had us embark on one dirigible trip to Scotland to an isolated castle. Blameless takes us on a daring dash to Italy as Lady Alexia Maccon decides she needs a break from the judging eyes of London society and goes in search of answers about herself and her condition(s).
This is a whole new type of adventure for Alexia but not at all unwelcome. Along with Floote and Madame LeFoux, she travels to Italy, pursued by vampires who want her dead for reasons not revealed until later, to the home of the Templars. The trip there is incredibly exciting and it is difficult to put the story down because as soon as you get to a point where you may consider stopping, something happens which you have to see resolved! Things slow down somewhat once we are with the Templars but this is by no means a bad thing. Here we learn answers to some of the questions we've been pondering, especially when it comes to Alexia's condition (and I'm not referring to her soullessness).
You may be wondering about the lack of Conall Maccon here. I know I would have been, given he is my favourite character. Well, do not fear! Alongside Alexia's story we have what is currently happening at Woolsey and within London. Admittedly Conall spends half the book drunk but this is really quite funny. But even so, he is still amazing, as will become apparent when someone tries to challenge for the position of Woolsey alpha. Professor Lyall meanwhile is investigating into where Lord Akeldama has vanished off to for he has just suddenly disappeared, along with all his drones. This is equally as fascinating as Alexia's journey and you cannot help but feel for him when you find out exactly what has happened. Even more so when that story arc concludes.
All in all this was a fantastic read. Not necessarily my favourite of the books so far (that will still be Soulless) and I admit I had to skip to the end of this book just to see how one particular situation is resolved because I had been so crushed when it happened (this is not a fault of the book, I am just weak!). I will not spoil it for you though. However, this is by no means a book you should miss, though if you have not read the first two then you really should, especially as this one contains major spoilers for those two.
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Blameless, the third in Gail Carriger's Alexia Tarabotti series, lives up to the first two in the indomitable Alexia off on yet another adventure where her husband, the moping Lord Maccon, wishes she would never go. Changeless ended in a cliffhanger (after, of course, resolving the main tale of that book), and Carriger takes full advantage of the situation. Does she resolve their heartbreak in the first chapter, the second, or even the third? Absolutely not. Instead, Alexia thrusts herself into trouble after trouble as she goes about attempting to prove her dear husband is a lunkhead. While this sounds like a private, personal, and agonizing journey, you can count on Carriger to make sure it's anything but. Once again the supernatural world is up in arms, with Alexia at the very heart of it. Nor does she sit on her hands with her family, society, and even the Queen turned against her. This is Alexia we're talking about. She's off gallivanting about a not so friendly Europe with Madame Lefoux while Professor Lyall holds the pack together and Conall rails at his beloved wife for believing him when he said all those awful things about her even though her condition is more than unprecedented, it's impossible. It has been said before that these novels are unclassifiable, varying from romance, to fantasy, to horror, to thriller, to...? There is absolutely nothing horrific about them to my mind, despite both werewolves and vampires, but otherwise pretty much every other genre has a foothold. That sounds chaotic and a recipe for disaster, but not in Carriger's hands. There's science of a sort, there's definitely hair-raising danger, neat gadgets, true love...and the attendant crises of faith..., family drama, hints of generations old conflicts, and of course a twist at the end that I can't wait to see featured in the next novel about the parasol protectorate. (And just a tiny spoiler, but Alexia does indeed get full reign with her not so decorative parasol.) Seriously, if you haven't given this series a try, you're missing out. It's funny, heartwarming, and nerve wracking...often all at once. It says something that my 16-year-old son snatched Blameless from my desk the second I recorded its arrival with no consideration for just who bought the book.
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**SPOILERS FROM CHANGELESS**
How I LOVE his new series by Gail Carriger! I was a little skeptical at first, but when I kept reading good reviews on Soulless, I gave it a try. Best decision ever! Blameless was wonderful and so worth the ever long wait! And my thanks mostly goes over to Jess at The Cozy Reader, for it was her reviews and recommendation that led me to read it!
It picks up relatively where Changeless left off. A few weeks or so have gone by and poor Alexia has been suffering with her family for this time. If you're read the first two books then you know she really is suffering, if this series is new to you, you must know that Alexia truly does have horrid family members! They take the phrase "family drama" to new meanings!
Alas, Alexia does not stay long as she decides to leave England and all the cruelty she has been suffering from the newspapers and just about everyone else. Everyone in England, it seems, blames Alexia for the fallout of her marriage with Lord Maccon. No one cares about her side of the story, for newspapers never lie! (ha!)
But this is no vacation for Alexia. She is determined to find information to prove her husband wrong. That the "incident" was not her fault in the way he thinks it is. But her quest takes serious turns for the worse, such as mechanical ladybugs intent to kill, more vampires and a few unsavory characters that Alexia isn't quite too sure of. Luckily she has her friends, Madame Lefoux and Floote with her. They make quite the interesting traveling trio.
This is definitely one of the best series I've read this year. It is entirely different than my normal genre reading. It's a historical paranormal romance--usually both two things I don't read all that much--but it is just incredible. There are times I forget that the time is set sometime in the past. There are some technology items that get a little confusing when describing them and how they work, part of the steampunk flavor I guess, but it doesn't really detract from my enjoyment, once again, I just roll with it.
There are quite a few LOL moments in here as well. My teaser from yesterday was one and there are still a few more chuckle moments. Alexia and Lord Maccon together are just to die for! Especially when Alexia finally comes face to face with him in the book and gets to have her "say" with him as it has been building up for quite some time.
Luckily, this one did not end with such a cliffhanger as Changeless did. The book finished itself off nicely with one or two somewhat loose ends. Really they were just a thread of info that we learned that didn't come up again, so it will have to wait til Heartless which releases in July 2011.
Overall I give the book 4.5/5 stars! The technological stuff derailed me a bit, but not by much. The book was well paced as Alexia and her friends literally had to move from to place quite quickly with the enemy on their tails. And there was still more going on in England with Lord Maccon being somewhat indisposed, leaving poor Professor Lyall to clean up after him.
This is a very entertaining series and one I highly recommend! Don't let the historical setting throw you off! There is quite a bit of action in here, suspense, some romance, and a lot of wit! Alexia's mannerisms are very entertaining as well!
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This book is a necessary evil. It reads as a linking book. Almost like a bridge between books two and four. Because, while the text was filled with Carriger’s trademark wit and tongue-and-cheek steampunk creations the plot itself is a bit ‘light’. I’ll say ‘light’ and not ‘weak’ because it’s a necessary story for Alexia and Conall. At the end of book two we find Alexia pregnant and it is (apparently) un-explainable between her and Conall.
My hunch was that the curse breaker plague was going to be the explanation. I mean, it did turn all supernatural completely human…doesn’t that mean reproductive functions will work again as well? Seemed simple enough to me. Heck, even if Carriger didn’t want to take it that far I was willing to accept that given the uniqueness of their relationship (preternatural and supernatural are never to mix in this society) that no one had attempted to cross-breed. Alexia’s touch makes Conall mortal – thus he functions as a mortal man whilst having relations with his wife. This would make a baby possible, no?
No. Apparently not. My mind is not intelligent enough for Carriger’s aether-theory. I guess it’s far more difficult than my pedestrian ponderings. And I’ll admit that by the end of this installment I was still quite confused as to how it scientifically happened. Even Meyer gave me a vampire baby-making explanation I could accept. Forget that part during your reading? Yeah, I got it off her website. Don’t judge. You know you were curious too.
Curious, because you need these fantasy worlds to be completely rational if you are going to accept them. The author needs to build rules and stick to them. You can break them only if there’s a super secret Plan B rule that will make even more sense than Plan A did. I won’t say that Carriger’s pregnancy explanation broke her world for me. Finding and explaining the pregnancy was one of the two reasons for this novel. It was more like I started skimming the explanation. I ‘Smile and Nodded’ at the explanation and politely waited for it to stop talking. Like math involving more than basic addition/subtraction…or integers higher than I can count on my fingers…I just stopped trying to understand and accepted that it did in fact make sense. Someone clearly smarter than myself obviously figured it out. Time to move on now, blah, blah, blah…
It may seem like I harp on this issue a bit, but understand that aside from Lord Maccon’s issue of sobering up and apologizing to his wife…this is the entire plot of the story. The mysteries of the Templar Knights were simplified. The issue of the child’s supernaturality (word?) is simplified. Even the tease of finding out more about Alexia’s father is in the end simplified and then forgotten about. So the complexity of the one thing I thought could actually be simplified was an issue for me.
I still enjoyed the read. I was in the mood for witty Victorian conversation. That play between manners and the absurd that Carriger does so well. Snappy dialogue and chapter titles abound. Just know that in this series the third title is just a hop skip and a jump away from the fourth. I’ll just say that the fourth should pack a bit more of a plot punch to pick up the ‘lightness’ of the third.
Rating: 3.5/5 Proper, polite, and just the right bit of the absurd save this tale of marital discord…Because without it, it’s 200-odd pages of waiting for an apology…
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AudioBook Review:
Stars: Overall 3 Narration: 4 Story: 3
With Alexia’s newly revealed pregnancy, and Conall’s belief that she has “cheated” while utterly discounting her soulless nature making a pregnancy possible, she’s about as downtrodden as she allows herself to get. And, most of her issues are with the “infant-inconvenience” and its effect on her appetite and enjoyment of food. So, we are treated to frequent moments and comments about food – how much she enjoyed, misses or craves food, and the near constant upheaval her pregnancy has brought to that state. If that wasn’t bad enough, the Queen has removed her from the Shadow Council, and she can’t find her friend (and great answerer of questions) the vampire Lord Akaldema. In fact, he’s disappeared entirely, Conall is spending more time inside a bottle than out of it, dear Professor Lyall is trying to keep the Woolsey werewolf pack in some sort of order, and the vampires want Alexia dead.
Off she trots to her family’s home, causing no little scandal in the drawing rooms of London, but her place there is tenuous and rather tension-filled, at best. We won’t even mention the mechanical ladybugs bent on killing her on the coach-ride: or the fact that even with capturing one of the tiny assassins, she’s no closer to discovering why she (and her unborn child) have been marked for death. She’s not taking any of this sitting down though, and soon heads to Italy for answers, taking her father’s former valet, Floote and Madame Lefoux along – looking to find answer’s in her father’s home country: a solid thought as he was also soulless. Finding refuge of a sort with the Templars, they have the answers she seeks (or some of them) but also see her as an abomination, with their own plans to ‘take care’ of her. Oh Alexia isn’t without her own resources or far from her ‘parasol’, and she again needs to use her wits and cleverness to extricate herself from ever-increasing threats.
It’s not enough that she’s unable to enjoy her favorite activity, or that her husband is being a recalcitrant and unforgiving ass, or that the vampires want her dead – she’s also convinced she’s not a ‘maternal’ person, and can’t see that her having a child will result in anything more than additional trouble. Fortunately, for listeners, the dialogue (a highlight of Carriger’s books) is clever and often pointed, and Alexia’s interior monologue is worth everything – always. Still reeling and hurt from Conall’s rejection, she’s determined to fight for her marriage – and the confrontation with him, and his (as always) laying blame on her for ‘not convincing him well enough” made me want to slap them both- he should have groveled and begged before she forgave him – the old Alexia would have I think, but the never-ending series of hits, hormones and danger had her accepting Conall, flaws and all, without really making him take responsibility for his behavior.
Emily Gray narrated this book, and as I have come to expect, her ability to present Alexia as she is, and then allow for the inclusions of emotions rather foreign to what we have come to expect is second to none. Adding in Conall in his shouty and belligerent phases, Lyall and his soft-spoken strength, and the other secondary and new characters all have distinct voices and are easy to understand, including those with and without devious intent. Another lovely combination of story and narrator, sure to please those who enjoy this series,
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My thoughts:
I love this series! I completely enjoyed the first two books and was looking forward to this one! I was not disappointed! I was less than thrilled with Lord Maccon's behavior, but of course I was supposed to be. I was thrilled that Professor Lyall gets to play such a large role in this book. He has been one of my favorite characters throughout the series and it was great to see him get so much print in this book.
The author once again builds an incredible story that is both believable and too much "the thing". She continues to create characters that the reader can truly sink their teeth into. The relationship dynamics between many of the characters are so balanced that it seems one could not stand without the other. In this third book of the series, suddenly these interdependent characters are playing strong, independent roles - it is pleasantly surprising.
The thing that stands out the most for me is the spectrum of emotion in this story - the reader is sent on a roller coaster ride throughout the story.
I love the end - I am always excited when a series is not over at the end of a book - no one really wants a book to end in a cliff hanger, but I get so involved in the lives of the characters that I just don't want the series to be over. So, on that note - can't wait for the next one!
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Lady Maccon, the former Alexia Tarbotti, is in big trouble. Queen Victoria has dismissed her from the Shadow Council and she's left her husband's house to reside with her parent's and step siblings. Worse. She's pregnant. A condition she was certain would never happen to her. A condition her werewolf husband is nearly certain he couldn't have gotten her in. A condition vampires are trying to kill her for.
After her family hears the tragic news and the paper implies unsavory things, Alexia makes the only decision she can: she decides to head for Italy and the only people who might have answers on how this could possibly have happened to her: The Templars. Sure, the Templars have pesto, but they also plan to use her in the war against the vampires, ghosts and werewolves.
And they don't need her alive to do it.
Blameless starts with Alexia's world in a great deal of flux and confusion. I thought perhaps this might just be me, as I read the books out of order, but fortunately Ms. Carringer's skill quickly explained the crux of the matter and I fell under the spell of the story. Deprived of her pack, Alexia begins to build a new one as she sets out on her latest adventure. Some characters return and new ones are introduced, but always there is Floote, her butler from the first book. There are delightful new steam machines that keep the story moving and wonderful twists and turns.
But what I missed most in the story was Alexia's husband, Lord Maccon. Where has my alpha hero gone? Sure, he comes back about a third of the way through, but for the most part, we're left in the head of his Beta, Professor Lyall. And I admit, while the good professor is funny, he is not Conall. I hope the yin and yang returns in the next installment, Heartless, as their dance is part of the fun of the story and actually gives soulless Alexia a bit of, well, soul.
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Although these past two books haven't been quite as phenomenal as the first one, they are still witty, clever, and thoroughly enjoyable. The plot development has been multi-faceted without overdoing it, and I love the addition of some new favorite character (Madame Lefoux and Monsieur Trouve). Although this book was lacking in the Lord Akeldama department, and did not have nearly enough of Lord Conall Maccon, Earl of Woolsey, what was there was still as <i>delectable<i> as usual. I am torn because although I love this series and am excited to be able to keep reading it, I originally thought it was a trilogy and am ready to see my characters happily ever after all ready! Ah well, guess I'll just have to keep reading!
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While the introduction to Alexia's world of werewolves, vampires, and flawed relatives hooked me from the start I admit I was a bit angry at the way the second book left off. I worried it might not go over well to the third book, but I was wrong. Learning more about not only herself and the child she carries Alexia also learns more about the rakish Tarabotti, her ever infamous father, and the world of the Templars while a poor Lyall must keep the Woolsey pack from utter chaos during Lord Maccon's inebriated wallowing. Set with action the likes of which only Carriger could come up with--poisonous, exploding ladybugs and more--Blameless is a book that continues to uphold its promises and I expect to see many more from Carriger! Definitely worth checking out the whole series if you haven't yet.
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The third book in the series and the dark fun continues. Alexia's marriage has disintegrated and she travels, with the fantastic Floote and the mysterious Madame Lefoux, to learn about the nature of her pregnancy. The travellers face many perils and Alexia slowly learns more about her preternatural nature and the danger this brings to her child. We don't see enough of Ivy, who hilariously is left in charge of Madame Lefoux's hat shop and I suspect that the consequences of this decision will echo through the next couple of books in the series. Meanwhile, poor Professor Lyall is left to deal with Alexia's estranged husband, who deals with the pain by being drunk - I particularly loved the inventive way Carriger gets the werewolf Alpha drunk and the accompanying 'crunchy snacks'. A very enjoyable addition to the series.
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Didn't enjoy this was quite as much as the two previous books. Possibly because the action is removed to France and Italy which means many of favourite characters are missing for long periods of the book. On the plus side it was just as funny and this world is rapidly becoming a great place to escape into.
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As news of her impossible pregnancy hits the public, Alexia finds herself not only kicked out of her parents home, but the target of assassination plot. She travels to Italy to lean more about her soulless kind.Why I picked it up: I love the Why I finished it: I'd give it to:
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I really enjoyed reading this next book in the series. Alexia and her adventures sure take us to some fun and interesting places with the supernatural. Alexia is now going to have a baby, but what is it exactly going to be. I cannot wait for the next installment in this series to find out.
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A pretty light read, and somewhat interesting if you can get into it. I found it just kept dragging on, and the whole idea of werewolves, vampires and poltergeists having an excess of soul just seems ridiculous to me. I can't really agree with that idea. Plus, the characters are a little flat who generally have some singular trait (Ivy wears ugly hats, Alexia uses a parasol as a weapon).
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I didn't like this book as much as the other two books in the series. The relationship between Lord and Lady Maccon is a big appeal factor for me and they spent the majority of the book apart, which is probably why I didn't like this installment as much. However, it's still witty and adventurous and fun, so I will definitely be looking for the next book when it comes out this summer!
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A drunken Lord Maccon are some of the most hilarious scenes and when Professor Lyall tells how the Lord is getting drunk oh my you¿ll love it! This series is so much fun poor Alexia is going through some hard times in this one but she has Madame Lafoux & Floote at her side. Alexia is so calm under pressure I don¿t think I could have or would have put up with being called the female specimen. But she handles it with such grace and humor. I did miss Lord Maccon after the first couple chapters and missed the scenes between Alexia & the Lord. However I did enjoy when he finally found her! Professor Lyall was a lot of fun and Floote had some great lines. This was definitely a middle of the series book because the story in this one will take us into the rest of the series and the revelations Alexia found out about her inconvenient condition will mean much more as the series goes along.Loved the ending of this book!! Looking forward to the next book!This series is so much fun I love Gail¿s writing and humor. If you like Paranormal Fiction, Steampunk and/or Humor give this delightful series a try!4 stars
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Blameless stepped up the danger for Alexia even more if you could believe it. With her infant-inconvience and her homeless status she didn't have many places to turn other than her new friend Madame Lefoux and her husband's more sensible Beta. And with the vampire's having a death threat on Alexia's head, they set off to find more answers about her preternatural status where else but Italy.Alexia was not safe at any point in this book. It was enough to worry about with her being pregnant but the bounty on her head by the vampires was an issue. They were always only one step ahead but several times I found my hands tightly clenched, and maybe a little sweaty, praying that these characters would make it out unscathed.Relationship-wise, I wanted Lord and Lady Maccon to get back together! I was upset in Changeless when Connell flipped out on Alexia for getting pregnant. Personally, I think he went the wrong way about it, but this Scot can be so stubborn! I anxiously awaited him to get his head out of his bum, but meanwhile I liked how even under severe drunkenness he took charge in making sure she was under some sort of protection.I like how in each book Carriger unravels the mystery behind preternaturals and I am very excited to see what kind of trouble the infant-inconvenience causes for the supernatural world in Heartless.
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After getting very excited by the first volume and finding much to enjoy in the second (despite some issues throughout the book with Alexia's relationship, followed by the enraging cliffhanger), I turned to the third book compulsively; despite my doubts, I bought it so I could have it NOW, though I'd found the other two through my library.Moderate spoilers follow.While I really, really like the worldbuilding, mythology, and supporting characters (Lyall for the win!), I think Carriger has flubbed the relationship between her hero and heroine. The lack of communication and the mistrust which came to a head so violently at the end of Changeless aren't dealt with here. (N.B This may simply be that Lord Maccon does not grovel nearly enough before Alexia takes him back, but I suspect it's permanent.)You can't claim that your main characters are heartbroken and furious, deeply offended and emotionally ravaged by a genuinely traumatic event and then have them reconcile in a page or two. There are Issues which need to be Dealt With.I could overlook this in another genre, but given that the central tension of the series is the relationship between our protagonists, it's a serious problem for me here. I am still going to read Heartless when it comes out, of course.
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There will be minor spoilers in this review for the previous two books in the series. You've been warned.Following her husband's very poor reaction to the revelation of Alexia's pregnancy, Alexia ends up travelling to Italy and visiting the Templar temple in Florence in the hopes of figuring out how she got pregnant in the first place. Of course, she is constantly beset by vampires who due to the announcement of her pregnancy are set on killing her. Meanwhile, Lord Maccon spends a concerted amount of time getting drunk, not an easy task for a werewolf, ignoring his duties to the pack and the political disturbances happening amongst London's supernatural set.Another fun romp in Carriger's world full of fantasy beasts, steampunk, romance, and humour. Alexia and the cast of characters that surround her continue to amuse, develop, and get into endless amounts of troubles that make for exciting and entertaining reading. A wonderfully enjoyable entry into the series.
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witty, fun, completely unbelieveable - vampires, what do you expect. Brain candy with wit.
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Alexia Tarabotti is not having a good day. It's bad enough that her imbecile of a husband threw her out, refusing to acknowledge he caused her pregnancy. It's true that werewolves, being undead, can't reproduce, but Alexia is a preternatural whose touch turns the supernatural back to normal--any fool can see how such a pregnancy is plausible, if unlikely. But now her social-minded family discovers the twisted gossip in London publications--describing Alexia as being "indiscreet"--and throws her out. When she ventures to the home of her vampire friend Lord Akeldama, she finds his entire household empty. Even worse, someone is trying to kill her. Alexia sets off for Italy and the Templars in the search for answers regarding her mysterious pregnancy.The end of book 2 left me outright infuriated. Lord Maccon could be a bit dense at times, but for him to throw out his wife and accuse her of infidelity? It almost annoyed me to the point where I didn't want to buy the next book. Almost. But I love the chatty voice of the series and the alternative history blend of the supernatural and Victorian sensibilities, so I gave in. I'm glad I did. Lord Maccon suffered greatly for his stupidity, and it didn't come with a tidy resolution at the start of the book--no, it carried all the way through. I'm very pleased with how it was handled.Alexia is as witty as ever, even with mobs of assassins after her. I giggled out loud at several points, especially as she spoke of her "infant-inconvenience." The addition of the Knights Templar provided a different religious view on her plight, one that will have interesting repercussions going into book four. After being so frustrated by the cliffhanger in Changeless, it was a delight to have my faith in the series restored. I can't wait for the next one.
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Everyone needs a Floote. And it wouldn't hurt to be rescued by Channing Channing of the Chesterfield Channings, either. And Alexia does need rescuing this time. She gets herself into quite a pickle - why, she can't even get a decent up of TEA! Oh, those damn Templars! Although she does discover pesto.A spirited romp across Europe ends up with our heroine as prisoner in the catacombs of Florence. And where you may ask is Connell? Stuck in London, dealing with vampiric uprisings and disappearances, a brand new werewolf and Ivy. No wonder he's in a bad mood.A great follow on to the series.
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Well. It's better than Changeless - at least it's a complete story. They're not home and there are a lot of loose ends to be dealt with, but there's no crisis starting in the last chapter. Some interesting insights into people - though I have to say, after Ivy's performance in Scotland I have trouble with her claim of not being foolish. Overall, I found this less than interesting - I do read the Scarlet Pimpernel and similar books on occasion, but they're rather overblown. Chases and mysteries and people with hidden motivations...just too much. I do intend to read Heartless, but I hope that's the end of the story.
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Still miffed at Conall's refusal to admit he's half responsible for the infant inconvenience, Alexia decides a trip to Italy might be just the thing. Trailed at a distance by her luggage and more closely by homicidal vampires, Alexia and her party are headed for hostile territory, as Italy is home to perhaps the most rabidly anti-soulless group of all - the Knights Templar. If Conall doesn't manage to un-pickle himself soon, he may not have the chance to grovel properly!Not quite as irritatingly stuffy as the last installment, hopefully things will continue to look up. Alexia is the Amelia Peabody of steampunk.
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Series has definitely lost its appeal for me, won't be reading the next one.
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