The Girl In The Steel Corset

* * * * */ Five Stars

Genre: not even going to bother; you name it, this book has it

Finley Jane has a dark side. Not a, "I stole your candy bar and ate it right in front of you slowly," type of dark side, but a, "I have almost supernatural abilities when I lose control and am capable of destroying my enemies with a flick of my hand," type of affliction. Needless to say, staying afloat is rather hard; especially when one can't remember what happened while their other side took over. But Finley's life is turned around when she meets Griffin King. The young duke and his group of friends are . . . different, much like Finley, with their own set of skills. Small but fiery Emily can talk to and control machines, Sam is super strong and heals scarily fast (and is kind-of an accidental cyborg), and Griffin himself can manipulate and enter the aether, a mysterious layer of our world where ghosts and other beings dwell. At Griffin's manor, Finley may have finally found a home. But with a recent series of seemingly disjointed crime sprees, an evil mastermind called the Mechanist, a strange murder, and some evil automatons, danger is clearly at large. Add in Finley's conflicted feelings over both criminal Jack Dandy and Griffin King, Finley's dual sides, and Sam's cold shoulder, and a full blown mess is created. Will Finley and her new friends be able to find the real villain, or will they be too late to save their city from the full blown storm of chaos in its midst?
Kady Cross had created a delightful steampunk world filled with both whimsy and intrigue. If you like Gail Carriger's Etiquette & Espionage you will love this incredible story.