Steampunk Proper Romance #4
By Nancy Campbell Allen
Rating: 4
Miss Emmeline Castle O’Shea is very familiar with Detective-Inspector Oliver Reed, he’s arrested her on numerous occasions. Emme’s new job comes with death threats, and someone will stop at nothing to keep her from presenting at an upcoming international conference on Shifter Rights. Emme swears she can take care of herself, but her mother and Scotland Yard aren’t taking any chances and Oliver suddenly finds himself assigned as her bodyguard.
When her mother remarried, Emme didn’t get along with her new stepfamily and became quite the loner. Her passion for saving the world has led to a tendency to run into danger without thinking. Oliver keeps himself closed off, protected, but is equally passionate about the things he cares about. Soon he realizes that he will do anything for Emme or die trying, and Emme realizes that she can’t imagine her life without Oliver in it and that he’s been there for awhile.
The story is a subtle Cinderella and I love the little hidden tidbits and homages to the original fairy tale and Disney’s animated classic. One of my favorites, the character Gus-Gus! (I might be biased, my cat’s name is also Gus-Gus—maybe just a little biased.) One moment you think Gus is just passing through and the next Oliver doesn’t know how he got along without him. In the previous three books of the series, the fairy tale was more obvious in the narrative weave—though not overwhelmingly so—but that doesn’t mean this not a great story! The whole series is fantastic.
I wish Nancy had fleshed out Emme’s emotional talents at bit more. Maybe a longer discussion with Oliver about his mother and her abilities? I felt like I didn’t quite understand enough about it and how it fit into the whole world, but I got the gist of it to not feel completely lost. Though adding a bit more, might have heightened the urgency and level of danger for Emme.
Dare I hope there will be a book five? And that Madeline is the Little Mermaid?
