Her Book Self

Creativity amped up on a double shot of espresso might just chip the surface of describing Gail Carriger's novel Soulless, the first in her steampunk romance series The Parasol Protectorate. The story begins with Miss Alexia Tarabotti, who, the reader discovers, has a father who is  - shamefully - both Italian and dead.

Carriger's alternate Victorian England is populated with vampires, werewolves and ghosts - all of which mingle properly in high society. The creation of these supernatural beings is explained as caused by an excess of soul; and the converse, having no soul, results in a being such as Miss Tarabotti - a "preternatural" with the remarkable ability to neutralize the powers of supernaturals.

Soulless was a delightful mix of Victorian romance and science-fiction steampunk, peppered with creatures from the horror genre. I really enjoyed the world that Carriger created and found Alexia to be a refreshingly smart, strong, and spunky heroine. Her innate ability to negate the powers of vampires and werewolves gives her a degree of fearlessness, and she is no more reluctant to whack a supernatural with her parasol than she is to speak her mind on science and philosophy. This novel was a fun and entertaining read, and I look forward to encountering Alexia again in future books.