I must admit, I did not come to this reading as an objective reviewer – I am a long time fan of Ms. Carriger’s delightful steampunk world. I also must admit, this isn’t the first time I’ve written about her Parasol Protectorate, here on GSB. Last November, I offered up a “series to date” review of the tales of Lady Alexia Maccon and her punked out parasol, last November. We were also lucky enough to have Professor Lyall, the Beta to the local werewolf pack, grace us with an interview, last week. As a man…and wolf…known for his circumspection, I was not surprised that he did not reveal too many secrets about the latest book, Heartless (which hit stores on July 1); but he did offer up some tantalizing teasers. As my favorite werewolf of the pack, I was hoping to learn a bit more about his own past, which he wsn’t willing, or able, to discuss with us. However……there’s always a bright side to every situation, and for us, it was the release of Heartless. Many of my questions about Professor Lyall, and the rest of the cast of characters, were answered. Of course, these answers just left me wanting more, and wishing Timeless would release ahead of time, instead of March 1, 2012. Alas….it is not to be….but I have strayed from the point, as the Professor would politely remind me, I am sure. We’re here to talk about the latest release.

Heartless accomplished something rather unusual for an action packed steampunk series – it happened, mostly, from drawing rooms, parlors, closets and with a few periods of enforced bed rest for a very pregnant Alexia. It became clear, fairly early on in the book, that this would not follow the same path as the 3 prior books, with Alexia haring about London and the environs surrounding London, and even across borders. (she escaped a spot of trouble in Italy, in the last book, where she was attacked by homicidal robotic ladybugs, as just one example.) So for fans of the more traditional “running amok, amok, amok” steampunk stories, you’re not going to find that in traditional terms with this book. Instead, the focus was on internal power plays, political machinations and settling of scores.

To quote the book blurb:

Lady Alexia Maccon, soulless, is at it again, only this time the trouble is not her fault. When a mad ghost threatens the queen, Alexia is on the case, following a trail that leads her deep into her husband’s past. Top that off with a sister who has joined the suffragette movement (shocking!), Madame Lefoux’s latest mechanical invention, and a plague of zombie porcupines and Alexia barely has time to remember she happens to be eight months pregnant.

Will Alexia manage to determine who is trying to kill Queen Victoria before it is too late? Is it the vampires again or is there a traitor lurking about in wolf’s clothing? And what, exactly, has taken up residence in Lord Akeldama’s second best closet?

In many ways, this was the pay off book for loyal fans. We spend a lot of time with fan fave characters, who were mostly missing from the last book (due to the afore mentioned fleeing to Italy save life, limb and the “infant inconvenience”.) As much as I adore the Woman with the Parasol, I must say that I am utterly devoted to the secondary cast of characters in this series. They may be the real secret weapon of the Parasol Protectorate. They’ve all taken on such clarity; much more so than you usually find in the average fantasy series. I was just as interested in seeing how things played out between Lord Akeldama and Biffy (yes, really, that’s his name…well, nickname, but Lord Akeldama doesn’t address anyone he cares for by their given names – I secretly hope to someday have a nickname form the Lord, too, but I digress….) after the end of the third book. Of course, I wanted to follow Alexia’s pregnancy, but I also wanted to know what new punk’d invention Madame Lefoux would astound us with; and may I say, without giving away spoilers, she’s outdone herself with this one. What was unexpected, but completely intriguing, were the revelations about Conall’s own past, and how it intertwined with Professor Lyall’s past. No more than that may I say, however, on any of these topics, or I would break my oath about spoilers. Oh, and you simply must watch for Ivy; she played an important role in this one, and inadvertently helped Alexia define a few things about the Protectorate. And truly, that is all I may say….for i don’t want to find zombie porcupines slobbering on my window sill, scrabbling to get inside.

On a related note…I decided to try the audio version of this release; I’d read the first three the old fashioned way. I must say, it was a wonderful way to experience Ms. Carriger’s world. Emily Grey facilely narrated the tale, and she showed a keen understanding for the characters, the style and the time period. Even if you’ve already read the book, I’d recommend giving the audiobook a try.

In spite of the lack of rough and rumble action, I must say that Heartless was, for me, the book with the most heart. It retained the delightful sense of Victorian farce, balanced with keen plotting and a wily, wicked wit. It has become my favorite of the series; Timeless will have very large bonnets to fill, to match my regard for this book.