Etiquette & Espionage
Alyssa says:
I loved this book way more than I expected to after the beginning, which is heavy on the slapstick/crazy antics that I've grown accustomed to from YA and MG books and which I can find tiresome after a while. The beginning DOES have a lot of action, though, and is funny. And it's not over-long before we find our intrepid main character ensconced in Madame Geraldine's Finishing School for Young Ladies of Quality. The main character's attitude is part of what makes this book so appealin...g (even when bad things happen she's got an upbeat attitude.) It makes it feel more MG than YA, though the character's age is 14 at the start. It's definitely appropriate for younger readers, with only a few salacious bits about the baring of an ankle (ha) or a few mentions of Madame Geraldine's ample bosom (to that end, it would be helpful to know the word décolletage and/or cleavage, but these bits might go right over the head of kids who aren't familiar with those words, which would be fine.) As a Victorian Steampunk, there were a few other words I thought kids might not know - like dumbwaiter (my 12 and 14 year olds inform me they know exactly what a dumbwaiter is, silly mom!) And lots of strange stuff like dirigibles and mechanicals (and mechanimals, which might be my new favorite non-word.) In audio, this was excellent. Moira Quirk as the narrator is perfect, she reminded me of another series we enjoyed in audio (Theodosia and the XYZ - serpent of chaos, staff of osiris, etc.) It's not the same narrator but there are some vocal similarities and the energy she brings to the telling makes the story even more enjoyable in my opinion. Highly recommend in audio. Initially I wasn't sure if I would go further in the series, at least not in audio, but upon finishing this book (which ends in a satisfying way) I immediately bought the next title in audio. While the main character is female and much of the silly business of the book relates to her manner of dress or how torn her dresses get on her various adventures, because there's so much adventure and the steampunk elements are so fun (and he's such a fan of audiobooks) I did suggest it to my 14 yr old son. We'll see if he takes me up on the suggestion.
emma says:
In Etiquette and Espionage, Sophronia Temminick, a so-called disgrace to the family name, is enrolled in Mademoiselle Geraldine's Finishing Academy for Young Ladies of Quality. Sophronia quickly sees that the school isn't exactly what she thought it would be. They do learn dress, fanning, and etiquette, but they also learn the proper ways to kill someone politely.Sounds crazy, right? Yeah, that's what I thought the book would be like, but it wasn't that action-packed at all. I was waiting for intense battle scenes between Sophronia and someone she was assigned to kill, but sadly, that never happened. The nose that happened was her sneaking out at night with her friends, and getting her dress dirty. This book has definitely disappointed me.!
natalya92 says:
Etiquette & Espionage was not my usual cup of tea but I enjoyed the story a bit. I like steampunk. I like the author alright. I like the premise. But, the writing and editing killed me (pardon my honesty). A middle grades novel should not be this painful to read.To me, the novel was a bit of a re-imagined Jane Eyre. There were more characters than the usual archetype suspects. The steampunk world building happened at a good pace. But, now, imagine if Jane Eyre had stopped right before Helen's untimely death by consumption; that was how I felt. The plot was a bit wibbly-wobbly.I cancelled my holds for the 2nd and 3rd novel in the series but kept the holds for The Custard Protocol. Fingers crossed for better luck.MoreLess
I loved this book way more than I expected to after the beginning, which is heavy on the slapstick/crazy antics that I've grown accustomed to from YA and MG books and which I can find tiresome after a while. The beginning DOES have a lot of action, though, and is funny. And it's not over-long before we find our intrepid main character ensconced in Madame Geraldine's Finishing School for Young Ladies of Quality. The main character's attitude is part of what makes this book so appealin...g (even when bad things happen she's got an upbeat attitude.) It makes it feel more MG than YA, though the character's age is 14 at the start. It's definitely appropriate for younger readers, with only a few salacious bits about the baring of an ankle (ha) or a few mentions of Madame Geraldine's ample bosom (to that end, it would be helpful to know the word décolletage and/or cleavage, but these bits might go right over the head of kids who aren't familiar with those words, which would be fine.) As a Victorian Steampunk, there were a few other words I thought kids might not know - like dumbwaiter (my 12 and 14 year olds inform me they know exactly what a dumbwaiter is, silly mom!) And lots of strange stuff like dirigibles and mechanicals (and mechanimals, which might be my new favorite non-word.) In audio, this was excellent. Moira Quirk as the narrator is perfect, she reminded me of another series we enjoyed in audio (Theodosia and the XYZ - serpent of chaos, staff of osiris, etc.) It's not the same narrator but there are some vocal similarities and the energy she brings to the telling makes the story even more enjoyable in my opinion. Highly recommend in audio. Initially I wasn't sure if I would go further in the series, at least not in audio, but upon finishing this book (which ends in a satisfying way) I immediately bought the next title in audio. While the main character is female and much of the silly business of the book relates to her manner of dress or how torn her dresses get on her various adventures, because there's so much adventure and the steampunk elements are so fun (and he's such a fan of audiobooks) I did suggest it to my 14 yr old son. We'll see if he takes me up on the suggestion.
emma says:
In Etiquette and Espionage, Sophronia Temminick, a so-called disgrace to the family name, is enrolled in Mademoiselle Geraldine's Finishing Academy for Young Ladies of Quality. Sophronia quickly sees that the school isn't exactly what she thought it would be. They do learn dress, fanning, and etiquette, but they also learn the proper ways to kill someone politely.Sounds crazy, right? Yeah, that's what I thought the book would be like, but it wasn't that action-packed at all. I was waiting for intense battle scenes between Sophronia and someone she was assigned to kill, but sadly, that never happened. The nose that happened was her sneaking out at night with her friends, and getting her dress dirty. This book has definitely disappointed me.!
natalya92 says:
Etiquette & Espionage was not my usual cup of tea but I enjoyed the story a bit. I like steampunk. I like the author alright. I like the premise. But, the writing and editing killed me (pardon my honesty). A middle grades novel should not be this painful to read.To me, the novel was a bit of a re-imagined Jane Eyre. There were more characters than the usual archetype suspects. The steampunk world building happened at a good pace. But, now, imagine if Jane Eyre had stopped right before Helen's untimely death by consumption; that was how I felt. The plot was a bit wibbly-wobbly.I cancelled my holds for the 2nd and 3rd novel in the series but kept the holds for The Custard Protocol. Fingers crossed for better luck.MoreLess
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Guest 6 years ago
Gail Carriger is the best author on earth, in my opinion! Her books are never boring and a great read for any steampunk loving person. UT ACERBUS TERMINUS.
waltzmad 7 years ago
no im not going to read inappropriate stuff even kids can read.
Guest 7 years ago
A totally fun read...so cool and i loved the whole spy thing and there was clear evidence of girl power which was surprising since this is supposed to be historical fiction...making it even more cooler ...Write Review:
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