I am not usually a fan of serialized stories (I prefer the immediate gratification of being able to read the entire book) but I couldn’t resist when I heard that Meljean Brook was writing her next book in a serialized format. I just couldn’t wait until all of the parts were out to dive in and resigned myself to having to wait for each part to come out.

Zenobia Fox is an unconventional woman, the sister of the famed adventurer Archimedes Fox, and secret author of popular novels chronicling her brother’s exploits. After escaping yet another kidnapping attempt, Zenobia finds safety on the airship of the notorious Kraken King, While he has a reputation, The Kraken King (aka Ariq) is not as ruthless as the stories say. He is immediately intrigued by Zenobia and embarks on maybe the greatest adventure of his life, winning Zenobia’s heart.

I absolutely love the Iron Seas series. The world building is fantastic and the characters are always wonderfully interesting and complex. Zenobia is a fantastic character, a woman used to watching the world from the sidelines who decides to take her future into her own hands. I loved how smart and headstrong she was and also naive at times.

Brook knows how to write amazing romances and the chemistry between Ariq and Zenobia is undeniable from the get-go. Their romance was frustrating at times because they seemed to have a lot of communication problems but that just added to the tension.

The only bad thing about this is that it’s too short. I really would have preferred having the whole book at once so I wasn’t pining for the next installment. By the time this review comes out the book will be quite a few years old and will be available in its entirety (lucky you!). I highly recommend this book and the entire series to anyone who loves great adventures, fantastic world building, and heart stopping romances.

*I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This in no way affected my review or opinion of the book.

Steampunk Adventure/Romance presented in serial format (serial form popularized by Charles Dickens, fell out of favor, enjoying a renaissance as it lends itself to contemporary shorter attention spans and the cliffhangers bring readers back for subsequent installments). The eponymous "Scribbling Spinster" could be the poster child for Women's Suffrage, were this not Alternate History; she is one strong, determined, very adventurous, female.

I have to admit that even if the book was good enough, I found it absolutely too long. I was a little bit tired of all the political manipulation and tricks and all the secrecy and hidden stories, but ok in the end I got my happy ending, eventually.

Devo ammettere che anche se il libro non era male, l'ho trovato decisamente troppo lungo. Non ne potevo piú di macchinazioni politiche e segreti e storie omesse, ma ok, tanto alla fine, per fortuna, ho avuto anche il lieto fine che volevo.

THANKS TO NETGALLEY FOR THE PREVIEW!