This was a fascinating combination of mystery and fantasy. A strong female character seeking her freedom in nineteenth-century Britain isn't new, but that character being the daughter of a policeman is. Setting the fantasy around the unsolved case of Jack the Ripper was ingenious. I especially liked the combination of imaginary mechanical characters like automabobs with fictional characters like Dr. Jekyll and real characters like the royals, Richard Babbage, and Dr. John Williams (an actual suspect in the real ripper case). I look forward to reading to Dickson's next book.

The old silent movie Metropolis’ pictures are just perfect to convey the feeling of this book! :)

The story is very confusing at the beginning and all the while I read it I was imagining the piano music that accompany the silent movies! I was expecting the old caption to appear too at the beginning of each chapter too! LOL

The whole story is like a mystery book from the twenties: the tone of voice of each character, the steampunk elements, the love interest, the dialogue, the description… everything…

I was challenging to read, but I still enjoyed it! I know, I’m strange…

So we have Ivy, the heroine, daughter of a police detective, a wannabe sleuth and feuilleton mystery writer. She rather famous and she think that she’s a detective like her father too. She’s also engaged to Christien, the brother of the Mad Lord Sebastien of Lasingstoke. Her mother is catatonic and, since Ivy and Christien are going to be married, Ivy will not be able to take care of her any more, so Christien suggests that Ivy stays in his family manor while her mother is treated in a sanatorium near there. Ivy agrees and thus meets the Mad Lord, Sebastien.

In the meanwhile, Christien is involved with some very strange people: very important and very mysterious people who are gathered at a Ghost Club, where his own father was a founding member.

In London murdered and mutilated women continuously appear. Some in pieces, some without organs…

Even Ivy receives a heart by mail! And that’s the main reason Christian and her father wants her out of London.

Sebastien is called Mad Lord with a reason: he sees spirits and they’re very, very angry!

So, basically, the book takes you on a trip to discover who the murderer is. And what a ride it is!!

We met some famous characters, such a Jeck The Ripper, Mr. Jackyll/Hyde, but also there’re allusions to other, Like Freud, Frankenstein…

The mystery is very intriguing and the author guides you to its resolution with small steps and gives you crumbs of information that oh, so slowly point to the solution. A very unusual solution, but one that you’ll come to expect!

NetGalley Review Victorian London. Automatons. Mysterious murders. What more could you possibly ask for? This steampunk and supernatural story will sure leave you on the edge of your seat. Immediately, you are transported back in time. Dickson’s diction creates vivid imagery and curious characters. I thoroughly enjoyed the snippets from Ivy’s story and newspaper articles woven in throughout the book. Very rarely do the readers actually get to see a fictional character’s work, especially if they are a writer. This creatively crafted tale surprised me, far exceeding my expectations. I curious to find out what awaits Ivy in her next mystery.