Etiquette & Espionage (Finishing School, 1)
This thrilling steampunk novel set in the same world as the New York Times bestselling Parasol Protectorate is filled with all the saucy adventure and droll humor that Gail Carriger's legions of fans have come to adore.
Fourteen-year-old Sophronia is a great trial to her poor mother. Sophronia is more interested in dismantling clocks and climbing trees than in proper manners--and the family can only hope that company never sees her atrocious curtsy. Mrs. Temminnick is desperate for her daughter to become a proper lady. So she enrolls Sophronia in Mademoiselle Geraldine's Finishing Academy for Young Ladies of Quality.
But Sophronia soon realizes the school is not quite what her mother might have hoped. At Mademoiselle Geraldine's, young ladies learn to finish ... everything. Certainly, they learn the fine arts of dance, dress, and etiquette, but they also learn to deal out death, diversion, and espionage--in the politest possible ways, of course. Sophronia and her friends are in for a rousing first year's education.
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Community Reviews
I've never read a Steam Punk novel...I really liked it. The juxtaposition of an 1850s etiquette and finishing school with robots and technology surprisingly makes for a very good story. I liked the characters and the way they interacted with one another - Sophronia, the protagonist (of which I called Sophie through the entire book) is selected by a secret society for a covert operation...that her mother thinks is an upscale finishing school for young ladies. The plot was okay...I say okay because I'm not entirely sure what it was. It seems that the characters in the story were after a new "fangled" prototype that was going to make communication across the miles easier than the telegram. I assume the telephone, but it was never directly stated. But, with that said, it was intriguing enough to make me want to read the next book in the series. Well played Carriger.
There is just enough villains, vampires, and werewolves to keep a reader turning pages, and just enough romance to not be entirely cheeky. I didn't love the blatant "race" references in the book - I felt they were trite and could have been left out given the setting and time period. But then again, I may be at a place with all that's happening in the world that any and all references to race simply annoy the piss out of me - well, that wasn't very lady like...How would finishing school want me to phrase that? "I decline to comment or recognize inadequate references to pigments of one's skin..." - is that better?
Happy Reading!
Plot Summary from Goodreads:
It's one thing to learn to curtsy properly. It's quite another to learn to curtsy and throw a knife at the same time. Welcome to Finishing School.
Fourteen-year-old Sophronia is a great trial to her poor mother. Sophronia is more interested in dismantling clocks and climbing trees than proper manners--and the family can only hope that company never sees her atrocious curtsy. Mrs. Temminnick is desperate for her daughter to become a proper lady. So she enrolls Sophronia in Mademoiselle Geraldine's Finishing Academy for Young Ladies of Quality.
But Sophronia soon realizes the school is not quite what her mother might have hoped. At Mademoiselle Geraldine's, young ladies learn to finish...everything. Certainly, they learn the fine arts of dance, dress, and etiquette, but the also learn to deal out death, diversion, and espionage--in the politest possible ways, of course. Sophronia and her friends are in for a rousing first year's education.
There is just enough villains, vampires, and werewolves to keep a reader turning pages, and just enough romance to not be entirely cheeky. I didn't love the blatant "race" references in the book - I felt they were trite and could have been left out given the setting and time period. But then again, I may be at a place with all that's happening in the world that any and all references to race simply annoy the piss out of me - well, that wasn't very lady like...How would finishing school want me to phrase that? "I decline to comment or recognize inadequate references to pigments of one's skin..." - is that better?
Happy Reading!
Plot Summary from Goodreads:
It's one thing to learn to curtsy properly. It's quite another to learn to curtsy and throw a knife at the same time. Welcome to Finishing School.
Fourteen-year-old Sophronia is a great trial to her poor mother. Sophronia is more interested in dismantling clocks and climbing trees than proper manners--and the family can only hope that company never sees her atrocious curtsy. Mrs. Temminnick is desperate for her daughter to become a proper lady. So she enrolls Sophronia in Mademoiselle Geraldine's Finishing Academy for Young Ladies of Quality.
But Sophronia soon realizes the school is not quite what her mother might have hoped. At Mademoiselle Geraldine's, young ladies learn to finish...everything. Certainly, they learn the fine arts of dance, dress, and etiquette, but the also learn to deal out death, diversion, and espionage--in the politest possible ways, of course. Sophronia and her friends are in for a rousing first year's education.
I loved the creative idea, and the variety of characters. The descriptions of some things were a little confusing, like the school and the machine.
I picked this one up from the library thinking it was part of the Parasol Protectorate. Sadly that series is over, but this was a good and entertaining read, though geared towards young adults.
Steampunk
I have a certain obsession with steampunk. I love the tech. I love the gritty look and feel. I love the historical aspects that go along with it. So, this book seemed like such a good choice, but perhaps I expected too much of the book because I was disappointed with the steampunk aspects. Yes, they exist in the book, but they act more as background than actual character interaction points or plot points. So, I would have liked more.
Haughty and Vain
From the description of this book it sounds like the girls will be taught to assimilate in proper society with appropriate manners while also learning the art of espionage. Yet, as much as I love reading about upper crusty society back in the day, most of it in this book was frivolous. The characters had conversations that literally had no meaning, but were just filled with big, hoity-toity words to make them sound interesting. It was quite a let-down.
Young Teens
This book reminded me what I dislike about reading from a young teen’s point of view: the childishness behind it. The main character, Sophronia, is meant to be intelligent, clever, and capable. Yet, she comes across more as meddling, self-centered, and most definitely childish. Childish to the point where I found myself just rolling my eyes at some of the things she did and said. Yet, somehow, she is a perfect character who can get herself out of anything.
Lack of Depth
The book most certainly has a plot. However, it seems as though the main characters are in the dark about what’s really going on. Even so, there are no distinct questions for me to ask to figure out what might be going on. That being said, I wasn’t interested in reading further, much less reading the rest of the series.
I have a certain obsession with steampunk. I love the tech. I love the gritty look and feel. I love the historical aspects that go along with it. So, this book seemed like such a good choice, but perhaps I expected too much of the book because I was disappointed with the steampunk aspects. Yes, they exist in the book, but they act more as background than actual character interaction points or plot points. So, I would have liked more.
Haughty and Vain
From the description of this book it sounds like the girls will be taught to assimilate in proper society with appropriate manners while also learning the art of espionage. Yet, as much as I love reading about upper crusty society back in the day, most of it in this book was frivolous. The characters had conversations that literally had no meaning, but were just filled with big, hoity-toity words to make them sound interesting. It was quite a let-down.
Young Teens
This book reminded me what I dislike about reading from a young teen’s point of view: the childishness behind it. The main character, Sophronia, is meant to be intelligent, clever, and capable. Yet, she comes across more as meddling, self-centered, and most definitely childish. Childish to the point where I found myself just rolling my eyes at some of the things she did and said. Yet, somehow, she is a perfect character who can get herself out of anything.
Lack of Depth
The book most certainly has a plot. However, it seems as though the main characters are in the dark about what’s really going on. Even so, there are no distinct questions for me to ask to figure out what might be going on. That being said, I wasn’t interested in reading further, much less reading the rest of the series.
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