The continuing adventures of "Little Red" in Melanie Karsak's steampunk fairytale world.  These stories are entertaining and fun to read, the characters are delightful and the world building imaginative.  And there are non-sparkling warewolves and other critters.

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Steampunk Red Riding Hood Series by Melanie Karsak

1.  Wolves and Daggers
2.  Alphas and Airships
3.  Peppermint and Pentacles
4.  Bitches and Brawlers
5.  Howls and Hallows.

"Today we dive so humanity survives" is the motto of the Hell Divers who risk their lives to dive to the earth's surface to scavenge for parts to keep their last two surviving airships in the air. Pretty cool slogan huh?! I think it is-I love it! The whole book was awesome and I have a huge book hangover right now!

I totally loved the airship setting and the dives to the surface. It was creative and intense and there was never a dull moment. I got so wrapped up in the story I felt like I was immersed in this whole other world for a little while. Another thing I loved about the story, there was hardly any cheesy romance in it. There were a few, very minor scenes but that was it. The plot stayed focus on the divers and the survival of the airships. The ending though had the mother of all cliffhangers but I'm not going to truly accept what happened at the end until I read the next book to see for myself. Which sucks for me because the next book has not even been written yet and I need that book right now!

I've come across several of the authors books before but I've never read any until this one. I can't believe I waited so long. I plan to read them now though while I'm waiting for the next book in this series to release. If you like post-apocalyptic stories, you should definitely give this one a try! 

*I received this ARC from NetGalley & Blackstone Publishing in exchange for an honest review! Thank you!

I was determined to finish this book, but it was hard work. I liked the premise well enough and even some of the characters. But the story itself was bogged down with frequent and sometimes long passages of detail and information that was not really relevant to the plot. Even the details that were relevant were usually included several times, which was unnecessary. I think this was in an attempt to give the reader a more full understanding of that world, but it only served to make the pace crawl along and it took a huge effort for me to stay engaged in the story.
Another thing - what is it about alternate Earths and zeppelins? So many alternate Earth stories I encounter have zeppelins in them! Maybe they seem a trifle exotic.

Thanks to Witty Bard Publishing for including "Facing the Modern World" in their inaugural anthology 'Of Airships and Automatons: Stories of Steam and Science'