Book – Prince of Hearts (Elders and Welders Chronicles #1)
Author – Margaret Foxe
Star rating - ★★★★★
Plot – very well planned and executed
Characters – very diverse and relatable

Movie Potential - ★★★★★
Ease of reading – very ease to read.
Cover - ✔
Suitable Title - ✔
Would I read it again – Yes

**I WAS GIVEN THIS BOOK, BY THE AUTHOR, IN RETURN FOR AN HONEST REVIEW**

This is my first steampunk book, ever! I have to say that it doesn't disappoint.

I was drawn into this book right from the very beginning. It gripped my heart, dragged me into the pages and made me feel for every single character.

I wasn't really sure what to make of Aline Finch, at first, but I really grew to love her. She's stubborn, independent and sticks up for herself in a time when women weren't supposed to. She's also fiery and a perfect match for Romanov. I love how she doesn't always say much, but her actions and body language screams so much more.

I love Romanov, or Sasha, and how he's got inner demons that don't just get glossed over or passed aside. I really enjoy getting to explore parts of his history, when they're appropriate. When the story demands it, we discover more about his past and how he's felt about his history.

I really like the fact that we get Sasha and Aline's POV. I think if we only got one, the story would fail, but if we had any more then it wouldn't be as enjoyable. I love seeing things from Finch's POV and then seeing how Sasha is dealing with the same event.

The two are an ideal match and I love the will-they-wont-they between them, the hot, spicy moments and the romance of the simplest elements of the story. Such simple things, that are realistic and normal, like Romanov putting her glasses back on for her or finding her adorable when she sneezes, come across as heartwarming and real.

I love the progression of the story and the criminal aspect. I'm a sucker for a great crime story and this story was that great. There was a supernatural element, the steampunk element and it all felt real and logical. There wasn't one thing that I didn't find believable or thought didn't fit the story.

The author is a really talented writer. I love the way she weaves emotional and mystery elements together, to make you care as much about the characters as you do about the solution to the crime. The whole plot is seamlessly put together, well executed and littered with little nuggets of newspaper clippings. I didn't know what to make of them at first, but then it was explained it was a really nice addition, like a parallel universe; it was super cute.

I really love the way the author combines Romanov's dark humour with the dark aspects of the book. He lightens up all situations, with his quick wit and his sarcasm. He's not, perhaps, my new favourite male MC.

Overall, a great book. Although I sussed out a few of the 'twists' in the plot, I was really happy with how they were revealed, when they were revealed and the overall execution of the book. Everything was considered in intricate detail, so that nothing was left out or left unexplained.

Due to a perfect storm of gin & tonics, cabin-visitation, and general slovenliness, I read roughly eleventy million pulp steampunk books this summer. Before they disappear into an undifferentiated stew of plucky scientist's daughters and clockwork corsets, I mean to write up just a little about each one.

 

Heretofore, I've been reviewing books from my Summer of Steampunk that aren't particularly notable. Some of this is that it's easier to be a crank; some of this is the fact that I had to get something down before I forgot clean about them. Rather than give the impression that I hate everything and why am I even reading steampulp, I wanted to get in a review of a book I enjoyed. Hey Mikey! etc. 

 

The broad strokes are thus: Aline is the personal assistant to a growly Russian dude, Sasha Romanov (and I would like to just take a moment to be a bitch about this name; really?) She quits in a fit of pique in order to marry the boring cipher she's engaged to, which puts the question to the true nature of her feelings towards her employer, &c &c. When Aline is targeted by a Jack the Ripperish murderer, a whole mess of crazy steampunkery ensues, including such things as Leonardo da Vinci, secret societies, immortals, vampires, mecha-soldiers, and the Crimean War. I generally prefer a kitchen sink approach to pulp, and this book delivers that in spades. I'll start with things that bugged, and move onto things I liked. 

 

Minuses: Prince of Hearts isn't particularly well plotted: things take too long to get started, and then happen too furiously once they do. My real problem (which became very apparent when I went to read the second in this series and had zero idea what was going on) is that the architecture of the techno-steampunkery slash paranormal taxonomy makes little sense and/or isn't explained well. I'm going to admit I don't pay attention very well to explanations or infodumps, so this could be me. Even still, I think it lacked a certain metaphorical punch necessary to be memorable.

 

Pluses: War in the Crimea, wot wot! Maybe I'm easy, but I straight up love it when people go for strange, little-remembered national conflicts in their alt-histories. I googled a little, just so I had the particulars fresh about the Crimea, and that conflict was such a pyrrhic shitshow, remembered mostly because of Florence Nightingale or the Charge of the Light Brigade. (The latter is primarily remembered because a whole mess of folk got killed attacking the wrong location. Good Lord. It's like the Battle of Thermopylae, but more of a bummer because it's stupid.) 

 

While parts of this book were wonderful, I wasn't really feeling the romance between Rayn and Celeste. I'm not one for arranged marriages though so I'm sure that I'm biased.

Celeste is a shy princess who loves mathematics. She was abused at a young age when forced into a marriage way too young. She suffered from mental and physical abuse. In Assassin's Gambit she was saved by her sister-in-law. Now many years later under the more caring upbringing of her brother she is happy.

Rayn is a foreign prince who has many misgivings towards the Kjallans. Celeste's father had been a horrible monarch so Rayn struggled to trust them. Rayn and Celeste end up taking a ship to visit one of Kjall's provinces and end up in an assassination attempt. As the two go through this adventure of determining who the assassins were, Rayn is able to get to know Celeste a little better.

The biggest problem I had with this book was that parts didn't flow well for me. Rayn seemed to be fine with everything at one moment and then out of nowhere he freaked out at Celeste because of her family and country. I really was baffled as to what set him off. It just didn't seem like a natural way to act.

I loved the scenery a lot with this book. At one point they even get to experience Inya which has volcanoes that the Fire Mages have to control to protect the people. I loved learning about this new mage type. So far with every book in this series, Raby introduces us to another mage type. I really like her magic system.

Honestly, if arranged marriages turned into love matches is your thing, you would probably really enjoy this book. It just wasn't for me. I am excited though for the series to continue.

For some reason, reading the books in the Hearts and Thrones series reminds me of a science fiction story. I have no idea why - there is really no reason for it. And yet, whenever I read it, that is the feeling that I get.

Celeste is an Imperial Princess with a genius for mathematics. As the emperor's sister, she has no expectation of a marriage for love. Her father was a cruel tyrant and she is shy and retiring. She knows that she will have to marry someone who her brother chooses based on a political alliance. Their country is recovering from years of war caused by her father and having a young princess that can be offered in marriage is too politically convenient for her brother to pass up. When trade negotiations begin with the Inyan prince, Celeste's brother Lucien is willing to trade more than just goods. He wants to trade his sister's hand in marriage and the Inyan prince and fire mage is the best prospect around.

For the full review, please go to http://www.thewindowseat13.com/2014/04/amy-raby-princes-fire.html

Prince of Hearts (The Elders and Welders... A light, fun, very enjoyable and pretty steamy read, ladies and gents! I will definitely recommend this to any fans of steampunk romance.

I only heard about Margaret Foxe last December and I confess that her marvellous cover swayed my opinion into buying and reading the book almost immediately. The main hero being a Russian prince was just a big, fat bonus point. *grinning*

The plot is essentially an easy to follow murder mystery slash romance, the world-building is thorough, but what really got me was the main heroine, Miss Finch was just riddled with wonderful flaws.

She was a horrible gambler, a penny dreadful story writer and a formidable blue stocking. I just adored her! You see, Miss Finch has been a long term secretary for Professor Romanov and she has had enough.


He is an impossible, stubborn, overbearing, extremely demanding and driven by his obsession with solving murder mysteries employer. He is also brooding and dark and a beautiful man with a string of mistresses following him around. She can't stand him, he doesn't notice her enough, and yet... nothing is as it seems. You know what is going to happen, right?

They will fall madly in love with each other among the danger and the impossibility of it all.

So if you need a bit of warmth and laughter in one of my favorite genres to start new year with a bang, this will be a nice reading choice. I'm going to read book #2 at some point, and hope you'll give Prince of Hearts a go.