Her Ladyship’s Curse by Lynn Viehl

Disenchanted & Co., Book 1, Part #1

Synopsis: In a steampunk version of America that lost the Revolutionary War, Charmian (Kit) Kittredge makes her living investigating magic crimes and exposing the frauds behind them. While Kit tries to avoid the nobs of high society, as the proprietor of Disenchanted & Co. she follows mysteries wherever they lead.

Lady Diana Walsh calls on Kit to investigate and dispel the curse she believes responsible for carving hateful words into her own flesh as she sleeps. While Kit doesn’t believe in magic herself, she can’t refuse to help a woman subjected nightly to such vicious assaults. As Kit investigates the Walsh family, she becomes convinced that the attacks on Diana are part of a larger, more ominous plot—one that may involve the lady’s obnoxious husband.

Sleuthing in the city of Rumsen is difficult enough, but soon Kit must also skirt the unwanted attentions of nefarious deathmage Lucien Dredmore and the unwelcome scrutiny of police Chief Inspector Thomas Doyle. Unwilling to surrender to either man’s passion for her, Kit struggles to remain independent as she draws closer to the heart of the mystery. Yet as she learns the truth behind her ladyship’s curse, Kit also uncovers a massive conspiracy that promises to ruin her life—and turn Rumsen into a supernatural battleground from which no one will escape alive.

Review: I knew Lynn Viehl by another paranormal romance series but I admit that I was immediately intrigued by this new book. I love steampunk stories and mixing it with investigations could only be promising. And indeed, after reading the first book I can only recommend the series and the author. The worst thing that happened to me was to get to the end of the first part and understand that I would have to wait to read more of it. The novel ends in effect in the middle of the story and I must say that I found it terrible not being able to read more. I strongly advise to have both books before you start reading the whole story. But back to the story …

Kit is a young woman who doesn’t believe in magic, and from this belief she has a job. She is hired to show the world that mages are just charlatans, and that there aren’t any real curses or anything like that. However, our young heroine will quickly realize that everything is more complicated than that. When her investigation takes a complex turn, we will discover some truths about her past but also a large plot that only gets reveal here. A fascinating story full of action, danger, investigations and magic. A very good mix making an unique story.

I loved the story and the characters that we discover here. Kit is a young independent woman in a world that is not easy and where women have very few rights. She manages to stand up against those who denigrate and face the world with only her two best friends. These last two are also great to discover, one is a queen of the night, the other the wife of a rich man. Three people with a completely atypical profile and yet the loved each other a lot. They are there to support one or the other when necessary and do not hesitate to endanger themselves. But enough about the women, because of course we also have two very intriguing men! On one side we find Thomas Doyle, a descendant of an old friend of her mother, a policeman but who is also interested in our heroine and on the other side we can find a deathmage Lucien Dredmore who dreams about Kit since the first time he laid his eyes on her. I confess that I have a penchant for Lucien, although his manners aren’t the best. Yet even if it means alienating kit, he does not hesitate to do what he thinks right to protect her! And I must tell you that this is not, but not at all to the taste of our heroine! Yet there is something that attracts us and I’m really looking forward to know more about him.

It was a very good novel, or at least a very good first part and I am very eager to read more now. A wonderful beginning that I’m sure will continue in the next novel.

5

mellianefini

11 thoughts on “Her Ladyship’s Curse by Lynn Viehl

  1. I hate those kind of endings even more than cliffies. At least with cliffies you end hanging… with the abrupt endings it’s like you are thrown off the cliff. So, even though this sounds promising, I don’t think it is for me. Brilly review though!

  2. I just read somewhere else that the book will be available next year as one paperback with both stories. So I will wait very impatiently for that one. I am glad you liked it Melliane!

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