Review: Soulless

Soulless

By Gail Carriger

Publication date: October 1, 2009

My rating: *****

My review:

Soulless is set in an alternate Victorian England where vampires and werewolves have revealed their presence and are members of society. Alexia Tarabotti is known for being a half-Italian bluestocking but very few people know that Alexia is also preternatural. She is considered "soulless" because she can nullify the powers of vampires and werewolves by her touch. This interesting ability puts her in harms way as someone is attacking rogue vampires and werewolves all over the country. When Alexia accidentally kills a vampire, she is brought to the attention of Lord Conall Maccon, a werewolf Alpha and head of the investigation into the disappearances. Sparks fly between Alexia and Conall as she sets out against his advice to find out what is going on.

This is a delighful novel with plenty of wit, mystery, and romance. Alexia is a fantastic character. She is very intelligent but at the same time she isn't perfect-she thinks poorly of herself and feels unnattractive because of the attitude of her mother and stepfamily. She is also stubborn which lands her in some hot water at times. Alexia's family is annoying and they are mostly mean to her, relegating her to spinster status and treating her badly. Her mother reminded me of Mrs. Bennet from Pride and Prejudice and her stepsisters were not unlike Kitty and Lydia Bennet. Lord Maccon is a great romantic interest for Alexia. He is her equal and he respects her intelligence and abilities. I also loved the verbal sparring between them. There are some other really likeable characters such as Professor Lyall, Lord Maccon's Beta who is kind of a Dr. Watson character and Lord Akeldama, a vampire with a penchant for fashion who is a loyal friend to Alexia.

The mystery behind the disappearances is interesting. The villains are truly horrible and ruthless and I enjoyed the suspense as Alexia and Conall tried to solve the mystery. I also liked the worldbuilding and enjoyed finding out about the way the vampire hives and werewolf packs worked. I definitely preferred the werewolves to the vampires because with the exception of Lord Akeldama I found them to be really creepy while the werewolves seemed likeable and more like humans.

I thought Soulless was a fantastic paranormal romance. I enjoyed the historical setting and the humor.  I would suggest this to those who enjoy paranormal romance and historical romance. I can't wait to read more about Alexia and the other characters in Changeless, book two in the Parasol Protectorate series.