Brass Carriages and Glass Hearts
Emmeline (Emme), an advocate for the rights of the Shifter community, is the newly elected spokeswoman for an upcoming summit meeting in Scotland. Fiercely independent, she is the mouthpiece for the downtrodden and stands resolutely against injustice. Thwarting her efforts are her disagreeable stepsisters, the Predatory Shifter Regulations Committee, and its evil president. Her devoted mother insists on a bodyguard to accompany Emme and Detective Oliver Reed, her onetime nemesis, takes the job, much to Emme’s dismay. True to the clean and proper romantic theme she gradually sees a different side of the detective who has dogged her shifter rights’ steps since day one. Annoyance and mistrust soon turn to mutual respect, affection, and love as the adventure turns deadly. A race against time in a brass carriage, an arrival moments before the midnight deadline, a shimmering gown topped off with delicate stylish shoes, (Emme’s lost one is returned by Oliver), round off the Cinderella-esque story.
Automaton butlers, scribers, horseless travelers, flying machines, and the eponymous brass carriages transport us into Allen’s fourth in the series of a fairy-tale steampunk world of shifters and vampires, marginalised citizens both good and evil. Another excellent addition to the genre.
