Who’s afraid of the big, bad werewolf? When London’s brightest tinkers and alchemists come up missing, Red Cape Society Agent Clemeny Louvel is on the case. To help Clemeny get the problem in hand, Queen Victoria assigns her a temporary partner—a werewolf with a knightly history and a tendency to be far too flirtatious for either of their good. Can she trust him to help her chase down the monsters they’re hunting? Wolves and Daggers is a retelling of the Little Red Riding Hood fairy tale set in Melanie Karsak’s bestselling steampunk universe.
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My Review:
Let's be honest, she had me at "Steampunk Red Riding Hood."
I picked this one up a while ago, on a recommendation from another fantasy author I follow, hearing that she was a "very good author who does fairy tale re-tellings." I don't even think I fully read the blurb, I just took one look at the title and immediately wanted to get in on it.
Those who know me know that I am an absolute dragon about fairy tale re-tellings (meaning that I will collect and hoard them.) And this one is no exception!
I picked this one up a while ago, on a recommendation from another fantasy author I follow, hearing that she was a "very good author who does fairy tale re-tellings." I don't even think I fully read the blurb, I just took one look at the title and immediately wanted to get in on it.
Those who know me know that I am an absolute dragon about fairy tale re-tellings (meaning that I will collect and hoard them.) And this one is no exception!
Clemeny is a crackerjack heroine. She's smart, she's capable, she's keen, she's not infallible, and she's a team player where it counts! The whole concept of the Red Cape Society is a clever trope, turning the staple prop from the original fairy tale into a Victorian-era secret "police", as it were, tasked with monitoring and tracking (and sometimes eliminating, when the threat is deemed too large to let live) the "preternatural" element living alongside society in this alternate reality. She is paired with an older agent, Quinn, until a near-fatal altercation forces Clemeny to continue pursuing leads and tracking down suspects and missing "tinkers" (or scientist-inventors, as it were) largely on her own, or with the help of temporary and reluctant allies.
The mystery itself is well-built and paced perfectly. The plot didn't ever really stagnate, and I never really got to a "predictable" part that would have made me feel like Oh, I've read this in another story. Karsak keeps her characters and her world-building plenty fascinating, giving us Clemeny's history, how she came to live with "Grand-mere" as an orphan baby, how she was recruited into the Red Capes, and the like. The varying temperaments between the different packs of werewolves was highly fascinating, and I confess I was delighted by the touch of referring to the society of people tasked with hunting dragons as "Pellinores"--If you know, you know!
There was, of course, the pitfall of having a strong, independent female character upon whose shoulders rests the entire plot... While at the same time setting it in an era (albeit an "alternate-history era) when "strong independent females" weren't exactly fashionable... And so, of course, dear Clemeny talks more about how she "needs a man in her life", much more often than other characters say it to her... So you just know she's going to end up in a relationship at some point in the series... But although I rolled my eyes every time I saw it reiterated, it didn't detract from my enjoyment of literally everything else in the book!
I take great pleasure in granting this book a full *****5 STARS***** rating, and I'm even going to add the Upstream Writer Certified WHOLLY RECOMMENDED. It's a quick, clean read that is sure to entertain readers of every age!
Further Reading: (Steampunk/Fairy Tale Retelling/Strong Female Leads/Paranormal)
The Alexander Legacy--Sophronia Belle Lyon
-A Dodge, A Twist, and A Tobacconist
-The Pinocchio Factor
-A Dodge, A Twist, and A Tobacconist
-The Pinocchio Factor
Punk Anthologies--Writerpunk Press Group
-Sound & Fury: Shakespeare Goes Punk, Vol. 1
-Once More Unto The Breach: Shakespeare Goes Punk, Vol. 2
-What We've Unlearned: Classic Literature Goes Punk
-Sound & Fury: Shakespeare Goes Punk, Vol. 1
-Once More Unto The Breach: Shakespeare Goes Punk, Vol. 2
-What We've Unlearned: Classic Literature Goes Punk
The Red Dog Conspiracy--Patricia Loofbourrow
-The Alcatraz Coup
-Jacq of Spades
-Queen of Diamonds
-Ace of Clubs
-The Alcatraz Coup
-Jacq of Spades
-Queen of Diamonds
-Ace of Clubs
The Fair Folk Chronicles--Jeffrey Cook and Katherine Perkins
-Foul is Fair
-Street Fair
-A Fair Fight
-All's Fair
-Foul is Fair
-Street Fair
-A Fair Fight
-All's Fair
Verona: The Complete Mermaid Tales--Pauline Creeden
-Scales
-Submerged
-Salt
-Surfacing
-Scales
-Submerged
-Salt
-Surfacing
Lord of the Wyrde Woods--Nils Visser
-Escape From Neverland
-Dance Into The Wyrd
-Escape From Neverland
-Dance Into The Wyrd
Wonderland Guardian Academy Series--Pauline Creeden
-Red The Wolf Tracker
-Red The Wolf Tracker
The Time Tree Chronicles--Lisa Rae Morris
-The Emergence
-The Emergence
The PSS Chronicles--Ripley Patton
-Ghost Hand
-Ghost Hold
-Ghost Heart
-Ghost Hope
-Ghost Hand
-Ghost Hold
-Ghost Heart
-Ghost Hope
Judah Black Series--E. A. Copen
-Fortunate Son (prequel novella)
-Guilty By Association
-Blood Debt
-Fortunate Son (prequel novella)
-Guilty By Association
-Blood Debt
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