#BookReview The Dastardly Miss Lizzie by Viola Carr (@viola_carr) @HarperVoyagerUS @FreshFiction

The Dastardly Miss Lizzie by Viola Carr
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Dr. Eliza Jekyll must turn to her dark side, Miss Lizzie Hyde, to stop a madman targeting London’s most important scientists and sorcerers terrorizing the city with dark magic in this third Electric Empire novel—a dazzlingly original steampunk fantasy set in the gritty world of alternate Victorian London, with echoes of H G. Wells classic, The Time Machine

Being two people in one body isn’t easy. Metropolitan Police crime scene physician Eliza Jekyll is trying to maintain a semblance of control, even as her rebellious second self, Lizzie, grows increasingly wild—threatening the respectable Eliza’s reputation and her marriage to Remy Lafayette, the Royal Society investigator and occasional lycanthrope. With England on the brink of war, Remy’s away in sorcery-riddled Paris on a secretive mission that grows ever more sinister. Has he been an enemy agent all along? Or is coping with Eliza’s secret divided self finally driving her mad?

Eliza needs her mind clear and sharp if she’s to catch an evil genius who is killing eminent scientists. The chase uncovers a murky world of forbidden books, secret laboratories, and a cabal of fanatical inventors whose work could change the world—or destroy it—and who may hold answers to Eliza's past.

As sorcery-wielding terrorists attack London, Eliza discovers her own enemies are closing in, driving her to desperate measures—enlisting the aid of the wily, resourceful, mercurial Lizzie—to thwart the killer. But Lizzie’s got her own life now, and true to her nature, will resort to the devious and diabolical to keep it. Even if it means throwing Eliza to the wolves, and letting the world burn. . . .

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THE DASTARDLY MISS LIZZIE is book three in the Electric Empire series. For those of you that are unfamiliar with this series the books are about Dr. Eliza Jekyll/Miss Lizzie Hyde. Yes, they are the same person, but if you are familiar with the classic book DR. JEKYLL AND MR. HYDE by Robert Louis Stevenson the names of the main characters will ring a bell. Eliza is the daughter of Dr. Jekyll. And, like her father Eliza has a wild alter ego, Lizzie. Through the books Eliza tried to control Lizzie, but it's hard to control someone that is part of you. And, sometimes, she needs the wild Lizzie to take control.

READ THE REST OF THE REVIEW OVER AT FRESH FICTION!

Cover Crush: The Dastardly Miss Lizzie by Viola Carr

Erin over at Flashlight Commentary is the one that came up with the cover crush idea and I loved it so much that I decided that every Thursday would I post a cover that I really love. 

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You know what at first glance before I checked out the bigger pic of this cover on Goodreads did I not really fancy the cover as much as I love the previous two books cover. I think the purple color just didn't rock my boat. However, when I took a closer lock at the cover and then found this large picture on Edelweiss did I find myself quite taken with the cover.

Description:

Dr. Eliza Jekyll must turn to her dark side, Miss Lizzie Hyde, to stop a madman targeting London’s most important scientists and sorcerers terrorizing the city with dark magic in this third Electric Empire novel—a dazzlingly original steampunk fantasy set in the gritty world of alternate Victorian London, with echoes of H G. Wells classic, The Time Machine

Being two people in one body isn’t easy. Metropolitan Police crime scene physician Eliza Jekyll is trying to maintain a semblance of control, even as her rebellious second self, Lizzie, grows increasingly wild—threatening the respectable Eliza’s reputation and her marriage to Remy Lafayette, the Royal Society investigator and occasional lycanthrope. With England on the brink of war, Remy’s away in sorcery-riddled Paris on a secretive mission that grows ever more sinister. Has he been an enemy agent all along? Or is coping with Eliza’s secret divided self finally driving her mad?

Eliza needs her mind clear and sharp if she’s to catch an evil genius who is killing eminent scientists. The chase uncovers a murky world of forbidden books, secret laboratories, and a cabal of fanatical inventors whose work could change the world—or destroy it—and who may hold answers to Eliza's past.

As sorcery-wielding terrorists attack London, Eliza discovers her own enemies are closing in, driving her to desperate measures—enlisting the aid of the wily, resourceful, mercurial Lizzie—to thwart the killer. But Lizzie’s got her own life now, and true to her nature, will resort to the devious and diabolical to keep it. Even if it means throwing Eliza to the wolves, and letting the world burn. . . .

Except for wily, resourceful, mercurial Lizzie. But Lizzie’s got her own life now. And she’ll do anything to keep it. Even if it means attempting the unspeakable and finding her own body. Even if it means throwing Eliza to the wolves, and letting the world burn. . ..

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Check out this week's cover crush over at 

Flashlight Commentary

2 Kids and Tired Books

Layered Pages 

The Maidens Court

The Devious Dr. Jekyll by Viola Carr

The Devious Dr. Jekyll by Viola Carr
My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Dr. Eliza Jekyll (and Lizzie Hyde) and Remy Lafayette are back in The Devious Dr. Jekyll, the sequel to the fantastic The Diabolical Miss Hyde. Once again they have to team up to find a killer, this time, a ritual torturer called the Pentacle Killer. But, there is an enemy that could very well destroy Eliza, and it's not the dangerous Razor Jack who escaped in the confrontation at the end of the last book. No, the enemy is much closer. Much…much closer…

To say that I was very eager to read this book is an understatement. This is by far one of my favorite Steampunk series. But, actually, that isn't saying so much because despite liking the genre I do not read much Steampunk and for two good reasons. First, and most, I so damn sick and tired of vampires! Steampunk and vampires seem to go hand in hand in a way that I just can't understand. I can take anything, zombies, werewolves, monsters whatever, but please no more vampires. Secondly, the damn romance thing, with of course a lot of sex scenes because a book must have at least 250-200 pages and if the plot is razor thin, why not fill it out with sex.Gah!

This book, however, has a plot, an interesting, complex, and enthralling plot (and no vampires). I especially enjoyed reading this book because of the mix of historical characters with literary characters. The mystery is intriguing and Viola Carr has created great characters. Poor Eliza has to fight with Lizzie her devious counterpart who is yearning to be free. Remy Lafayette has his own secret and then there is Mr. Todd, Razor Jack, the dangerous serial killer who seem to be quite taken with Eliza, and her with him, although her fascination with him could be based on a wish to cure him because if she can perhaps, then she can cure herself…

I was a bit surprised of Eliza's and Remy's “relationship”. In the first book I got the feeling it was Lizzie he liked most, but in this, it seemed that Eliza was the one he is after. But then again, they are the same person and it would perhaps be easier to have a relationship with the one in “control”. Personally, I'm not totally sold when it comes to their relationship. I do prefer her more dangerous bond with Razor Jack. But, then again, he is a serial killer so perhaps Remy is better for her (although he has his own problem…hmm)…

I loved this book and I hope for a third book soon!

The Diabolical Miss Hyde by Viola Carr

The Diabolical Miss Hyde by Viola Carr
My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

There is a murderer loose in London that is slicing of women’s limbs for some insidious purpose. Dr. Eliza Jekyll is a crime scene investigator and she is called out to the first crime scene and there she meets Captain Lafayette from the Royal Society. She must be very careful around him since magic is strictly forbidden and the Captain is hunting anyone that uses magic of any kind. But the need for her to take the elixir is sometimes too strong for her to resist.

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I bought The Diabolical Miss Hyde a couple of months ago, well this spring actually. And, I even started to read it, but then other books came between and then a couple of weeks ago did I finally return to it. And, oh Wow! This is a fantastical great steampunk book.

I liked Eliza Jekyll and Lizzie Hyde very much and I liked that Lizzie and Captain Lafayette relationship which is, even more, interesting because Eliza isn’t feeling the same way about him and since they share the same body is that a bit of a problem. The same body? Yes, Eliza and Lizzie are “the daughter” of Henry Jekyll from the classic book: The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. And, Eliza is the good daughter and Lizzie is the bad one that is turned loose when Eliza drinks her father’s elixir.

I loved that the book had no vampires or that it felt YA. Instead, it felt gloriously dark and adult to read. Yes, the story could be a bit predictable. It wasn’t that hard to figure out who was the guardian for Eliza Jekyll and Lizzie Hyde and I wasn’t that surprised when the true killer was revealed. But, nevertheless, I enjoyed reading this book immensely.

I was very curious about Eliza’s “relationship” with Razor Jack (Malachi Todd), a serial killer that she caught before everything happened in this book. Eliza and Todd felt a bit like Clarice and Hannibal Lecter. I especially got that vibe when she was in the mental hospital where he is and he is telling her what the killers wants (well telling her very subtle, she had to figure it out herself of course). Does it feel a bit weird to ship Eliza with Jack? Yeah, it does, but I just can’t help it. And then again Eric Northman (Sookie Stackhouse series by Charlaine Harris) is hardly a saint and I liked him. I hope to read in the future about how Eliza captured him, not just as a flashback in a book. I want the whole story.