Viridis - A Steampunk Romance & Mystery (The Viridis Series) [Kindle Edition]

Calista Taylor (Author)

Book Description

In steampunk Victorian London, where airships dot the sky and tinkerings abound, Lady Phoebe Hughes develops an herbal elixir, Viridis, unlike any other. London's elite flock to her club to experience the euphoria and heightened senses the drink brings, an orgasm brought on by a single kiss. But when Lord Hawthorne is murdered after leaving her club, Phoebe is shocked to find that not only was he working for the Special Services to infiltrate the Cause, a movement fighting for the city's poor, he was also in possession of her secret formulation for Viridis.

Adding to her difficulties is the unexpected return of Mr. Seth Elliott, a brilliant tinkerer who stole her heart and imagination, only to abandon her when she needed him most. Unable to ignore all that is between them, Phoebe finds herself falling for Seth once again, only to have a powerful rival for her affections wrongly accuse Seth of attempted murder. As Phoebe struggles with a way to free her love, revolution, conspiracy and murder threaten to ruin it all.

*** Author's note: Some scenes are not suitable for those under 18 years of age. ***            

Devil on a Sparrow's Wing, book 2 in the Viridis series, as well as Jack - A Grim Reaper Romance are now available.

Editorial Reviews

Review

• "Viridis is my first steampunk read, and I couldn't have chosen a better book. This was a very emotional and heartfelt love story filled with action, technology, and adventure." -- Reading Diva
• "Puts the STEAM in steampunk. Phoebe, Seth, and Gavin will keep you entertained for the entire story." -- Karen Lawson
• "The characters are rich and endearing, or villainous as the case may be. And the love scenes are tender, erotic, and passionate. Ms. Taylor has created a cross-over classic and it is only the first in a series." -- Maxwell Cynn

About the Author

Calista Taylor is an agented author of steampunk/gaslight romance with a steampunk romance series currently available and a non-fiction, steampunk clothing craft book due out in May 2012. When not running things over with a sewing machine or lacing herself into a corset, Calista can be found tapping away on her laptop, tormenting her characters, and riddling the streets of Victorian London with dead bodies and heaving bosoms. She's also a creative cook who can't follow recipes, a versatile crafter, and a happy geek.  For more information, she can be reached at calistataylor.com.

Product Details

• File Size: 560 KB
• Print Length: 304 pages
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B005KT028Q
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• X-Ray: Enabled
• Lending: Enabled
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,908 Free in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Free in Kindle Store)
  • #17 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Genre Fiction > Mystery & Thrillers > Mystery > Historical
  • #22 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Fantasy > Historical

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Dark Steampunk, Not my Cup of Tea. December 12, 2011

By Enter the Portal

Format:Kindle Edition

In its fundamentals, VIRIDIS was a good book. It was well-written with relatively few typos or formatting errors, the plot was decent, and the characters were more or less likable. The problem, I think for me, was one of taste.

VIRIDIS is dark, and I don't mean that in a blood and guts kind of way, but in a psychological, I-think-the-author-might-have-gone-slightly-off-the-deep-end kind of way. I've read a lot of dark books in the past - with S&M, blood, violence, psychopathic killers, and everything - but something about VIRIDIS really bothered me. It took me a long time to put my finger on what that thing was, and eventually I realized it was a lack of positive outcome. I guess I'm a happy-ending kind of gal, and although the book does end on an upswing for the protagonist and her lover, the pain and suffering throughout the story far outweighs the hope and joy. In fact, the very last chapter is the scene of a murder.

This is not a book for the faint of heart. There is rape, some sexual bondage, multiple murders, conspiracy, and a monster in human skin. However, for those that find the dark side of human nature fascinating, and enjoy steampunk London, this still might be a good book for you.

Characters: *** 3 Stars
Pheobe is likable and semi-realistic for an independent steampunk Victorian lady and brilliant herbal "tinkerer", though a bit delusional about her own safety. She travels about London on her own, even to the poorest parts, without an escort or bodyguard or any kind of security. She even refuses to carry a weapon. However, she's feisty and stubborn, and a bit of a revolutionary, willing to fight for who and what she believes in. Her ex-boyfriend, Seth, is also a brilliant mechanical "tinkerer".... He returns from a special mission for the Cause and pursues Pheobe with determination, trying to win back her heart and ultimately her hand in marriage. I liked that both Phoebe and Seth were ambitious and motivated individuals, but never really connected with either of them.

Secondary characters include Pheobe's brother Gabriel, who I wish played a larger part in the story (his character is integral, but we don't learn much about him until the story is almost over), and Gavin, Seth's best friend and an airship captain from Scotland that always wears a kilt.

The villain is Lord Victor Fenwick, a self-righteous cold-hearted man, who demonstrates an absolute lack of compassion as well as an impressive network of allies. I actually wanted to know more about Victor - why he was so interested in Phoebe, and how he came to be the bastard that he is. Unfortunately, his motives were never fully revealed.

Plot: *** 3 Stars
While the story was well-built with few plot holes, I had a hard time enjoying the novel. One bad thing leads to another, leads to another, and the few glimpses we have of potential happiness for the characters are quickly crushed under the weight of another lie or catastrophe. The final resolution to the murder case was also a bit disappointing, as I think the author could have done a better job of providing subtle clues throughout the novel.

Setting: ***** 5 Stars
The setting was perfect for a steampunk romance. The club, Viridis, was really well described, and the author brought Victorian London to life throughout the novel.

Romance: *** 3 Stars
I was not a fan of Seth and Phoebe's relationship. Seth was overbearing and nearly abusive in one instance, and Phoebe keeps secrets from Seth, never really trusting him completely. While this makes sense given their background (Seth left Phoebe after her sister died, when she needed him the most), I never felt like they were a good match, despite their passionate physical relationship.

Genre - Steampunk: **** 4 Stars
VIRIDIS was a solid steampunk romance novel, but didn't excite me as much as some of the others I've read. Phoebe's lab (really more of a distillery) had some interesting security measures, and some of the devices sounded cool (if a bit too futuristic for Victorian London, even steampunk Victorian London), but I wanted more ingenuity from the author. Given Phoebe's herbal elixirs, I had hoped for a bit of a twist on the regular steampunk themes, but VIRIDIS failed to deliver on that. Read more ›

51 of 57 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars good until author has main character do something completely stupid November 2, 2011

By Anastasia

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

I like steam punk and romance, and liked the characters in this story. There were some editing errors but not too many for me. BUT near the end the author has the main, female character do something incredibly stupid and out of character, given that she is supposedly an intelligent woman. SPOILER ALERT, don't read on if you don't want to know what happens. The author seems to have a penchant for BDSM, the sex scenes are almost all tinged with this, and then she has the heroine submit herself to rape by the villain, has her trust that the villain (who is villainous, obviously, so not to be trusted) that if she submits to him he will keep his word. Completely idiotic. Seems more like a rape fantasy. Ruined the whole book for me and made me not want to read more by this author.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Feisty Victorian Tinkerers Rock! September 11, 2011

By Jean Oram

Format:Kindle Edition

I agree with RCardello in that Taylor has a fresh voice. Her stories move quickly and smoothly and build a world in which you can fall into without being bogged down with unnecessary details.

I love Phoebe's verve and energy. The gal has moxie. Basically, she's a feisty little Victorian who loves science and tinkering with steam powered contraptions. In an era of keeping women in their place and following the social norms of the time, she flaunts conventions with a style, flair, and energy that will have you rooting for her. Phoebe creates an elixir that puts her and her tinkerer lover in the sights of the other side of London's steampunk world's revolution. Will she and her man survive, or will they have to give up the one thing they've finally realized is the only thing they want? (So not telling you though! You'll have to read it yourself!)

My first introduction to the world of steampunk and I loved it! (I should mention that I save 5 stars for those books that totally change my world and become a 'bible' for me. But really, I should give this one a 5 based on it's originality and entertainment value, because it's fab, dahling. Fab!)

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars Drove Off A Cliff Like Thelma and Louise May 6, 2012

By Crim

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

************************ Warning Serious Spoilers ***************************

We have here a steampunk murder mystery with some sex scenes. I wanted to like this book. I started out liking this book until it started it's suicidal accelerating drive toward the cliff into the trash bin about 1/3 of the way through.

Lets look at it's various aspects. The steampunk aspect was pretty cliche. Victorian London with airships and some other minor tech doesn't make something good steampunk. The laptop computer....errr...information module and 'fuse guns' were just silly. Even the attempt at some anarchy didn't make much sense. Almost every major upper class character in the story seemed to be on the side of the Occupy London movement otherwise known as 'the Cause'. On the other hand, the steam was a minor enough part of the story that I could have ignored it's shortcomings had the rest been well done. It wasn't.

The murder mystery started off in a promising fashion, as most do, with a body. We get introduced to many of the characters as part of the process of investigating this crime. The suspect pool gets larger with some red herrings thrown in along the way. It was this aspect of the book which kept me reading long after I'd have otherwise have deleted it. It was a sort of interesting mystery right up until the solution was given which the author apparently pulled out of some literary bodily orifice. It was like she put the names of all the characters in a hat and drew out the winner at the end like a raffle. There was no previous setup for the solution to the mystery. It could have ended up being somebody bumped into on the street in the first pages of the book and never seen again and have been no less unsatisfying.... If I'd been reading a paper book, I'd have thrown it across the room at that point.

The romance aspect seemed promising at the start. There was heroine, her main love interest, and the corrupt powerful individual who wanted her for himself. Ok, so the main love interest just pops back into her life after being gone. Fine, we have the mystery to deal with so don't need a long drawn out build up to the sex scenes. The first one was pretty decently written. The second one was as well, but not too different from the first......as were all the rest of them. The only one that stood out from the rest was the inevitable rape scene and that didn't need to be as detailed as it was. Seriously the sex scenes got to be more distracting than a turn on. Then there's the scene(s) we don't get because apparently the author is willing to hint at and eventually flat out bring in the issue of homosexuality, but unwilling to use it as more than a reason to kill off said characters and make it the reason for two of the three deaths in the book by somebody who was so minor and undeveloped as a character as to have been totally senseles. Lastly, just to make sure the hate is total, we get the final middle finger from the author. The would be suitor who is shown to have absolutely no positive qualities at all and whom, in any other book, would have met spectacular end knowing he was doomed, gets his throat slit quietly in his sleep by yet another incredibly minor character using skills that were never alluded to previously! I fully expect that this author has probably written 'Then she woke up and realized it had all been a dream' as an ending to a story and thought it was good.

This book is a sterling example of why one needs some harsh and honest content editors and reviewers. Don't bother with this one, it's a trap. Read more ›

More About the Author

Calista Taylor is an agented author of steampunk/gaslight romance and non-fiction, with a steampunk romance series currently available, and a steampunk clothing craft book due out in May 2012. She lives in New England with her husband, her two girls, an ancient cat and a crazy dog.

When not running things over with a sewing machine or lacing herself into a corset, Calista can be found tapping away on her laptop, tormenting her characters, and riddling the streets of Victorian London with dead bodies and heaving bosoms.

She's also a creative cook who can't follow recipes, a versatile crafter, and a happy geek.