This book is marketed as Jane Austen meets Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and that tagline really is the best way to describe this story. There's a wonderful mixture of upper-class courtship between lords and ladies in the vein of Austen, with the mystery, explosions, and opium addictions Conan Doyle's fans expect. It's clear the author did a lot of research about Victorian-era England, and the details really help to make the story. 

The writing is wonderful and fits with the formality of the Victorian-era without being difficult. The story is really interesting and the mystery very compelling. Plus, the author managed to write a book about opium and its trade without being stereotypical, which is super rare. The characters are all very interesting, though not all are likable, and there is a delightful love triangle for those, like me, who adore that sort of thing. 

While I was initially very excited to read a book that included representation of speech impediments, I was disappointed with the execution. Leo stutters except when she mimics someone else's voice and the way they talk, earning her the name "Mad Miss Mimic". While the author explains in an author's note that this is medically plausible, she did make it up. Also, by the end of the story, Leo has learned to control her stutter and is able to lead a happy life. This seemed to imply that she couldn't have done those things with the stutter. All in all, this aspect of the representation left a bad taste in my mouth.

This book kind of reminded me of a Jane Austen novel. The problem with that is I am not a fan of Jane Austen. The book was slow and something about the writing style just made the main plot points seem . . . not so tragic or suspenseful. I won't give anything away, but there were a couple of times where I actually had to reread a couple of paragraphs because I didn't even realize something major had happened. That was probably my fault though. There were some sections that were just too slow and boring and I would lose focus because of it and then I would miss an explosion or a death. 

I did like the main character though and that's probably why gave it three stars. I really felt for Leo and her stutter. I thought it was interesting that she could mimic anyone's voice (hence the nickname, "Mad Miss Mimic" and I kind of liked the attitude that the imitation of other people was basically a whole separate person inside of Leo. The problem was that Leo never really new what her own voice sounded like. Her sister was trying to basically find her a husband and Leo was desperate for someone who would accept her for who she was. I didn't really care for the love triangle, but I kind of liked the plot. Some of it didn't make sense, but essentially there was a Black Glove group that was terrorizing the city and the government thought banning opium would be the answer. Some things in the plot were predictable. In the love triangle, I could tell who Leo would end up with and I kind of predicted who the bad guy was. But I didn't know why they were doing what they were doing so that was a nice twist. The resolution of the romance was satisfying, but it felt like it took SO LONG to get there. And I still don't understand why the Black Glove group did some of the things they did. 

I can see why other people loved this one a lot, but unfortunately it just wasn't for me. The plot and the characters were well done. I just thought the writing style was a bit blah.

It physically pains me to think about this book, even though the second half was meh. And meh is reeeeeally good compared to the first half.
I was SO excited to read this: I hadn't read a book that had a main character (who isn't a child) that had a stutter before! The title is so interesting, the cover is gorgeous: what better way to get readers interested in a book? Well, maybe I should've been wary of the vague synopsis.

I was considering giving this book one star when I was thinking about DNFing it 100 pages in; I always give a book at least 50 pages, so this was kind of generous. I'm glad I didn't, though, so I can say the last 100 pages were a tiny bit better (tiny), and to be able to put it on my read shelf, AND to be able to firmly argue with anyone that liked this book.

To simply put it, MAD MISS MIMIC has no real plot. It's just a few different elements/storylines and characters thrown together in hopes of a plot being born. I have no idea how to describe what happened in MAD MISS MIMIC. The synopsis I've seen on various websites has to reveal one of the biggest "twists" just to get readers intrigued. It has one of those vague lines I hate: "Leo must search for truth in increasingly dangerous situations - but to do so, she must first find her voice." What does that mean?

Now, the reason I didn't give MAD MISS MIMIC only one star is because of the second half. Even though it was predictable, I still was wondering if this book could get better! (Spoiler alert: it didn't.) I was waiting, waiting, waiting for a major reveal, but alas, none came.

And maybe it's my fault I picked up this book and hated it: I requested it on NetGalley solely for its cover and title, and not at all for the boring synopsis that would've led me to know I shouldn't read this book in fear of boring characters and no plot. But oh well.

MAD MISS MIMIC is "meh" at best, and I'm sorry I spent 30 days of my life struggling through it, but we can't go back now, can we? I recommend this to anyone who needs an answer to this question: "What is the worst or most boring book you've ever read?"

Loved it! 
The setting was refreshing, the stuttering main character original and the story unfolds uniquely. I think readers, tired of the same old same old will enjoy this unique story, and maybe learn a little bit at the same time. I will be suggesting this online and to the students in my school. Thank you!

I gave this one a valiant effort but I COULDN'T get into it and that super bummed me out :( I wish I had been able to, but it wasn't a page turner for me and it took too long to pick up.